NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, New Edition recall 'crazy boy band rules' to appeal to fans: 'No girlfriends'

The rules ranged from how to keep up their physical appearance to the activities they engaged in offstage, like drinking, smoking, or riding a motorcycle.

Members of the Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, and New Edition are pulling back the curtain on some of the rules they had to follow in order to project a pristine image while performing in the biggest boybands in the world. 

“You have to remember with boybands, it’s a family audience,” NSYNC star Lance Bass said in the new Paramount+ documentary, Larger Than Life: Reign of the Boybands. His bandmate Chris Kirkpatrick then added, “And, because of that, there were some crazy boyband rules.”

Bass explained that record labels and management would often warn them against doing certain things by referencing other groups. “They’d always have these comparison stories like, ‘In New Kids [on the Block], Donnie [Wahlberg] would do [this],’” he recalled. “And so you knew you were being told not to do this.”

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The rules often involved their physical appearance. “They would say, ‘Hey! Shave your mustache. Hold on to your youth,’” New Edition’s Michael Bivins said. Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean added, “We can’t be Fatstreet. That is not cute.”

They were also warned about their offstage activities. “Never have a drink in your hand, or cigarette,” Bass said. Kirkpatrick continued, “Nobody can ride motorcycles. Boom! I bought a motorcycle and brought it on tour with me.”

And most importantly: no significant others. “No girlfriends,” Bivins said, “because that would take away the dream of the fan.”

Directed by Tamra Davis (Crossroads, Billy Madison), Larger Than Life chronicles the history of boybands with a little help from stars like Bass, Kirkpatrick, McLean, Bivins, The Osmonds' Donny Osmond, 98 Degrees' Nick Lachey, the Hanson brothers, and Seventeen's Vernon and Hoshi. It also explores the lasting impact of groups like the Beatles, the Jackson 5, One Direction, and the Jonas Brothers with help from some of their biggest fans.

Larger Than Life is streaming now on Paramount+.