Boy bands may be built on fandom, but behind the music is a business that shapes everything from how groups are formed to how they make money. On this week’s episode of Billboard On The Record, Jason Lipshutz, Billboard’s co-chief content officer, joins host Kristin Robinson to discuss his new book A Whole Lotta History: One Direction and the Music That Defined a Generation. Lipshutz breaks down how boy bands are formed, how One Direction rose to stardom and what the future holds for boy bands. From One Direction to BTS and New Kids on the Block, Lipshutz and Robinson explore the evolution of fandom, the business behind boy bands and what it takes for a group to stand the test of time.

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Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. 

Host: 

Kristin Robinson

Executive Producers: 

Diona DaCosta

Jade Watson

Produced By: 

Kayla Forman

Mateo Vergara

Edited By:

Rachel Derbyshire

Kristin Robinson:

What is a boy band?

Jason Lipshutz:

As popular culture has evolved, so has the idea of a popular boy band. And when we think about the modern boy band, that’s to me New Kids. They marketed the hell out of them with different collectibles and different action figures and posters. It was really interesting to kind of track the evolution of the music industry from when One Direction debuted to when they put out their final album.

One thing that you talked about in the book that I thought was really interesting was how ephemeral boy bands are. It’s not something that’s designed to last forever. 

The idea is, like, if you’re 13 and a huge boy band fan, by the time you’re 17, you might not be as into that boy band. And that’s honestly what is so impressive to me about the BTS thing, where they have just kind of powered through. But on the other side of that coin, you look at what Backstreet Boys are doing on the road right now. 

A 20-year trend cycle will eventually come back to you if you’re a boy band. If you’re a boy band, stay in line. 

Stay in line. Yeah. 

Your nostalgia moment is coming. Boy bands. From The Beatles to New Kids on the Block, Boyz II Men, NSYNC, One Direction, and today’s K-pop juggernauts like BTS, boy bands are one of those music industry topics that’s always fascinated me. That’s because boy bands are essentially a bunch of random teen boys plucked from obscurity by savvy music industry executives, and then they’re given some songs, some dance moves, some new outfits, and suddenly they are thrust into a level of unimaginable fame. In a time where we expect total authenticity from artists, these types of groups are often the opposite, and the contrived, youthful nature of these groups unfortunately also leaves them especially vulnerable to exploitation. So today on the show, I’m joined by Billboard’s co-chief content officer, Jason Lipshutz, who just wrote the definitive book on One Direction, to talk about boy bands and the business behind them. Jason Lipshutz, welcome to On the Record.

Thank you for having me.

Thanks for coming.

Yeah.

I’m so excited that we’re doing this. Obviously, we’ve worked together for a while, so fun to finally have you on the pod.

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