By Neia Balao
4:00am PST, Dec 31, 2022
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Remember when boy bands ruled the world?! To celebrate the birthday of a particularly adorable boy band singer — Joey McIntyre of New Kids on the Block, who turns 50 on Dec. 31, 2022 — Wonderwall.com is taking a look at how he and more hunky pop stars have changed over the years…
Joey McIntyre, who hails from Boston, was just shy of his 13th birthday when he joined New Kids on the Block, making him the group's youngest member. The boy band, which made music from 1984 until 1994 then reunited in 2008, is often credited with paving the way for chart-topping groups like *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys.
Keep reading to see how Joey and more boybanders have changed since their teen pop star days…
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While he's enjoyed decades of solo and New Kids on the Block fame, Joey McIntyre is also a talented stage actor who's appeared in Broadway productions of "Tick, Tick… BOOM!" and "Waitress." More recently, he starred in the pre-Broadway run of "The Wanderer" in 2022. Joey shares three kids with wife Barrett Williams, whom he married in 2003.
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Who didn't have a crush on one of the Hanson brothers? Taylor Hanson, who garnered fame as one-third of the pop-rock band Hanson, was a total teen heartthrob back in the day. The band of brothers, who all play instruments as well as sing, formed in 1992 but didn't reach superstardom until 1997 — the year their hit song "MMMbop" was released.
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Taylor Hanson is still making music as part of Hanson. The band of brothers released their latest album, "Red Green Blue," in 2022. Each brother contributed five tracks each; Taylor composed the album's "RED" section. In 2020, he welcomed his seventh child with wife Natalie Bryant, whom he married in 2002.
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Ashley Parker Angel had his first taste of stardom when he appeared on the reality series "Making the Band" in 2000. He was one of the final five competitors who went on to form the pop group O-Town, which made music for three years before calling it quits in 2003.
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O-Town reunited in 2013 — minus Ashley Parker Angel, who was its most successful member after going solo. While we haven't gotten new music from Ashley since his 2013 single "Switchblade," the former MTV heartthrob has appeared in Broadway and touring productions of "Hairspray" and "Wicked." In recent years, he's worked as a fitness coach for High Level Performance Academy. Ashley welcomed a son, "American Horror Story: Hotel" actor Lyric Angel, with fiancée Tiffany Lynn Rowe in 2005; they split in 2008.
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Like many pop stars back in the day, JC Chasez kickstarted his career on "The New Mickey Mouse Club," co-starring alongside Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and other future Hollywood stars. In the mid-'90s, he joined the boy band *NSYNC as one of its lead singers alongside Justin. Their first single in the United States, "I Want You Back," was released in 1998. They last recorded new material in 2002 before going on hiatus.
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While he was never able to eclipse his *NSYNC fame as a solo artist, JC Chasez did enjoy a seven-season run as a judge on MTV's reality dance competition series "America's Best Dance Crew." JC, who reunited with his *NSYNC bandmates for his milestone 40th birthday in 2016 (see a pic here), made headlines for his love life when he dated actress Eva Longoria in 2004. He's been in a committed relationship with Jennifer HuYoung since 2018.
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Brian Littrell rose to fame as one-fifth of the Backstreet Boys. In 1993, after two former members departed the group for personal reasons, Brian and cousin Kevin Richardson completed the now-iconic boy band's lineup. The group released their self-titled debut album internationally in 1996.
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Brian Littrell is still performing with the Backstreet Boys, who went on a brief hiatus in the early aughts but have been making music and touring the world every since. They even did a two-year run in a wildly successful Las Vegas residency from 2017 to 2019. In 2021, the Kentucky native — who's released music as a solo Christian artist — sparked controversy when he took to Twitter to reveal that he'd joined Parler, a conservative social media network, after President Donald Trump was banned from Twitter. He's been married to former dancer Leighanne Wallace since 2000. They share son Baylee Littrell, a rising country music artist.
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Brad Fischetti made up one-third of the pop-hip hop boy band LFO. Along with late bandmates Devin Lima and Rich Cronin, Brad gave the world infectious late-'90s and early-'00s tracks like "Summer Girls" and "Every Other Time."
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Tragedy struck LFO in 2010 when the band's lead singer, Rich Cronin, passed away at 36 from leukemia. Eight years later in 2018, bandmate Devin Lima (right) succumbed to his battle with adrenal cancer at 41. As the only surviving member of LFO, Brad Fischetti (left) has dedicated much of his life to honoring his two best friends and former bandmates. In 2022, he embarked on the four-city "The LFO Story" tour in which he performed their music and shared personal stories about their journey.
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How baby-faced was he?! Drew Lachey rose to fame as a member of the pop and R&B boy band 98 Degrees, which he founded alongside older brother Nick Lachey in the mid-'90s. Along with bandmates Jeff Timmons and Justin Jeffre, they released hit songs like "Invisible Man," Because of You" and "The Hardest Thing." Prior to delving into music, Drew was a medic in the Army Reserves and an EMT in New York City.
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Drew Lachey is back making music with his big brother and the rest of 98 Degrees following a long hiatus that lasted from 2003 to 2012. In 2021, the boy band released their single "Where Do You Want To Go," their first new music since 2013. Drew won season 2 of "Dancing with the Stars" in 2006. He shares a daughter and son with childhood sweetheart Lea Dellecave, who was also the band's choreographer. They married in 2000.
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Zac Hanson, the youngest of the Hanson brothers, was the band's drummer. He was just 6 when Hanson was created.
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The youngest Hanson member is all grown up! Zac Hanson, who runs the gaming YouTube channel "Zaccidental Gamer," shares five kids with wife Kathryn Tucker, whom he married in 2006 when he was just 20. For Hanson's newest album, 2022's "Red Green Blue," Zac contributed five tracks to the project's "BLUE" section.
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Who can we thank for *NSYNC's impeccable falsetto vocals? Chris Kirkpatrick, who got his start working at Universal Studios and singing in The Hollywood Hi-Tones, a doo-wop group that was comprised of aspiring actors and singers. Believe it or not, we also have Chris to thank for recruiting Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez and Joey Fatone as *NSYNC members!
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*NSYNC's founding member has kept a relatively low profile in recent years. In addition to taking part in ABC's "A Very Boy Band Holiday" with former bandmate Joey Fatone in 2021, Chris competed on the third season of "Celebrity Big Brother" and the eighth season of "The Masked Singer" in 2022. In 2017, he welcomed a son with wife Karlyn M. Skladany, whom he married in 2013.
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Brooklyn-born singer Joey Fatone joined *NSYNC after being recruited by founder Chris Kirkpatrick. Joey had befriended Chris, who at the time was also a performer at Universal Studios Florida. *NSYNC debuted music in the U.S. market in 1998 after releasing their self-titled debut album in European countries a year earlier. They last recorded new material in 2002 before going on hiatus.
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In the 2010s, Joey Fatone served as the announcer for Steve Harvey's "Family Feud" and hosted shows including "My Family Recipe Rocks" and Food Network's "Rewrapped." He competed on the first season of "The Masked Singer" in 2019. In 2022 it was revealed that he'll reprise his "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" role — he played Angelo in the 2002 movie — in the franchise's third installment. Joey split from wife Kelly Baldwin, the mother of his two kids, in 2015 after more than 15 years as a couple.
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Many might recognize Jesse McCartney for his work as a child actor on "All My Children" or as a solo artist, but the "Beautiful Soul" singer was also in a boy band! At 12, he was a member of Dream Street, which made music from 1999 to 2002.
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2021 was a busy year for Jesse McCartney — in addition to releasing his fifth studio album, "New Stage," he also got married! The "Summerland" teen star tied the knot with his girlfriend of seven years, Katie Peterson, in Carmel, California. In 2022, he performed on "The New Stage Tour."
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Kentucky native Kevin Richardson was the final singer to join the Backstreet Boys in 1993, along with cousin Brian Littrell. Before finding fame with the boy band, Kevin worked as a tour guide on the backlot ride at Florida's Disney-MGM Studios, which later became Disney's Hollywood Studios.
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Kevin Richardson took a hiatus from the Backstreet Boys after their "Never Gone Tour" concluded in 2006 and rejoined the group in 2012. He's been married to Kristin Willits, with whom he shares two kids, since 2000.
