# Backstreet Boys By [Mick](https://paragraph.com/@melodyme) ยท 2023-02-01 --- **Backstreet Boys** (often abbreviated as **BSB**)[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-3) are an American vocal group[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-vocal_group-4) consisting of [Nick Carter](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Carter_\(singer\)), [Howie Dorough](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howie_Dorough), [AJ McLean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AJ_McLean), and cousins [Brian Littrell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Littrell) and [Kevin Richardson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Richardson_\(musician\)). [Lou Pearlman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lou_Pearlman) formed the group in 1993 in [Orlando, Florida](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orlando,_Florida). The group rose to fame with their international debut album, [_Backstreet Boys_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys_\(1996_album\)) (1996). In the following year, they released their second international album [_Backstreet's Back_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet%27s_Back) (1997), along with their [self-titled U.S. debut album, _Backstreet Boys_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys_\(1997_album\)) (1997), which continued the group's success worldwide. They rose to superstardom with their third studio album [_Millennium_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (1999) and its follow-up album, [_Black & Blue_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_%26_Blue_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (2000). They also released a greatest hits album, [_The Hits - Chapter One_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hits_%E2%80%93_Chapter_One_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (2001), with a new single, "[Drowning](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drowning_\(Backstreet_Boys_song\))." After a two-year hiatus, they regrouped and released a comeback album, [_Never Gone_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Gone) (2005). After the conclusion of the [Never Gone Tour](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Gone_Tour) in 2006, Richardson left the group to pursue other interests.[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-5) The group then released two albums as a quartet: [_Unbreakable_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unbreakable_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (2007) and [_This Is Us_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_Us_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (2009). Richardson permanently rejoined the group in 2012.[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-6) In the following year, they celebrated their 20th anniversary and released their first independent album, [_In a World Like This_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_a_World_Like_This). Their follow-up album [_DNA_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA_\(Backstreet_Boys_album\)) (2019) debuted at number one, more than two decades after the group formed and 19 years after they last topped in 2000. They also became the first [boy band](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy_band) to top the U.S. album charts in three different decades.[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-BillboardGap-7) The Backstreet Boys have sold over 100 million records worldwide,[\[8\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-100mil-8) making them the [best-selling boy band of all time](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy_band#Best-selling_boy_bands), and one of the world's [best-selling music artists](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_music_artists#100_million_to_119_million_records). They are the first group since [Led Zeppelin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Led_Zeppelin) to have their first ten albums reach the top 10 on the [_Billboard_ 200](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billboard_200),[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-BillboardGap-7) and the only [boy band](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy_band) to do so. The albums _Backstreet Boys_ and _Millennium_ were both [certified diamond](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RIAA_certification) by the [Recording Industry Association of America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recording_Industry_Association_of_America) (RIAA), making them one of the few bands to have multiple diamond albums.[\[9\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-9) The group received a star on the [Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Walk_of_Fame) on April 22, 2013.[\[10\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-wofpeople-10) They also released their first documentary movie, titled [_Backstreet Boys: Show 'Em What You're Made Of_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys:_Show_%27Em_What_You%27re_Made_Of) in January 2015.[\[11\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys#cite_note-MTVdoc-11) In March 2017, the group began a residency in Las Vegas that lasted two years, titled [Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backstreet_Boys:_Larger_Than_Life). They released their first Christmas album, [_A Very Backstreet Christmas_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Very_Backstreet_Christmas) in 2022. --- *Originally published on [Mick](https://paragraph.com/@melodyme/backstreet-boys)*