Ψ Backstreet Boys Ψ

Remember the good old days when the Backstreet Boys and ‘NSYNC were battling it out for boy-band

supremacy, yet they wanted it to look like there was no rivalry and that things were cool between the two

groups? Well, all these years later, the Backstreet Boys finally admit that there was definitely some

competition during the late-’90s pop explosion.

“A healthy competition creates this big ball of energy that just doesn’t stop and continues to grow,” Nick

Carter said. “Obviously, with ‘NSYNC and with us — we’re allowed to say it now, it’s OK — it was a lot of fun,

and it pushed us to be better as a group. I’m sure it pushed them as well. It’s just like [Michael] Jordan and

[John] Starks … and the world loves it. We were happy to be a part of it. And we’re still striving to be better.”

“We all fed each other,” Howie Dorough agreed. “Everyone was trying to be on top of their game. … The

media sometimes made us out to have a rivalry going on. … There was never any animosity amongst us, but it

made for a lot of fun for the fans to get out there and support both sides.”

And it wasn’t just during the fun times that loyal Backstreet Boys fans stood by their sides. The guys recall the

time when A.J. McLean used the “Total Request Live” stage to tell the world that he was going into rehab in

2001. He says he chose “TRL” — which ends its 10-year run November 16 — because it was the obvious place

for a pop act to go when announcing big news.

“I was definitely happy with that decision,” McLean said. “We had talked about how we were going to

approach it. I left it up to the four other guys, ’cause I was going through such turmoil in my head. But I think

the reason why we picked ‘TRL’ was because it was our hub. That’s where everything started for us. … What

better way to reach the fans? What better place for us to talk to people and be that honest with the

situation?

“I still, to this day, have not watched the episode,” he added. “I’ve seen bits and pieces of it, and then when

I see Kevin cry, I stop.”

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the guys recall having the power to shut down the center of the Big Apple

during a “TRL.” “You used to be able to see out the windows, and then after that, they blacked out the

windows and wouldn’t let us go near the windows,” Brian Littrell remembered. “We literally shut down Times

Square. I remember it being calmer, then it became crazy.”

The guys will be on hand for the “TRL” finale, where they’ll be performing some fan favorites for the crowd.

Nick isn’t ready to see it go. “Sad. This is something that we’ve been a part of since the beginning,” he said.

“So many great memories. Why are you taking it off? What’s wrong with you guys? Things have to change.”

The guys are no stranger to change. In 2006, founding member Kevin Richardson left the group, and now the

guys are pursuing “new goals.” Dorough said Richardson is in “such a good place right now,” raising a family

and pursuing an acting career.

“In the beginning of the tour [this year], we left a gap onstage where Kevin would be, and then it started

closing up,” Carter said. “We love him to death. We have to move on. We have new goals and dreams.”

The guys have since released new music and plan to release more next year. They also continue to tour, all

with Richardson’s blessing. And despite how weird it still is to not have him around, they have no plans to

slow down anytime soon. “We’re the happiest we’ve ever been. We’re all united,” McLean said, and Carter

added that this is going to be the beginning of a new era — a fresh start for the guys.

And pop music today is as hot as it was nearly a decade ago, thanks to acts like the Jonas Brothers, and the

Backstreet Boys are passing the boy-band torch to their former tourmates. “They opened for us on the ‘Never

Gone Tour.’ They’re a talented bunch of kids. They’re growing up fast,” Littrell added. “I don’t feel reluctant to

give them advice. I’ll never forget: We were doing a show in Florida with the Temptations, and one of those

guys stood up and said, ‘This is show business, and as you’re doing your show, your business could be

running out on you.’ I’ll never forget that.”

Source: MTV

以下為我的不負責任翻譯：

大家是不是還記得當年BSB和N’Sync之間的男孩天團爭霸呢？

這麼多年過去後，BSB承認了當時的競爭心態。

AJ認為良性的競爭，是為了讓大家都能夠更加的進步。

Nick說：現在的我們來回顧過去的競爭是很OK的事情，甚至看起來還有些有趣。

競爭的正面能量可以讓我們彼此都更加進步，就像Michael Jordan 及John Starks，即便彼此競爭，

但還是獲得全世界的喜愛與崇拜。我們不只要好，還要更好。

TRL---即將在2008年11月16日邁入歷史。但TRL卻是讓BSB進入輝煌時代的主要節目之一。

我們努力的談論該如何能夠上這樣一個被當時喻為流行始祖的節目，

AJ說到，直到今天我仍忘不了Kevin激動的淚水。

Brian也表示，我們忘不了站在那片落地窗往外看，看見那一整片的歌迷在時代廣場前尖叫、瘋狂的等待著、看著我們的演出。

2006年，Kevin選擇了新的目標及人生，離開了BSB。但我們還是留下Kevin的舞台，

Nick說：“We love him to death.”但我們仍需要往前走，有新的目標，新的夢想。

BSB從那之後也發布了新的音樂，明年預計會有更多的個人專輯及團體專輯發布，

所有的人雖然都不適應，但仍然要去接受Kevin已經離開的事實。

Nick表示說，這是一個新的時代，我們嶄新的起點。

直到今天，流行音樂仍然是樂壇裡的主力，The Jonas Brothers則是今天流行樂壇上天才型的新秀，

而Brian則說，他永遠都不會忘記The Jonas Brothers再佛羅里達表演時曾經對他說過個一句話：我們所做的是娛樂業，而一不小心就會毀於一旦。