Chart Displacement: Despite their signature songs being super successful, they never scored a #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (unlike their rivals *NSYNC who did have a #1 hit with "It's Gonna Be Me" in 2000). Their highest charting song on the Hot 100 is not "I Want It That Way" (#6) nor "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" (#4), but "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)" (#2).note "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)" was blocked from the top spot by "Mo Money Mo Problems" by The Notorious B.I.G. and "Honey" by Mariah Carey. Most of that was because their singles lacked a major retail push; despite massive amounts of airplay, some of their early songs like "As Long as You Love Me" were unable to chart on the Hot 100 at all due to not receiving a retail release. (The policy was changed in December of 1998.)
Subverted on the Billboard Mainstream Top 40 Charts where they had two #1 hits, including "Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely", and of course, their signature song, "I Want It That Way". The same goes for their deserving top 10 hits.
Creator Backlash: In this video when asked of their least favorite of their songs, they almost unanimously say "If You Want It to Be Good Girl (Get Yourself a Bad Boy)". With Brian mocking Nick's singing to boot.
Executive Meddling: As documented in The Boy Band Con, the individual members of both this group and *NSYNC admitted that neither they nor their parents (or even any lawyers) looked over their contracts with Lou Pearlman thoroughly enough when he first hired them. While Pearlman provided every living expense and luxury to all of his performers for the many years he was building them up, they all found out the hard way that it was only because they were being paid for by a huge fraction of their earnings from performances, record sales, and merchandise, leaving them each with a profit only $10,000 by 1998. Brian was livid and immediately proposed suing Pearlman to the other band members. When he finally showed the contract to a lawyer, he told Brian that it was "one of the worst contracts [he'd] ever seen" and that the whole thing was designed so that Pearlman could profit off of them. Both groups ended up breaking their contracts with Pearlman shortly thereafter.note As the documentary also shows, the music projects were just one of several income sources in a massive ponzi scheme all tied to Trans Continental Airlines Inc., the airline service where he'd originally made his fortune.... which itself turned out to only ever exist on paper (All of the planes were leased from other companies. The actual photos of planes with the company's logo? Model airplanes he'd taken false perspective photos of himself at a local airport.), as did the law firm which helped him secure bank loans. He then conned elderly Floridians into making investments in TCA and funneled their life savings into a German bank account. After he was found guilty of embezzling over $3 million through these various cons in 2008, Pearlman was sentenced to 25 years in prison, of which he only served eight before his death from cardiac arrest in 2016.
Genre Relaunch: While not solely responsible, Backstreet's breakthrough in the US was instrumental in reviving bubblegum vocal pop just under a decade after the Milli Vanilli scandal and the rise of Grunge completely obliterated its popularity.
The Pete Best: The Backstreet Boys had two members who dropped out (and were replaced with Kevin and Brian) before the group made it big: Sam Licata and Charles Edwards. Charles eventually formed — and subsequently dropped out of — another group with one Chris Kirkpatrick, leading to the creation of what would become *NSYNC.
No Budget: The group still cheerfully complains about the music video for "We've Got it Goin' On" having a budget close to zero and having to provide their own wardrobe and cars as well as ask friends and family to be extras in order to get the video made. They also wryly note that someone on the production team must have hated them because the only pieces of clothing they were provided were heavy layers of denim and leather that they had to wear outdoors on the hottest day of an Orlando summer.
Romance on the Set: Brian Littrell met his wife Leighanne Wallace on the set of the music video of "As Long as You Love Me".
Technology Marches On: "The Call" is a clear reflection the early 2000s cell phone era with the cheating boyfriend calling instead of texting. The "low battery" excuse could still work, though.
Throw It In!: Howie D. farted while recording "The Call", and since it was in key, producer Max Martin managed to incorporate it into the song's bassline.
What Could Have Been: A couple of examples, regarding which songs would be released as singles.
Originally, when there were plans to finally get the group back to releasing music in US after previously focusing on European market, the original choice for their comeback single was "If You Want It to Be Good Girl". However, the group argued against it (see Creator Backlash), and so "Quit Playing Games (with My Heart)" was chosen instead.
The first single from their third album Millenium was going to be "Larger Than Life", which would follow the formula of previous two albums, which also had an upbeat dance song as their lead single. However, in order to break from the formula, mid-tempo tune "I Want It That Way" was instead released as the first single, with "Larger Than Life" being released as the second one.
And speaking of Millenium singles, the final single was originally going to be "Don't Want You Back", but the group had fans vote on the subject on TRL, and after Nick himself called in and casted a vote for "The One", his huge fanbase followed his example, eventually beating "Don't Want You Back". As a result, "The One" was released as the fourth and final single from the album.
"Drowning" was originally going to have a very literal music video where the boys get rained on and a flash flood drowns a desert. When the results turned out unsatisfactory, they shot a new video of them simply singing in a park.
Written by Cast Member: The boys themselves began writing their own material beginning from "Black and Blue".
The Rivalry
Yes, BSB and *NSYNC did have the same management team, same producers, same record label, and what have you; and the latter basically rode off the coat tails of the former on their way to stardom. So it's no wonder that you would have a Fandom Rivalry. But the only real rivalry was between AJ and Chris, who had a fight because they'd dated the same girl, years before either group made it big - and they've long since buried the hatchet. This clip clears things up; the bottom line is they never truly hated each other's guts, and were simply friendly and competitive.
Heck, JC even gave BSB a helping hand on their album, Unbreakable and he helped produce a song on AJ's solo album.
*NSYNC covered "Quit Playing Games With My Heart", just for kicks.
You can actually find photos of the two groups hanging out together as well as individually.
Lance and his fiance have attended Backstreet shows, as well as Joey and JC.
Lance once surprised AJ on a music discussion show where they poked fun at each other and did this Instagram exchange.
Nick has since joked that after watching *NSYNC's VMA reunion, he wished it was longer so they could re-ignite their Friendly Rivalry for fun and nostalgia's sake.
Nick: There was a part of me deep down inside that was almost disappointed. I'm like, bring back the rivalry. Let's do an *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys tour. Bring it on.
Chris had actually auditioned for Backstreet but was passed over for Howie. They also attended Valencia Community College and were in the college choir together. According to Howie, this was how Chris initially met Lou Pearlman.
In a heartwarming mention, after AJ announced he was going to rehab for addiction, *NSYNC were seen at the 2001 Teen Choice Awards offering hugs and support to Nick, who was the only one in the band who attended the show.
BSB were initially booked to record a concert special for the Disney Channel, but were forced to decline due to Brian undergoing heart surgery. *NSYNC replaced them, which really kickstarted their American career thanks to repeat airings of the special.
During a charity basketball game in Germany in 1997, the two groups were on opposing teams, so they tradedAJfor Lance. After the game, Brian and Nick snuck out to eat at McDonald's with JC and Justin of *NSYNC. During the meal, they compared notes to what Lou Pearlman told each of them about the other boy band. Brian eventually saw Lou Pearlman as the real rival, rather than *NSYNC. The next day, he told the band he wanted to sue Pearlman.
Chris attended Howie's wedding and AJ attended Lance's wedding.
AJ and Kevin have clarified that the rivalry was created in the first place by Pearlman as a tactic to force Backstreet to overwork themselves. He would also do the same with *NSYNC, which lead the two groups to leave his management and later sue him.
This vine from San Diego Comic-Con. The reason Nick, AJ, and Joey were there? Nick was making a zombie Western movie and got AJ and Joey to join in.
AJ has said that his wife was actually a bigger *NSYNC fan than she was of Backstreet. Plus, he and Joey grew up in overlapping social circles as teens in Orlando.
Nick has stated that the reason he wanted to do Dancing with the Stars was because Joey, Lance, and his brother Aaron competed on the show, and Drew Lachey won.
Or as AJ put it on an Instagram of himself and Chris:
skulleeroz: Yeah if this doesn't squash the rivalry I don't know what does.
Joey Fatone was a surprise guest at their Las Vegas residency. He proceeded to kiss Nick and pick up AJ as if he weighed nothing.
Lance Bass was in the audience during another show and they brought him up onstage and sang "Shape of My Heart" to him.
Both groups, along with Aaron Carter (Nick's younger brother), participated in the europop Supergroup Bravo All Stars.
In both fandoms, there remains an infamous incident on TRL that even 25 years later, even Carson still remembers. Tiffany was a diehard BSB fan who lost a trivia contest to an NSYNC fan, and she threatened to kill not just the other fan, but Carson as well.
Miscellaneous Trivia
Naming the band the "Backstreet Boys" was intended to give them a bit of Street Cred by pretending that these singer/dancers were tough kids from the street who made it good. Problem is, the street they were named after is possibly the safest street in all of Orlando, Florida (the city from which they originate). In Orlando, Back Street is a glorified alley that separates the headquarters of the Orlando Police Department from the Orange County Courthouse, and on any given day it has a 12 to 1 police-to-civilian population ratio. It has never been the scene of any sort of crime.
They also allegedly got the name from the Backstreet Market flea market near International Drive, a popular after-school hangout. (The flea market has since been demolished and replaced by another outlet mall.)
when asked of their least favorite of their songs, they almost unanimously say "If You Want It to Be Good Girl (Get Yourself a Bad Boy)". With Brian mocking Nick's singing to boot.