Backstreet Boy Brian’s

Hollywood insider

Brian’s kept a cool head through fame, with the help of his faith, which has seen him have 20 hits on the Christian charts. Right: All grown up (clockwise, from top left) Nick, Kevin Richardson, Howie Dorough, AJ and Brian.

‘Success sometimes tears families apart ’

B MY BE B IGGER THAN ME

Brian has

some fatherly

TEXT: LEENA TAILOR. PICTURES: GETTY IMAGES.

Twenty years after their Kiwi fans rallied together to launch a nationwide petition to bring the Backstreet Boys to New Zealand, the boy band is gearing up for two nostalgiafilled shows in Auckland. And while they’ve still got many of the same hits and moves, much has changed for the quintet, who are now all doting dads whose bottle service these days is more likely to involve baby formula than vodka. Woman’s Day caught up with Brian Littrell about how New Zealand reminds him of home, the group’s resurgence, fatherhood and watching his 17-year-old son Baylee follow advice for wannabes

ackstreet’s back! Proud parents Brian and Leighanne with their young star Baylee. SON’S GONNA BE B IGGER THAN ME

his footsteps into music with the release of his debut album 777-Country . Having witnessed his bandmates Nick Carter and AJ McLean experience the downsides of fame with drug and alcohol addiction when they were around the same age as Baylee, Brian is conscious of helping his son stay on the right path as his career takes off. “The best thing we can give Baylee is love and support, and just guide his thought process,” says Brian, who met his wife Leighanne on the group’s 1997 “As Long as You Love Me” video shoot. “With success comes fortune and fame, and that’s when young people can lose their heads. Everybody around you says ‘yes’ to everything you want and you lose perspective. “When AJ and Nick were growing up, it was tough for me to watch them disconnect from their families. Success sometimes tears families apart. Having seen that and knowing the things I’ve been through with my group, the best thing we can do with Baylee is hold him close and stay strong as a family so we can help each other through the ups and downs that may come with success.” The Backstreet Boys have ridden those ups and downs for almost 27 years, overcoming health struggles, loss, addiction, conflicts and legal troubles. Now all happy and healthy family men, the group has experienced a resurgence in recent years, starting with a record-breaking Las Vegas residency, then the release of their 10th studio album, DNA , which shot to number one and spawned the Grammynominated track “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”. “We’re honoured to still have people who want to listen to us and come see the shows,” gushes Brian, 44. “This is something we’ve worked very hard for. We never stopped and always talked about having a long career. It’s not that difficult to have quick success in this business, but it’s difficult to have longevity. “And when you’re dealing with record labels and having success, they want you to record, record, record, put out music, then tour, tour, tour. Sometimes you have to stop and say, ‘If this is going to mean as much to us as it always has, we have to step away for a minute and do something different.’” For the group, that meant heading to Las Vegas for their Larger than Life residency. They also explored the country realm, releasing “God, Your Mama, and Me”, with Florida Georgia Line, which is what inspired Baylee’s musical dreams. Brian was hands-on with his son’s project and even has a duet with Baylee, “Come Kiss Me” on the record. “We didn’t want to do just any song together,” explains Baylee. “We wanted something that would have a big outreach to people and this is a love song that people can have their first dance to or play at weddings. “Recording with my dad was really fun. We were laughing at each other because we kept running in and out of the studio wanting to retake each line!” While Baylee promotes his record, Brian is enjoying downtime before resuming the DNA World Tour , which will see them rocking hits like “I Want it That Way” at Auckland’s Spark Arena on May 16 and 17. In their downtime, Brian hopes to sightsee. “I love New Zealand,” he enthuses. “It’s absolutely beautiful. It’s a long way from home, but it’s amazing to travel to all these beautiful places.

“Hopefully I'll get a chance to run around Auckland and maybe Christchurch. I just love the countryside. It reminds me a lot of home where I grew up in Kentucky. It’s a long way from Kentucky, but it reminds me of being a little boy at home there!” #