When it comes to dressing up for a photo session or dressing down to hang out with friends, the Backstreet Boys never seem to have a problem showing off their unique sense of style. However, in keeping up with constant promotion of their tunes, including their self-titled CD's chart-topping hit "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)", bandmates Kevin Richardson, A.J. McLean, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Howie Dorough tell BB that the clothes they love to wear aren't always the clothes they get to wear in front of the camera.
"One time we did a photo shoot with some European magazines, and they made us dress in costumes, like Halloween costumes, but they were really, really corny," 17-year-old Nick shares about one fashion disaster. "There was one that Brian picked out, a Batman outfit, and we called him Rat Boy because his ears were pointing way out."
Dressing up like superheroes outside of the Halloween season isn't the problem the guys have encountered while traveling the road to popularity. In a Canadian photo session, Nick swears they had to wear almost nothing at all! "We were in our underwear," he gasps. "No, it was not just underwear," 22-year-old Brian cuts in. "It was T-shirts and shorts. It was just a little weird."
It just goes to show you that there is always an element of surprise when someone else does the shopping. That's why the boys like to shop together for clothes they like whenever they get a break from their hectic schedules.
When it comes to shopping for Howie, the 19-year-old tells BB that he's "more of a dresser, stylish kind of person. I like to wear clubwear when I go out dancing and stuff. Sometimes I wear the tight kind of retro shirts and jeans that are closer to fitting me then those humongous pants."
But that doesn't go for all the guys. A.J. likes his clothes "too big" as opposed to Howie's more tailored approach. A.J. admits his clothing is "extra, extra large," and just because he fits into a size 30 pants doesn't mean that that's what he'll choose to wear. Instead, the 19-year-old tells BB, he's more likely to belt up to a size 36!
As for the oldest a capella artist of the bunch, 25-year-old Kevin's taste for clothes has ventured more on the mature side. There's always room for football jerseys and jeans in Kevin's closet, but that's not all you'll see him sporting. "If it's a more formal affair, then I'll wear linen or a blazer and a shirt to look a little nicer," he says.
A lot of the time, the other guys trade clothes and lend them to each other," Howie says, "but I'm kind of more particular." So that explains why you might see Nick wearing a particular shirt in one photo and then see that same shirt worn by A.J. in the next.
But this group wardrobe tactic only applies if the shirt wasn't stolen! "I don't give them back. I have his clothes, his clothes, his clothes...," A.J. devilishly says as he points to each of his fellow group members around the room. "See! that's exactly why I don't always give out stuff," Howie retorts.
So with all of their experience (and determination, in A.J.'s case) of dressing for success, you'd think most photographers would allow this fashion-forward fivesome to have some input into what they wear while smiling for the camera. Well, we at BB gave them that opportunity to look extra special during their recent photo session here in Los Angeles--and saved them the embarassment of looking as if they're posing for a Halloween ad. In fact, they were so thrilled with their Gap polos they posed in for us that they've decided to give BB readers a chance to win one of their much-loved shirts for your very own! Of course, they had to autograph them first! Wouldn't it be great to go to school in a sky-blue Gap shirt worn by Kevin or Brian, hang out with friends in Nick's turquoise top, throw on A.J.'s royal blue polo while you're listening to their CD or even wear Howie's lime-green pullover as a night shirt?