How Nick Carter Is Healing One Year After Brother Aaron Carter’s Death _ E! News

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00:00 Wow, you have a lot going on right now.

00:02 And congratulations to you.

00:04 The new single "Made For Us" released yesterday.

00:07 I want you to take us into the process here,

00:09 the songwriting process and the inspiration behind it, Nick.

00:12 Yeah, so recently when I've been recording music by myself,

00:17 I like to have a lot of intent and thought behind it.

00:20 Every time I write a song, I say, all right,

00:22 well, what can I do content-wise that can kind of like pair up

00:26 with it?

00:28 And so the last song I had done, "Superman," I had this whole--

00:32 it was kind of like a little bit of a country feel or whatever.

00:35 And that was fun.

00:36 And then this one, I love '80s music.

00:40 I grew up listening to it.

00:41 That's what really inspired me.

00:42 That's why I was doing the "Who I Am" tour.

00:44 It's the music that kind of inspired me from 1980

00:47 all the way to '93 when I met the Backstreet Boys.

00:49 And that music was kind of a part of me.

00:52 So I said, well, I'm going to do an '80s throwback kind

00:55 of feel song.

00:56 So I wanted to make sure I had the sense in it.

00:58 I wanted to make sure that it had some of those drums that

01:01 are reminiscent of those times.

01:04 But it had to be a really good song.

01:06 And I had been writing a bunch of songs with my friend,

01:09 Brian Shackle.

01:11 And we came up with this one.

01:13 I was like, oh, this is great.

01:14 And so lyrically, we started adjusting it.

01:16 I said, OK, maybe this could be like a--

01:18 almost like a fan dedication video.

01:21 I had this idea, well, maybe we'll

01:23 have the fans submit a bunch of footage of us

01:28 throughout the years.

01:30 It could be me on stage.

01:31 It could be whatever since the beginning of time.

01:34 And we'll put them in the music video.

01:36 And so we did a lyric video, put them in there.

01:38 And now the music video is coming next.

01:42 It's just totally '80s, totally throwback, totally retro.

01:46 And that's coming, I think, in about a week from now.

01:48 Listen, from Backstreet Boys to Nick Carter going solo

01:52 since 2017, the Who I Am Tour.

01:54 I know you mentioned your goal was to have this tour explore

01:58 your own artistic expression.

01:59 So I want you to take me to a time where you struggled.

02:01 You may have struggled with your individuality

02:03 being in such an iconic boy band like the Backstreet Boys.

02:08 It's been the biggest problem for me as a solo artist

02:11 because we are in such a place in time where everybody knows.

02:18 We have a lot of albums, a lot of music.

02:21 And when we go on stage or we're performing that stuff,

02:24 that's what they want.

02:25 That's what they expect.

02:26 So you kind of conform to, like, OK,

02:29 you're Nick Carter from the Backstreet Boys or whatever.

02:32 And then when I go out on my own, I say, all right, well,

02:35 I kind of just want to have fun and just explore and be

02:39 more creative.

02:41 And so that's why this tour for me--

02:47 why I called it the Who I Am Tour

02:48 because I wanted it to be the music that inspired

02:51 me to be who I am.

02:52 But then once I got out on tour, I

02:54 started to realize that it was more than just that.

02:59 It was taking my time, having a conversation, giving stories,

03:07 having them feel the pain and the hurt

03:10 and see me just as who I am and not just this Backstreet

03:17 Boy or whatever.

03:19 I am no different.

03:21 Even though I'm a performer and a singer and dancer

03:24 and have done this since I was 12 years old,

03:27 I've never looked at myself as being different than anybody.

03:30 I'm just a regular guy like everybody else out there.

03:33 I just happen to have fallen into this type of life

03:37 where I am an entertainer.

03:40 And so that really comes out in the show for the Who I Am show.

03:45 So it's therapeutic.

03:47 Speaking of therapeutic and the pain and the greatness,

03:50 I want to take a moment to pivot with respect, Nick.

03:53 I want to ask you, how are you doing?

03:55 I know it's been one year, almost one year,

03:58 November 5th, since your brother Aaron's passing.

04:01 How are you doing?

04:02 It's still unbelievable to me.

04:03 When I think back and I get to these holidays like Halloween

04:14 and these are moments and milestones and times

04:18 when I've actually shared those memories with my brother

04:21 and with my family, good times.

04:23 And even though I'm sharing it with my kids and my family now,

04:28 it's still-- there's times when I sit by myself

04:31 and-- or if I'm in my car and I say to myself,

04:34 this is unbelievable.

04:36 So I'm still processing the whole situation

04:39 and trying to make sense of it because it hasn't--

04:44 because no matter what he and I had gone through in our lives,

04:48 we always were able to make amends,

04:51 always were able to get back to that place.

04:53 And now I can't anymore.

04:54 And it hurts.

04:59 So yeah, I'm just still processing the whole thing.

05:08 And sometimes you push down because you

05:12 don't want to think about it.

05:15 And then it comes out like this.

05:19 But I'm hoping that one day I could make sense of it all.

05:23 My deepest condolences, Nick.

05:25 Thank you.

05:25 My deepest condolences.

05:27 I heard you mention that you push it down.

05:29 And that can't be easy.

05:32 What is the thing that you're thinking about as those tears

05:38 well up?

05:39 It's just that no matter what, he's my brother.

05:42 And I miss him.

05:43 I love him.

05:43 I am hoping one day it'll all make sense.

05:46 And I'm working on it.

05:48 I know that this moment has taught you probably

05:52 to hug your family even tighter.

05:54 I know you mentioned family.

05:55 Has the moment taught you to cling on tighter

05:58 to those babies of yours?

05:59 Absolutely.

06:00 My children are my everything.

06:07 If I lost everything, if I wasn't a back-shoe boy anymore,

06:11 if I didn't have the opportunity to still perform for people

06:16 and entertain them, as long as I still had my kids

06:20 and still had my family, I'd be OK.

06:23 It doesn't-- all this other stuff on the outside

06:26 doesn't matter to me.

06:28 And that's what I focus on, being present with my children,

06:33 listening to them, parent-teacher conferences,

06:37 driving them to school, taking them to Halloweens

06:40 and being there when they want a trick or treat,

06:44 trying to be the best father that I can.

06:46 And it's my job to create a safe space for my children

06:56 and give them those memories that they can look back

06:58 and be like--

06:59 because they're growing every single day, and I see them.

07:02 My son's seven.

07:02 My daughter's four.

07:05 Serj, my youngest daughter, is two.

07:08 One day, I look forward to being--

07:11 to really be able to talk about everything

07:14 and to say the things I want to say.

07:17 Again, there is--

07:20 I think there's a time and a place for that.

07:23 And I look forward to that in the future.

07:25 I really do.

07:26 I want to ask you this.

07:28 Almost congratulations, pivoting 10 years,

07:31 almost 10 years with Lauren.

07:33 That's an amazing thing, April 2014, all the way to now,

07:39 at the end of 2023.

07:40 So almost, happy 10-year anniversary.

07:43 Thank you.

07:44 What is one thing that's been that key

07:45 to the glue and the success of this marriage?

07:50 We focus on-- we take time for each other.

07:56 And we spend a lot of time with our kids, with three kids.

08:00 It's been an adjustment.

08:02 And it's beautiful.

08:03 We love it.

08:04 But taking the time to do those things

08:09 and creating the space for that.

08:12 Yes, it's clear that you love your wife.

08:14 And it's clear that Nick loves the kids.

08:16 Speaking of the kids, Nick, you're

08:17 part of a new digital music compilation titled

08:20 Christmas for the Kids, 22 holiday music tracks.

08:24 And they're benefiting the patients of Cure

08:26 for the Kids Foundation.

08:27 Why did you want to be involved in this project?

08:28 Cure for the Kids, basically, is a foundation out here.

08:31 It's a hospital or a facility that if parents and families

08:37 have a child who's suffering from cancer,

08:40 they will-- in Nevada and also the surrounding states,

08:44 they will help bring you in and take care of it completely.

08:49 You don't have to cover it.

08:51 And so this year, what we did is recorded the John Lennon song,

08:57 "The War is Over" or "Happy Christmas."

09:00 I think it was really special, too,

09:01 because when a child does finally beat cancer,

09:05 the song "The War is Over."

09:07 And that's what was beautiful about the song.

09:09 So I'm happy to be a part of it.

09:11 Amen.

09:11 My final question for you, Dad.

09:13 Let's keep it on that.

09:14 I know in 2021, we saw Lauren speaking

09:18 about the struggles of some minor complications

09:20 surrounding the birth of Pearl.

09:21 And now look at her, boom, ba-da, boom, boom, boom, boom.

09:24 Playing the drums?

09:25 I say, he got a little musician on his hands.

09:28 I want to know, how special is it as a father who

09:30 is an artist, an icon, to see your daughter pick up

09:34 those drumsticks and take after the daddy's

09:36 artistic abilities and talent?

09:39 Seeing Pearl, because we had--

09:41 Pearl was born right during COVID.

09:45 And there was so many things that we just

09:48 weren't prepared for with the NICU

09:50 and all these other things.

09:52 And her having lung issues.

09:54 And now seeing her the way she is, she's just a spitfire.

09:59 And I'm just so happy and proud that she's in our world.

10:03 (upbeat music)

10:05 you

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