Latest news with #AJMcLean
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Oops! These ‘Building the Band' Stars Just Accidentally Let Their Group Name Slip
Oops! These 'Building the Band' Stars Just Accidentally Let Their Group Name Slip originally appeared on Parade. #ICYMI, Building the Band is Netflix's newest competition show, creating boy bands, girl bands, and even mixed bands behind closed doors. According to Netflix, the one-of-a-kind competition series "follows a group of singers as they form six bands based solely on talent and chemistry." Hosted by Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean, "the participants take part in blind vocal performances" in phase one of the competition, where "the singers listening on will have to decide if they want to make a band, without first seeing the face behind the voice." "Once the six bands are locked in, the members will finally meet and compete under the watchful eye of a superstar panel of judges," including Pussycat Dolls member Nicole Scherzinger, Destiny's Child member Kelly Rowland and late One Direction member Liam Payne. Can someone grab the tissues? Nevertheless, after the first four episodes hit the streaming service, five of the six bands were formed. One of the most notable, though, is band number two, an oh-so sexy boy band consisting of Shade Jenifer, Landon Boyce, Malik Heard and Bradley Rittmann. Meeting for the first time in episode three — where they performed 'Finesse' by Bruno Mars — band number two appears to blend seamlessly based on their first performance alone. 'They fit really well together,' Scherzinger herself said as they slayed the stage. Now, fans of the show are left with just one question — what will the bands, specifically band number two, be called? — and Shade might have just spilled the tea in a TikTok video. Keep scrolling to see for yourself... "POV: 1/2 OF COOKIES & CREAM," Shade wrote atop a TikTok video with Landon yesterday (July 14), seemingly teasing that band number two will be called Cookies & Cream. Needless to say, Building the Band fans clocked this right away, taking to the comment section of the video. "Cookies & Cream team I loveeeee the name 😭😭 I hope you can all win! The performance was amazing," one fan wrote, while another exclaimed, "Loving the Cookies & Cream thing!" A third commented, "Not me eating cookies & cream ice cream rn 😅 LFG!!! ❤️😎🌴" Landon himself even got a piece of all the action, writing "Yo Malik and Brad wya??" in the comment section of the video, shouting out the second half of his soon-to-be successful band. Talk about a team player! Nevertheless, will band number two — or should we say Cookies & Cream? — win the beloved competition series? To see for yourself, stream episodes one through four now via Netflix, and stream episodes five through seven when they hit the streaming service tomorrow (July 16). Needless to say, we are on the edge of our seats... Oops! These 'Building the Band' Stars Just Accidentally Let Their Group Name Slip first appeared on Parade on Jul 15, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Landon Boyce Spills a Major Secret About His ‘Building the Band' Audition That No One Saw Coming
Landon Boyce Spills a Major Secret About His 'Building the Band' Audition That No One Saw Coming originally appeared on Parade. With his piercing blue eyes and blonde hair leaving all the girls swooning, it is not a shocker that 21-year-old Landon Boyce is a fan favorite on Netflix's newest competition series, Building the Band. For those who are unfamiliar, Building the Band sees "solo singers collide to form six new groups, each chasing one shot at stardom." According to Netflix, "In the initial phase of the first-of-its-kind music competition, participants took part in blind auditions, listening to one another sing from their individual sound booths." Now, with four episodes having come and gone, "19 performers have formed deep connections, sight unseen, and five of the final bands are officially locked in. Once the last band is assembled, they'll move from the booths into shared apartments and put everything they have into vocal coaching, crafting a cohesive group image, and more to be last ones singing in Building the Band." Hosted by Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean with Pussycat Dolls member Nicole Scherzinger serving as a mentor — as well as Destiny's Child member Kelly Rowland and late One Direction member Liam Payne serving as guest judges — this show is certain to be one for the history books! Nevertheless, one of the individuals who has made it past the initial phase is Landon, joining band number two — or should we say Cookies & Cream? — alongside Shade Jenifer, Malik Heard and Bradley Rittmann, singing "Finesse" by Bruno Mars when they met for the first time in episode three. Although he made it into a group — earning a whopping 20 likes on his audition — some viewers were unimpressed by Landon's rendition of "Toxic" by Britney Spears, taking to TikTok to share some not-so positive thoughts. After Netflix shared a snippet of Landon's audition to their TikTok account, the Utah native instantaneously received a great deal of backlash. One TikTok user wrote, "He's FIGHTING to sing such a simple song," while another added, "No for me… range is small." A third commented, "Maybe a different song would suit that sound and tone better. Just doesn't sound right for that song." Naturally, the Building the Band star clapped back, sharing a response video to his TikTok account in return. Duetting the snippet of his audition, Landon wrote "Y'all acting like I CHOSE to sing this" in a TikTok video of his own, implying that the production team forced him to sing the Britney Spears classic. Naturally, fans had a field day with this oh-so sassy response. "Still killed it tho," one fan wrote, while another exclaimed, "You ate either way 💁🏼♀️💁🏼♀️." A third commented, "was defending you with my life watching it with my family who doesn't know what good singing is!" Others questioned how authentic Building the Band actually is. "Wait you don't get to choose your song??? Ugh wth 😞😞😞," a third fan wrote, while a fourth added, "You guys couldn't choose what to sing??? WHAT?" Whether you love or hate Landon's singing skills, will he have what it takes to win the beloved competition series? To see for yourself, stream episodes one through four of Building the Band now via Netflix, and stream episodes five through seven when they hit the streaming service tomorrow (July 16). With almost all of the bands fully formed, things are starting to heat up! Landon Boyce Spills a Major Secret About His 'Building the Band' Audition That No One Saw Coming first appeared on Parade on Jul 15, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 15, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tears, Spaceships and Nostalgia: How Backstreet Boys 'Pushed the Limits' of Las Vegas' Sphere With 'Mind-Boggling' Residency Launch
'This is insane. I'm losing my mind,' AJ McLean told a sold-out crowd at Sphere Las Vegas on opening night of the Backstreet Boys' Into the Millennium residency. 'I've cried at least four times since we've been up here.' McLean wasn't the only band member overcome with emotion during Friday's nostalgic, otherworldly trip down memory lane. Kevin Richardson became so choked up he couldn't sing his verse of 'The Perfect Fan,' while Brian Littrell cried next. More from The Hollywood Reporter THR's 2025 Top Music Lawyers: Nominations Are Now Open Kanye "Ye" West Struggles Through Chaotic, Rain-Soaked Shanghai Concert Will Justin Bieber Land a No. 1 Debut With 'Swag?' Nick Carter was meanwhile fighting tears before he even rose onstage for 1999's anthem 'Larger Than Life,' which had audience members seemingly dancing through space while dodging meteorites thanks to Sphere's immersive visuals. 'As I was about to come up, I started breaking down and crying because it was so emotional and surreal,' Carter told THR in an exclusive interview. 'We've been together so long and had so many ups and downs, so the fact we can still perform on any stage is amazing. 'We'd been rehearsing for two months and we're perfectionists, so we've been hard on ourselves, and finally getting to that place where you're about to be launched out of a lift onstage was very emotional.' It's not surprising emotions were running high. For Carter, Richardson, McLean, Littrell and Howie Dorough, 1999's Millennium record catapulted them to startling fame and cemented the foundations of a 32-year career that has seen them tour the world, release 10 albums, earn Grammy nominations, release a documentary and build solo careers. Meanwhile for fans, Millennium ignited their first musical infatuation or concert experience – or the tour they forever regretted missing. I was 17 in New Zealand when I helped launch a petition to bring the Into the Millennium Tour Down Under. Two decades later, I was mesmerized as the heartthrobs soared high above the stage on their DNA World Tour, sparking flashbacks to when they rode hoverboards through the air during Into the Millennium. 'This is it,' I thought. 'This is the closest I'll ever get to seeing Into the Millennium.' Then came Millennium 2.0. An idea hatched eight years ago, Carter says the band hoped to transport fans back to simpler times. 'There was no social media and technology wasn't as advanced,' says Carter. 'People had to go to concerts to watch shows and we had to deliver. The Millennium tour was progressive. We were taking risks and facing the challenges of doing a production in-the-round and flying on surfboards. 'There were times we'd get stuck in the audience and things would break down because technology wasn't what it is now. It was a simpler, great time and we're bringing that back, so people can relive great music and feel like kids again.' Yet, the residency was never about re-creating the 123-stop tour. 'We didn't want to redo Millennium,' show producer and director Baz Halpin told THR. 'Sphere's a unique venue and with Backstreet being the first pop show, we didn't want to repeat the Millennium tour, but take elements and blend them in. It's like, 'What would a BSB Into the Millennium Tour be if it was done for the first time in 2025?'' 'We wanted to build a story around Millennium — give it a character, then let world-building from song-to-song transpire from that,' Halpin continued. 'We've built a galaxy which incorporates things people will recognize, but it's Spherified.' One of those familiar elements is the spaceship setting from 'Larger Than Life.' Another Millennium dance anthem, 'It's Gotta Be You,' followed the opener, before the quintet veered off Millennium to 1997's 'As Long as You Love Me,' by which point Sphere was a dancing sea of white, thanks to McLean requesting concertgoers don white like the album cover. Many had planned those outfits for months, a reflection of how journeying into the millennium kicked off well before opening night for many fans. For me, it started at LAX, where 'As Long as You Love Me' played in the departure lounge, before I landed in Vegas to hear 'Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)' blasting through the The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, Millennium shirts dotted the casino floor, while Liam's Den & Bubble Bar offered a 'Millennium Cocktail.' A jaw-dropping, edible chocolate, light-up Sphere greeted me in my room, before I headed to the 'Backstreet Boys Terminal' to hop on-board 'Air BSB.'The immersive, free two-story fan experience was co-curated by BSB and Vibee, a company founded by Live Nation that offers global destination experiences. Vibee package holders enter via a specially designed Air BSB check-in area, while regular 'passengers' are greeted by a departures board listing stops from the original tour. Saluting the group's iconic 'I Want It That Way' video (filmed at LAX,) the airport theme's dripping with '90s nostalgia, like a replica of MTV's Total Request Live set with cardboard cutouts of BSB and host Carson Daly. Fans can also stop by the BSB Mail Centre to post fan mail or see memorabilia including MTV VMA awards, handwritten set lists and costuming. Stopping by on Thursday, BSB were said to be so excited by the experience they offered up more memorabilia, before eagerly recording and broadcasting boarding announcements. From here, the walkway from The Venetian to Sphere feels like an airport air bridge (complete with a mass, post-show 'I Want It That Way' singalong). Along with such hits, the band delivered favorites like 'Don't Want You Back,' and 'Get Another Boyfriend,' accompanied with slick dance moves care of longtime choreographers Rich and Tone Talauega. Heart-wrenching 'Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely,' meanwhile, was backdropped by smoky spirits performing interpretative dances. The set list was the first and most 'critical' step, according to Dublin native Halpin, who carved out his career working with boy bands like Westlife, Boyzone and Blue. He's since worked on The Eagles' Sphere residency, UFC Noche and Taylor Swift's Eras Tour. Halpin recalls hearing about the 'iconic' Into the Millennium tour, but never imagined he'd one day get a call from BSB manager Ron Laffitte about creating a Sphere version. He's grateful the group quickly comprehended the 'gravitas' of every creative decision. 'You can't reverse when you're creating in Sphere because it's so technologically complicated,' Halpin said. 'With every layer, you're building on the foundation and it's got to be absolutely right, so the next layer's solid. If you pull a toothpick from the bottom, the whole thing topples.' 'The band caught on that we had to nail down songs and not deviate six months out otherwise all the work would fall apart. There's no time to redo things like a normal tour. You can't make another piece of content in three days — it takes three months.' While the hits were a must, it was a medley of lesser-performed ballads that had fans hypnotized, like 'Back to Your Heart,' 'No One Else Comes Close to You' and 'Spanish Eyes'. 'This is my mom's favorite song,' Dorough shared. 'She's here and 91!' Moms were also the theme of 'The Perfect Fan,' with photos of the band's wives, kids and moms flashing across screens. 'This song's super-special to me,' Littrell explained. 'I wrote it many moons ago and dedicate it to my mother.' Fans were in tears as the group crooned haunting 2005 ballad'Siberia,' while screens showered virtual snow and displayed aged versions of BSB in a Mt. Rushmore-style visual. They also performed 2025 single, 'Hey,' which features on newly-released Millennium 2.0, alongside remastered versions of the original tracks, live recordings and B-sides like 'If You Knew What I Knew.' Of course, it was the final act everyone was waiting for — airborne BSB. The 'BSB Army' had long wondered if the hoverboards from the original tour would appear, with Dorough teasing an 'adaptation' of such moves to THR in May. The singers instead rose on a spacecraft-style platform during 'I Want It That Way.' For Carter, it was the coolest moment of the production. 'We're raised into the air suspended with four cables,' says the musician, who has released solo album Love Life Tragedy alongside preparing for Sphere and will drop new single 'Searchlight' on Thursday. 'It's secure, but also a little dangerous and just mind-boggling.' Following debate over the best seats for the show, the 200s sections proved optimal for taking in 360-degree effects, while feeling eye-to-eye with BSB as they floated above the stage. However, general admission took visuals to another level as I frequently questioned if the ground or stage was moving while feeling sucked up into the screen. 'I'm going to need chiro after this,' one fan remarked, craning her neck. Other GA attendees wore compression socks, stretched mid-show and briefly left to pump breast milk — somewhat answering Halpin's question of what an Into the Millennium Tour looks like in 2025. GA was also where the party was at as 'Everybody (Backstreet's Back)' closed the show with robots performing the video's iconic choreography onscreen. By the time show two wrapped on Saturday, the quintet was in celebratory mode at The Venetian's Voltaire, where Richardson, 53, led a singalong to Fugees hit 'Killing Me Softly.' It's rare the whole band attend afterparties, but it reflected the solid team effort behind Sphere. Halpin stressed how each member's input was imperative. 'It's like Inside Out, where they're all different emotions and bring a unique character. Kevin questions everything. He needs to understand every detail to build the whole picture. Brian's asking, 'How is this decision impacting everything else we're going to do?' AJ's all about, 'How do we keep the crowd's energy up?'' 'Howie wants to understand the emotion behind everything. Nick's the canary in the coal mine. When we did tests, he was the one I'd look to to gauge reaction. You look to Nick to see how an audience member's going to experience it. 'When you combine all those perspectives, it becomes cohesive and very Backstreet Boys. They know who they are and what their fans like. But they're also risk-takers, who want to push boundaries.' In doing so, Halpin believes Into the Millennium's a game-changer for Sphere. 'We're pushing the limits of what's been done at Sphere because we came in with the experience of other shows,' he says. 'Sphere was a newborn with U2, and with every artist that's gone in since, it's had another birthday and grown. Every band before has been a soundtrack to the visuals, but this show's different. It's the most ambitious show that's been done in there.' Best of The Hollywood Reporter From 'Party in the U.S.A.' to 'Born in the U.S.A.': 20 of America's Most Patriotic (and Un-Patriotic) Musical Offerings Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025
Fox News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Backstreet Boys' AJ McLean on what helped him overcome being a ‘chronic relapser' after narrowly avoiding jail
Though AJ McLean has had his share of public ups and downs, the Backstreet Boy star — who has been open about his struggle with addiction throughout the years — has proven that recovery is possible. In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, the proud father of two — who stars as the host of Netflix's singing competition series, "Building The Band" — got candid about the challenges he's faced within his sobriety journey, detailed the lessons he's learned along the way and explained why he doesn't have "another relapse" in him. "I'm sober today. I can't tell you what's going to happen tomorrow. And I was sober yesterday. I stay in the now. I stay in the moment. I take everything in," McLean, who is gearing up to celebrate four years of sobriety this fall, said. "It is the age-old saying of stopping and smelling the roses. I actually physically stop and smell flowers. I have a different confidence — not arrogance, not ego — that I've never had. And it's a confidence that is empowering." "That is because of the work I've put in and continue to and will have to do the rest of my days in existence," he continued. "It doesn't stop when you stop doing the work, when you stop spreading your experience, strength and hope, reaching out to other addicts and other people in the world that may be suffering from whatever, if you stop doing that, is when s--- goes south. That's when the ego becomes the villain, and it takes over." In 2021, McLean referred to himself as a "chronic relapser" after recalling a moment in which he drank alcohol shortly after completing rehab. "I can do short bursts and I'm OK. Because even when I would relapse, I wouldn't go on a bender," he told host Alexis Haines during an episode of the "Recovering from Reality" podcast. "I am a chronic relapser, but I've never gone for like a month straight of just drinking and partying. It's been like one night, and then I'm sober for a week or two. And then it's one night. It was always back and forth." The pop star, who has been in and out of sobriety for years, said he's "dodged more bullets" in his life than people think. "The drugs and alcohol, for me, that was a Band-Aid. I suffered from something my best friend calls 'Piece of s---ism.' I had no self-esteem." WATCH: BACKSTREET BOYS' AJ MCLEAN 'DODGED MORE BULLETS' THAN HE'D LIKE TO ADMIT IN HIS JOURNEY TO SOBRIETY "I don't have another relapse in me," he admitted to Fox News Digital. "It will not end the lucky way it has ended in the past when I've dodged bullets and never went to jail, never got a DUI. I'm pretty sure the last time I did drugs, there was fentanyl in there. I'm still here talking to you. I've dodged more bullets than I'd like to." While McLean — who shares two daughters, Elliot, 12, and Lyric, 8, with his estranged wife, Rochelle — knows that most of his past is public knowledge, he hopes to control the narrative by having honest and raw conversations with his children. "My girls are very smart, and I've been able to be brutally honest, to a certain degree, about my past," he said. "I don't want to scare them… I want them to know enough about their dad that when they're allowed social media, when they're allowed these things, they don't read it and get a different perception. I want them to hear it from the horse's mouth." As a member of one of the most popular boy bands in history, fame inevitably took a toll on McLean —who lost sight of who he was somewhere along the way. "That's really the root of the biggest problem," he said. "The drugs and alcohol, for me, that was a Band-Aid. I suffered from something my best friend calls 'Piece of s---ism.' I had no self-esteem. So you won't do esteemable things without self-esteem and the growth that has happened from that departure to now. You ask my bandmates, you ask my family, I am a different person. I am the person that's always been there. It just got kind of stifled." "I don't want to stifle that person anymore," he continued. "I know that AJ McLean is a member of a band, but it doesn't define me. I'm Alexander James. That is who I am. AJ is a character in a band that I play that I'm very grateful, has had a 32-year career and hopefully more. And I'm beyond grateful for that. But it doesn't make me who I am. It doesn't define me." Kickstarting his career as a pop star at just 16 years old, McLean said he and "Building the Band" co-star Liam Payne shared many similarities — both personally and professionally. "We did share a lot of parallels, even though there's a huge age gap," he said of the late One Direction member, who tragically died at the age of 31 from falling off a hotel balcony in October. Though Payne, who served as a celebrity judge on the Netflix show, faced his own addiction battles throughout the years leading up to his death, McLean said he was fortunate enough to see the late singer at his "truest" self while on set. "There were still a lot of similarities of the highs and lows, but I got to see him in his truest form, and he lit up any room he walked into," McLean said. "He was a gentleman. He was funny. He was super-talented, so well-spoken to of these bands, giving his feedback, could get his point across without ever sounding condescending or discouraging." "He always finished with a positive anecdote or a positive comment to keep these bands inspired and to not lose hope or get frustrated. And it takes a real stand-up person to do that. And that's what he was. He was an absolute stand-up individual, talented beyond talented." The show, which also stars Destiny's Child's Kelly Rowland and Pussycat Dolls' Nicole Scherzinger, will see gifted singers vie for a chance to form the next great music group sight unseen, leaving looks out of the equation. "What I love so much about it, unlike other music competition shows, it's twofold," McLean said. "One, it's a cash prize. There's no getting stuck in a box with a major record deal and potentially getting shelved or being told what to wear and what kind of music to do and who's the frontman or frontwoman. These bands get to control their own destiny, and it gives the power back to the artist. So that's a huge plus for me. While McLean — who is also gearing up for another Las Vegas residency with the Backstreet Boys this summer and working on solo music that will be released sporadically throughout the end of the year — is grateful for his past, he's very much looking forward to the future. "I can tell you, honestly, it has been an incredible journey," he said.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
AJ McLean and estranged wife Rochelle DeAnna McLean reunite at Backstreet Boys' Las Vegas residency show
AJ McLean reunited with his estranged wife Rochelle DeAnna McLean at the opening night of the Backstreet Boys' residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The pair - who announced the end of their marriage in 2024 after they took a year-long separation in 2023 to work on their relationship - were all smiles with their daughters Elliot, 12, and Lyric, eight, as the '90s boy band kicked off its residency at the iconic venue on Friday (11.07.25). Captioning a selfie of the joyous-looking family backstage on Instagram on July 12, Rochelle, 43, wrote: "Opening night @spherevegas was really something special. "All I can say is that it is really something you have to see for yourself. "Bravo boys! You, your team and your crew pulled off the most spectacular show I've ever seen!" Rochelle - who like Elliot and Lyric were dressed in an all-white outfit - tagged AJ and the Backstreet Boys in the post. The I Want It That Way hitmaker fuelled his love for Rochelle and their daughters in the post's comments section. AJ, 47, penned: "I love you all so much,' he wrote. 'It wouldn't have been the same if my girls weren't there to kick off this amazing residency!" The photo carousel - of which the cover image was the selfie - also featured images of a proud Rochelle, Elliot and Lyric sitting in their seats during the show. Rochelle also shared photos of the futuristic-looking stage, as well as various points of the '90s pop band's two-hour show. The Backstreet Boys - completed by Kevin Richardson, 53, Howie Dorough, 51, Brian Littrell, 50, Nick Carter, 45, and AJ - began their Las Vegas residency on July 11, and it ends on August 24. Since 2024, AJ and Rochelle have been co-parenting Elliot and Lyric, and the performer said in June that the family is "doing good". AJ told Us Weekly: "We are coparenting to the best of our ability, and we both have a lot of growing to kind of still go through, but I think we are moving in a really positive direction. "We have a family together that's obviously not going anywhere. "We have been spending a lot of time together as a family and, you know, her and I going out on dates here and there."
