New Kids On The Block will perform at Summerfest on July 2. Tickets for the show are available now. Backing the group will be none other than 98 Degrees and Boyz II Men. These three groups have over 200 million in album sales combined.
New Kids On The Block was a creation of Maurice Starr, who put out a casting call in the Boston area back in 1984. Hundreds of kids tried out, with Donnie Wahlberg being a standout in the crowd. Eventually, the final lineup came to be. It would be Donnie, Danny, Joey, Jonathan, and Jordan.
At first, the band failed to get traction in the Boston area. Starr was convinced that he could take these boys to the top. He did that with the band’s second album titled Hangin’ Tough. The song Please Don’t Go Girl was a ballad that the band put all their efforts into. After a retooling of their accompanying video, the song hit the top of the music charts. The band would go on to find success for the next four years.
As with most “boy bands” their advancing age dictated that their expiration date had come. By 1992, the band was facing allegations of lip syncing. Couple that with the fact that musical tastes were changing, and it seemed that their time had passed. Despite the writing on the wall, the band separated from the “star maker” Mr. Starr, and tried their best to continue as NKOTB. By that time, they were no longer playing huge venues. They are now back once again and on tour with two other great boy bands. Their devoted fans still come out in the thousands.
