Boys and Men

Lore & Background

BOYS AND MEN started as a large organization with several dozen members, performing musicals in Nagoya. Their early work received no critical acclaim; even future members Masato Yoshihara and Yuki Tamura found the acting and performances unbearably bad. The group's distinctive Yankee-style school uniform originated from costumes in their second musical, 'White Tights,' and was initially worn only by spin-off unit YanKee5 before being adopted by all members. The group has two spin-off units: YanKee5, embodying the Yankee style, and Makoto, formed as a 'younger brother' unit. Members have consistently resisted the idol label, with leader Masaru Mizuno stating in 2019, 'When asked if we're idols, I don't think we're idols.' Producer Seiji Taniguchi described their appeal as being like 'your brothers or friends in the neighborhood.'

Reader's Guide

BOYS AND MEN's significance lies in their role as pioneers of regional male idols in Japan, operating outside the dominant structures of Johnny's, EXILE TRIBE, and K-POP. Oricon cited them as a successful example of a male group charting a separate path, alongside Da-iCE and EBiDAN acts. Their refusal to be called idols, instead embracing an 'entertainment group' identity that included inline skating and illusions, challenged conventional idol definitions. Their base in Nagoya and focus on local revitalization—epitomized by the catchphrase 'Nagoya Town Revitalization Brothers'—helped establish a model for regionally-focused idol groups. Despite early poor reception, their commercial success with number-one singles on both Oricon and Billboard Japan Hot 100 demonstrated that regional groups could achieve national prominence. Their legacy includes influencing how male performance groups in Japan can blend musicality, variety skills, and local identity.

Did You Know?

• The group's trademark Yankee-style school uniform was derived from costumes in their second musical, 'White Tights,' and originally worn only by spin-off unit YanKee5.
• Their single 'BOYMEN Ninja' reached number one on both the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart and the Billboard Japan Hot 100.
• Members have repeatedly stated 'BOYS AND MEN are not idols,' instead calling themselves an 'entertainment group' that performed inline skating and illusions.
• The group was originally an organization with several dozen members and has been a five-member group since April 2023.

From a Blimp Hangar to a Boy Band

The Backstreet Boys trace their origins to a 1992 newspaper ad placed by manager Lou Pearlman in the Orlando Sentinel, seeking young singers who could blend a New Kids on the Block aesthetic with a Boyz II Men vocal texture. Hundreds of performers auditioned at Pearlman's blimp hangar in Kissimmee, Florida, before Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, and Kevin Richardson were chosen. Dorough and AJ McLean, both Orlando natives, had connected through a shared vocal coach, while Richardson and cousin Brian Littrell had grown up singing in church choirs in Lexington, Kentucky. Richardson had relocated to Orlando in 1990, splitting his time between Walt Disney World and nighttime music study. Littrell flew down from Kentucky on April 20, 1993, completing the lineup. The name came from the Backstreet Market, a teen-friendly flea market near International Drive. Their first public performance took place at SeaWorld Orlando in May 1993. A near-signing with Mercury Records collapsed when John Mellencamp threatened to quit the label over boy-band involvement, but a high school show in Cleveland ultimately led to their first record deal in February 1994.

A Decade of Chart Dominance

The group's commercial trajectory from the mid-1990s into the 2000s remains one of the most sustained runs in pop music history. Their 1996 international debut album was followed by Backstreet's Back and a self-titled U.S. release in 1997, each cementing their global footprint. The breakthrough came with Millennium in 1999, propelled by the worldwide anthem 'I Want It That Way,' and the 2000 follow-up Black & Blue. A 2001 greatest-hits compilation, The Hits – Chapter One, capped that era. Collectively, these releases helped the group surpass 150 million records sold worldwide, a figure that cements their status as the best-selling boy band of all time and places them among the top-selling artists globally. Their chart consistency is equally remarkable: they became the first act since Led Zeppelin to place their first ten albums inside the Billboard 200 top ten, and the only boy band ever to achieve that feat. Both the original Backstreet Boys album and Millennium earned diamond certification from the RIAA, a distinction shared by very few acts in the industry.

Hiatus, Reformation, and a Comeback That Defied Expectations

After wrapping their 2001 greatest-hits cycle, the group stepped away for roughly two years before regrouping with the 2005 album Never Gone and its supporting tour. When that tour concluded in 2006, Kevin Richardson departed to explore other creative pursuits, and the remaining four members recorded Unbreakable in 2007 and This Is Us in 2009 as a quartet. Richardson's 2012 return reunited the original five, and the group marked their 20th anniversary in 2013 by releasing In a World Like This, their first album on an independent label. The most striking proof of their staying power arrived in 2019 with DNA, which debuted at number one on the U.S. album chart nineteen years after they had last topped it. That achievement made them the first boy band to claim the top spot in three decades. They went on to celebrate their 30th anniversary on April 20, 2023, the same date that had marked Littrell's arrival in Orlando thirty years earlier.

Institutions, Residencies, and a Living Catalog

The Backstreet Boys' cultural footprint extends well beyond record sales. On April 22, 2013, two days after their 20th-anniversary celebrations, they received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A documentary film, Backstreet Boys: Show 'Em What You're Made Of, premiered in January 2015, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the group's journey. In March 2017, they launched a two-year concert residency in Las Vegas titled Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life, and in July 2025 they opened a second residency, Backstreet Boys: Into the Millennium, at the Sphere venue. Their catalog continues to evolve: a first-ever Christmas album, A Very Backstreet Christmas, arrived in 2022, and in July 2025 they released Millennium 2.0, a remastered reissue of their 1999 landmark that adds B-sides, live recordings, and previously unheard demos. Together, these milestones underscore a group that has remained a working, evolving act for more than three decades.

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