This summer, at Yaamava’ Resort and Casino, you can “hang tough” with the first modern boy band, New Kids on the Block!
Now middle-aged like most of their fans, these five guys prove there is no age limit on bringing the magic to their live performance. Their choreography, their costumes, and their voices are just as incredible as they were in 1989.
NKOTB was created by music producer Maurice Starr to be a “white counterpart to New Edition” in the early ‘80s. Finalizing the group’s members with Donnie Wahlberg, Danny Wood, Jordan Knight, Jonathan Knight, and Joey McIntyre, the group went on to sell over 80 million records worldwide and became a cultural phenomenon.
Hitting the radio waves in 1986 with their bubblegum pop sound and look, they didn’t make the splash onto the scene they were expecting. Going back into the studio and having more of a hands-on approach to their song writing, the five guys busted out the history making “Hangin’ Tough” album that would go on to become 8x platinum just in the United States. Now armed with a slightly heavier and more danceable sound, without breaking their original melodic form, they released “Please Don’t Go Girl,” the first single off their second album.
Surprisingly, the song wasn’t picked up by radio stations right away. Back in the pre-social media and music streaming days when artists were at the mercy of radio stations to get their songs out, “Please Don’t Girl” was finally picked up by a station in Florida right before they were about to be dropped by Columbia Records. It became the most requested song for that station, and soon after other radio stations followed suit. “Please Don’t Go Girl” quickly hit number 10 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Singles Chart.
The five teenagers from Dorchester, Massachusetts made a further name for themselves appearing on “Showtime at the Apollo” and “Soul Train.” With their second song off “Hangin’ Tough,” “You Got It (The Right Stuff),” receiving a regular rotation spot on MTV, the NKOTB rock star tour bus left the station.
Merchandise for this boy band grew to exponential highs that no one had ever seen. Lunchboxes, VHS tapes, buttons, t-shirts, comic books, dolls, bed sheets, beach towels, jewelry, shoelaces, a regular Saturday morning cartoon, even a poster as the toy in your Happy Meal – these guys were everywhere. I’m proud to say I possessed all of the above items as a “Blockhead” (the nickname for New Kids fans).
YOUNG RACHAEL NKOTB DREAMIN’
New Kids on the Block went on hiatus in 1995 when most of the guys got married, started families and other careers. The band got back together in 2008, and have kept busy touring with other big musical acts like Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees, Boyz II Men, TLC, Nelly, Paula Abdul, Salt-N-Pepa, Debbie Gibson, Tiffany, and Naughty By Nature.
Now it is time for us to see them again, and in an amazing new venue. The Knight brothers, Wood, McIntyre, and Wahlberg are playing SoCal at the Yaamava’ Resort & Casino on June 30th.
Tickets are almost sold out, so get yours while you still can! I had the pleasure of seeing them live and their energetic performance – and the incredible enthusiasm from the screaming crowd – is something you need to experience in person!
