- 6 minutes ago
The Backstreet Boys join Billboard News to talk about their new PAW Patrol song “Bottle Up,” their massive residency at Sphere Las Vegas, celebrating 'Millennium' 25 years later, and why taking the show to Germany feels like a full-circle moment. Plus, the group reflects on legacy, family, and plays a quick round of “I Want It That Way” with Billboard.
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00:00I mean if you would have told us this is where we'd be 33 years later, I don't think any
00:03of us would have really believed it.
00:05I mean it's an absolute dream come true that there's...
00:08Well we had hoped and yet.
00:09Of course, we obviously hoped and we aspired to it and we really wanted it, but to be able to
00:14have this like second coming again...
00:17Hey I'm Kevin.
00:18I'm Nick.
00:19I'm AJ.
00:19I'm Howie D.
00:20And I'm Brian.
00:21And we're the Backstreet Boys and you're watching Billboard News.
00:25Keep it tuned.
00:31Backstreet's back, alright.
00:33What's up folks?
00:34It's your boy Gerard Milligan here and I'm with the legends themselves.
00:38Please give it up for the Backstreet Boys y'all.
00:43Fellas, I'm so excited to have you here.
00:45Like you are legit.
00:47Anytime I do karaoke, I'm going to Backstreet's back.
00:51Alright.
00:51Like I'm like this is not even a bit.
00:54So we have to talk about Paw Patrol.
00:56Alright.
00:57You have the single, Bottle Up.
00:58How did that come about?
01:00Take this moment.
01:02Coming to you live from Dino Island.
01:04The bottle up this feeling.
01:06Our management came to us and said we have a song that was written by Ed Sheeran and Savon from
01:11the Max Martin camp.
01:12And we all took one listen to it and I think it was unanimous.
01:16The demo was actually Ed Sheeran singing on it.
01:18It was pretty cool.
01:20It was pretty cool.
01:21It was almost like how do we get as close to this or try to even top it.
01:25But actually with the five of our voices, there's magic that we've created on it.
01:29We bottled up that magic and we put it in the song.
01:31And it's just a great collaboration.
01:33You know, Paw Patrol, we're all dads.
01:35We all have kids.
01:37Paw Patrol is such a family, you know, get together type, you know, show, movie.
01:42And so it just feels great.
01:43When our fans now, when we look out in the audience, there's anywhere from three to four generations.
01:49So we love it when our fans, the older ones, are bringing their kids and they're helping us just, you
01:53know, continue our music on to the next generation and everything.
01:57You guys are utterly famous.
01:59Like, I don't think you understand how much I'm freaking out in this moment.
02:02But do your kids, like, understand how big you are?
02:06Or does it take doing something like a Paw Patrol that is closer to them for them to really understand,
02:10oh, that is that guy?
02:14I think with YouTube nowadays, they can go back and see over the years the good, the bad, the ugly,
02:21everything.
02:21But I think YouTube has probably been the biggest thing that's been able to show our kids, you know, before
02:29they were born, where we started and where we are now.
02:31I mean, everything that and TikTok.
02:34Our kids are, like, Brian has the oldest.
02:37I have a 23-year-old.
02:38So he experienced it.
02:40You know, they all experience it at different times and it clicks at different times.
02:46I think for my kids, probably the coolest thing that ever happened is when we were on the DNA tour
02:52and we were in Toronto.
02:53And we had just gotten there and we went to a restaurant and it just happened to be, like, Drake's.
02:59That's where he always goes.
03:01And it was late at night.
03:03They were, like, we were just us in there and maybe a few people that were leaving.
03:07And all of a sudden, Drake comes in.
03:09The maitre d' is like, oh, excuse me, Drake is here.
03:13And he would love, when you're finished, he would love to be able to come over and say hi.
03:18And my kids were like, dad, dad.
03:22What did it happen?
03:23I'm like, we're actually wrapping up.
03:25We'll go say hi to him.
03:26And then went and saw him and he told a story about, like, his first kiss was to one of
03:31our songs.
03:32And then he's like, what are you guys doing in town?
03:34Like, we're playing three shows.
03:35He's like, could I come through?
03:37He came through, got up on stage and performed with us.
03:39So that is really when it clicked for my kids.
03:42Dad.
03:43Dad has done some things.
03:46I've seen the previous Paw Patrol movie with my little cousin.
03:50She had me in theaters.
03:51And she is a big sing-along person.
03:54I feel kids love to sing along to things.
03:57Like, you now have a song that kids are probably going to be singing all summer because the video just
04:01dropped.
04:02Like, does that go into when you're actually collaborating and when you're putting your tweaks on the songs, do you
04:10have a moment that you're like, oh, kids are going to love singing this note or this rhyme?
04:15Or does that take into account anything?
04:16When you're creating and you're in the studio, you try to, not only do you have, like, a chorus, a
04:22hook, but then you also have, like, a B chorus in the background that comes in towards the end of
04:28the song.
04:28Like, woo-hoo, woo-hoo, answer and repeat kind of things.
04:36And you absolutely think about those things when you're in the studio creating.
04:40Sorry, I cut you off.
04:41No, no, no.
04:41I was just going to say, like, you know, it was like the stars collided again, you know, for us.
04:46It was like lighting in a bottle again, like having, like, another, I want it that way.
04:51It's like an earworm.
04:52It just gets in your ear and it won't leave.
04:53But you marry that with the, you know, the summer smash kids movie of the summer with the song.
05:01Like, it takes an army to be successful in this business.
05:05And that was just, it was one of those moments where you're like, wow, you know, the Backstreet Boys have
05:10went and done it again.
05:11You know what I mean?
05:12So we're happy and blessed.
05:14And we also have the dance, too.
05:15So we'll have to teach you the dance.
05:16Listen, okay, okay, listen.
05:18I heard about the dance before y'all came in fear, like, covered my heart.
05:21Like, fear covered my soul.
05:23Like, oh, my God, please.
05:25I will try.
05:26One day, I promise to God, I will try.
05:28Super easy.
05:29Super easy.
05:30Listen, I've done it in the video.
05:38We got to talk about the sphere because the sphere is crazy.
05:43Like, I've had so many friends.
05:44It has been a destination to go to Vegas to go see you guys perform.
05:48Like, did y'all have any idea how massive that was going to become?
05:51We hoped.
05:53You know, it's an incredible venue.
05:56Like, it's the most state-of-the-art venue in the world.
06:01And I think every artist that gets to experience it as a fan is going to want to play there,
06:07is going to want to create in that space.
06:09Because whatever you can dream up in here, and they can render it on the screens,
06:15you can take people in the audience anywhere you want to take them.
06:20Literally, anywhere you want to take them.
06:22I've heard so much about, like, the performance and the redoing of videos.
06:26Has it ever been like, do you have your favorite thing to perform in the sphere?
06:31Yeah.
06:32I think it's different for everybody.
06:33But, I mean, we're taking people on a journey.
06:36Obviously, at the core of this is celebrating the 25th anniversary of our biggest album, Millennium.
06:44And, you know, with the re-release of the album, Millennium 2.0.
06:49And then, you know, there was talk about maybe redoing the tour or doing something.
06:56And then this opportunity kind of fell in our lap.
06:59So, you know, taking people down memory lane, taking you back to 1999, you know, asking everyone to wear white.
07:08You know, it's like a room full of mental patients.
07:10But it's a really cool, like, we created this cult.
07:16It's like, it's, and I didn't think it would last after, like, the first weekend.
07:21And people are still coming in all white.
07:24It's a celebration.
07:25There's two shows happening at once.
07:27You know, we're doing our normal concert, like you would see if you saw us at a normal arena show.
07:32But then you have this film happening behind you.
07:35So, it's a lot to take in.
07:37It's like we created a film to go along with the soundtrack.
07:40What's that process like?
07:41Because I've only seen videos.
07:43But, yeah, you're performing.
07:44But also, the sphere is kind of almost incorporating the audience into it.
07:50Because it's so close.
07:52I got an eight, nine-month process.
07:53We had 13 different companies creating the content.
07:58We had a storyboard, almost like a script.
08:01And basically, we put a film together.
08:03Yeah, the idea that came to us in September of 2024.
08:07And then we hit the stage in July of 2025.
08:11So, it took that long.
08:12You guys have become a destination for Vegas.
08:15But also, I think a lot of people now will associate the sphere with the Backstreet Boys.
08:20Yeah.
08:20It's crazy.
08:21What is like a thing in Vegas that you really love to do?
08:25Because I've only been to the strips.
08:26I only know Vegas.
08:27Oh.
08:28I've been there for 10 years now.
08:30You know, at our first residency when we came there, I moved there with my son and my wife.
08:35We were at Planet Hollywood, and I just stayed there.
08:38So, I saw the actual, I saw Allegiant Stadium getting built.
08:43And then I saw, you know, Sphere getting built at the same time.
08:48So, I became a part of the whole community.
08:50You know, like, my kids go to school there.
08:52You know, I'm a baseball dad.
08:53I coach Little League, like, all these other things.
08:56So, I actually have to, like, you know, I have daddy duties when I'm home.
09:00You know what I mean?
09:01But I saw this place as I was taking my children to school, getting built every single day.
09:06And I looked at that venue.
09:07This was before we even had the idea for Millennium 2.0.
09:10And I was like, there's no way in the world we'll ever be able to play that place.
09:13Because at the time, you know, they had the Eagles lined up.
09:17You know, they had YouTube lined up.
09:20They had all these, like, incredible, legendary bands that were, that, you know, these are, so we never put ourselves
09:29in that, I never put ourselves in that category.
09:31I don't think we ever do.
09:32So, it's just been grateful for it.
09:34Yeah, there was a lot of rumblings after we did our first residency back in 17.
09:39There was rumblings of us coming back and doing another residency somewhere.
09:43But, you know, we didn't know if it was going to be at a different hotel or whatever with that.
09:47But being that this was the first, we're the first pop act to be at Sphere.
09:52And it kind of, like, changed it.
09:56Quick back story.
09:59AJ is like, guys, at some point, we should re-tour the Millennium.
10:04Because when we toured the Millennium tour, we didn't get to really tour it like we wanted to because we
10:11had an obligation to deliver an album contractually to our record label in a certain time frame.
10:16So, we kind of cut that tour short.
10:19True.
10:20His wife was like, AJ, you guys should do.
10:24Like, when you two re-toured Joshua Tree, that's kind of where the impetus for the idea came.
10:32And his wife, Rochelle, was like, you guys should do.
10:35Yeah, she was like, no act of your caliber has ever, like, in our world, has ever recreated their biggest
10:42tour.
10:42So, like, do it exactly the same.
10:44For our biggest album.
10:44Our biggest album.
10:45And so, we got the tour routing and I looked at it.
10:50Instead of being excited, I was really sad because it was my, I was going to miss my son's entire
10:56senior year of high school.
10:58His football season, his soccer season, and his graduation.
11:00So, I talked to the fellas, I'm like, guys, is there some way we can figure out a way to
11:06either postpone this or launch it in Vegas?
11:09And our management was like, I wonder if this is a big enough idea for a sphere.
11:14So, they went fishing and we hooked the sphere.
11:18We hooked the sphere, not the sphere, but we hooked the sphere.
11:21Yes.
11:22And we created a show and it's been amazing.
11:25When we're done in the summer, it'll be 53 shows.
11:28When we did Millennium in 99 and 2000, I remember that things were different.
11:36Technology was still not to where it is now.
11:39So, we had to cut back a lot of stuff.
11:41We had all these amazing ideas that we couldn't do them all because of the budget.
11:46To orchestrate.
11:47And the budget.
11:48And the technology wasn't there.
11:49And the technology wasn't there.
11:50The technology wasn't there.
11:51Remember.
11:51Yeah.
11:51Is there anything that you were able to add now that you just desperately wanted to back in 99, 2000?
11:58God, I remember.
11:59I mean, well, for starters, we didn't have any content on the Millennium Tour.
12:04Yeah.
12:04There was no content.
12:06It was just us on the screens and we had ops.
12:08IMAG was like the cool thing back then.
12:12But the big thing was.
12:13You can see the face on the screen.
12:14But the big thing was, like, prior to us, Garth Brooks was out flying over the crowd.
12:20Bon Jovi was flying over the crowd.
12:22That was a new thing that artists were trying.
12:25So, we flew in on our surfboards.
12:27Costumes.
12:28And then we had the costumes.
12:29We flew out over the crowd.
12:30That was about as high tech as we could get back in 99.
12:34I remember, so, we were huge fans of the movie Blade.
12:38Of course.
12:38Which was one of our favorite movies.
12:40And we were talking about the opening and Star Wars.
12:43And we were talking about the opening outfit.
12:44And we had this.
12:45We were like, we got to, like, do something futuristic.
12:48And so, we were, like, we were looking at Wesley Snipes, his outfit, which he had, like, this lapel and,
12:54like, this vest on.
12:55And so, we tried to recreate that as a copy of Blade.
12:58But in, like, royal electric blue.
13:00Yeah.
13:01That was from Blade?
13:03Yeah.
13:03And then it switched into, like, basically, like, Batman with the nipples and the whole thing.
13:10You know, the ass.
13:12Because Batman didn't come back out.
13:14George Clooney version.
13:15No, I remember.
13:16The Clooney version with the nipples, yeah.
13:18I mean, also, you're now at the end of the summer going off to Germany.
13:22What is that like, going back and getting a chance to perform there?
13:26So, the Sphere, we were so blessed and we still are so blessed that we have a good amount.
13:31of show still left.
13:32But when we've actually talked with management and actually even some promoters have come to us,
13:37this is how it all got inspired, was a German promoter came to us and to our management and said,
13:42you know what, we didn't realize that a lot of our numbers of the fans are mostly from the United
13:48States
13:48that are coming to the show.
13:50A lot of these other countries haven't had a chance to see this show.
13:52And it's like, it would be a shame not for the rest of the world to see this.
13:57So that inspired us to say, how can we take this show, an adaptation of this show,
14:04but inspire it to go somewhere else into where can we go with it next to take it around the
14:08world?
14:09And it's hard to top the Sphere.
14:11I mean, the Sphere, it's like, where else can you go?
14:13Almost like people that come to our shows, they say, now I can't even go to an arena show anymore
14:17because it almost feels like, you know, you're down.
14:19So it's like, what could even come on the same level?
14:22And that's where the idea of, can we do stadiums?
14:25Stadiums, baby, in Germany.
14:27Because that's where it all started.
14:28Yeah.
14:29That was where our first success was in Deutschland.
14:32So does it feel like a full circle moment in that kind of way?
14:35It's like, it started, you're back there.
14:37Yeah.
14:37Germany was the first place they gave us our start.
14:40And we are so grateful.
14:41It always feels like a second home to us.
14:42I mean, we were there in the first three years of our career.
14:45Some of us didn't have German girlfriends because we weren't even at home that much.
14:49So we sprach uns die Deutsch really fast.
14:53But, you know, it's always had a warm, you know, special place in our heart.
14:57And when we thought about where does this feel the right place to kick it off, it was Germany.
15:03And we hope that the rest of the world can be able to see it eventually one day, too.
15:07Well, so you're going to become a destination now in Germany as well.
15:10I mean, well, wherever we can take this.
15:12We're going to try to do little mini residencies around the globe on which continent.
15:17Yeah.
15:18I mean, if you would have told us this is where we'd be 33 years later, I don't think any
15:22of us would have really believed it.
15:24I mean, it's an absolute dream come true that.
15:26Well, we had hoped, AJ.
15:28Of course.
15:28We obviously hoped and we aspired to it and we really wanted it.
15:31But to be able to have this, like, second coming again, you know, and I'll go back to
15:38this is the end.
15:38I feel like that's what slowly started it, was this is the end.
15:43After that, we had our first residency.
15:45Then we had the DNA album and tour.
15:49We had a Grammy nomination off of that.
15:51And then next thing you know, here we are at Sphere.
15:53And now we're about to go do stadiums, 10 stadiums in Germany.
15:57And it's just like, it just doesn't happen.
16:01You know, it's just mind boggling to me.
16:03Very grateful.
16:04Very grateful.
16:05A lot of gratitude.
16:11Fellas, I only have one quick thing left.
16:13There is a game you want to play.
16:15It's called I Want It That Way.
16:17It basically is just a this or that game.
16:19So I'm going to give you two things and you just say this or that.
16:23The first one is, I Want It That Way or Everybody.
16:28I want it that way.
16:30I like the sweat.
16:31I like the sweat.
16:32I want it that way.
16:33Okay, okay.
16:39It's like Sophie's Choice.
16:42I want it that way.
16:43Sorry, AJ.
16:44You know, AJ, it's okay.
16:45I want it that way.
16:46I want everybody, too.
16:47I carry you something.
16:48I'm sorry.
16:49I've always been the odd man out.
16:50It's fine.
16:51Let's do it.
16:52CDs or vinyl?
16:54Vinyl.
16:54CDs.
16:55Vinyl.
16:56Vinyl.
16:56Vinyl is back with a vengeance.
16:58Yeah, vinyl.
16:59Vinyl.
17:00Vegas or Germany?
17:02Oh, that's a tough one.
17:03Vinyl?
17:05That's a trap question right there.
17:07Wait, hold on.
17:09I'm going to say Germany because that's where it started.
17:11So, and we get to do stadiums in Germany.
17:13You guys see the difference now?
17:15There's 17,000 versus 42,000.
17:18Vega.
17:18Vega me.
17:19Vega money.
17:21Yes.
17:21That's big money.
17:22I'll see Nick like, I can't do it.
17:24No, I'll answer it.
17:25I can't.
17:26It's more sentimental for me.
17:27How about Germans?
17:28Vegas because, you know, my family lives.
17:30Both my daughters were born in Vegas.
17:33That's right.
17:34All right, I'll say Germany.
17:35Germany?
17:36Yeah.
17:37Deutschland.
17:38Oh, okay.
17:39I'm with you, Nick.
17:40I'll say Germany.
17:40Okay.
17:41Say good.
17:41Okay, this is a throwback.
17:43NSYNC or O-Town?
17:45Ooh.
17:46Oh, man.
17:47I don't want these guys here now.
17:49We're friends with them all.
17:49Yeah, I know, right?
17:50We are friends with them.
17:51We know all of those dudes.
17:52We talk.
17:53I know.
17:54You might be hurt.
17:55You know.
17:55I'm going to say O-Town.
17:57Okay, O-Town, O-Town.
17:58We have a couple O-Towns.
17:59What do you say?
18:00I'll say NSYNC.
18:02NSYNC?
18:02I mean, I'm closer with those guys.
18:04Makes sense.
18:05Makes sense.
18:07I know more NSYNC songs.
18:09Yeah.
18:10Okay.
18:11I went to college with Chris Kirkpatrick, so I have to say it.
18:13Oh, see.
18:13You got some respect.
18:14The Razor or Sidekick?
18:17The Razor.
18:18The Razor.
18:18The Sidekick.
18:19The Sidekick was cool, but I always wanted a Sidekick, though.
18:22A little flip.
18:22A little flip open either.
18:24I want a Motorola Flip for me.
18:26Oh, yeah.
18:26The Flip?
18:27Yeah.
18:28StarTac.
18:28That was good.
18:29StarTac.
18:30The Blackberry.
18:30The Motorola StarTac?
18:32Yeah.
18:32How about two-way pagers?
18:34Oh, see.
18:34I remember the.
18:35Did you say beepers?
18:35No, two-way pagers.
18:37Yeah.
18:37Remember the two-ways?
18:38Yeah.
18:38I remember the.
18:39Oh, beepers, too.
18:39Yeah.
18:40The.
18:40Was it the next tail?
18:42It was like a yellow and black.
18:43The walkie-talkie?
18:44Yeah, the walkie-talkie.
18:44Oh, yeah.
18:45I'm going to say calling cards.
18:47The calling cards.
18:48Calling cards.
18:48Yeah, you had no idea.
18:50We had to use calling cards.
18:51Oh, my gosh.
18:52To call back home.
18:54You really age yourself out.
18:56T-Mobile.
18:59Go back to the payphones.
19:01Boy, I really am.
19:02Use yourself dial-up.
19:03All right, our last one.
19:04TRL or Hot 100?
19:05I've worked in both places.
19:06This is crazy.
19:09TRL and Hot 100?
19:10TRL gave us a lot of love.
19:12TRL was kind of where it all really kicked off for us.
19:16I mean, we were on the Hot 100, too.
19:20Yeah.
19:21It's a tough one.
19:21Yeah.
19:22Lots of love on both sides.
19:24We love you.
19:24We love you.
19:25I just want to know that.
19:26We love you.
19:27We love you.
19:28The Hot TRL.
19:29There you go.
19:30There you go.
19:31TRL is hot.
19:31There you go.
19:32Yeah.
19:32There you go.
19:33And, you know, we're both in New York.
19:34So, like, I remember just seeing those old TRL videos of just Times Square.
19:38I can't even imagine seeing that many people.
19:41I guess the Knicks right now.
19:42Oh, yeah.
19:43Right now with the Knicks.
19:44But, man, seeing that many people standing on cars and things like that.
19:48It's an environment.
19:49Yeah.
19:49It's a created environment.
19:50Yeah.
19:50It's not even the same anymore.
19:52Physically to, like, have more space for people to hang out.
19:54Oh, yeah.
19:55We shut it down.
19:56We had a, what do they call it?
19:57Yeah.
19:58Yeah.
19:58Where the police.
19:59They said, do not stay in emergency, but wear the car again.
20:01Yeah.
20:02They were like, you guys are not allowed back.
20:05Guys, thank you so much for coming.
20:07Thank you, man.
20:08Like, the song is really fun.
20:10It's perfectly for the summer as well, for the movie.
20:13And I feel like that's one of those things, like, I know my little cousin's going to love
20:16it, and I use her for everything now.
20:19Thank y'all so much.
20:20Thank you, man.
20:20Thank you, man.
20:21Appreciate it.
20:21Thank you for having me.
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