Emma Burns, Staff Editor Dating back to the 60’s, boy bands have dominated social scenes with good looks and pop music. Throughout the years, the fad of boy bands died down but then came back with a kick resulting in many famous groups such as the Jackson 5, New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, and today Big Time Rush and One Direction. All though these groups differ in music taste and style, they all have one thing in common: screaming girls. "They are so dedicated…our fans put us where we are. I don’t think it’s something that should be taken as a negative, I think passion’s good in any form." said Harry Styles of One Direction at an interview with BBC. The craze all started with the Beatles. The group was formed in March of 1957 when John Lennon formed a “skiffie group” (a group that plays jazz, with a hint of blues, folk, and roots influence.) Paul McCartney was the first to join, followed by lead guitarist George Harrison and finally drummer Ringo Star in the early 60’s. The group started performing in small bars and nightclubs and soon their popularity grew. Their concerts brought in hoards of fans and among them screaming, crying, fainting girls. The Beatles music was greatly appreciated by all genders, and still is today by many adults and teenagers. They became widely regarded as the most famous and influential band of the British Rock Era. Following the Beatles where some lesser known bands today such as the Osmond’s and New Edition. The boy band fad really struck again in the 80’s/90’s with the start of the bands New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys, and N’Sync. Today, songs like “Quit Playing Games With my Heart” by the Backstreet Boys and “Bye Bye Bye” by N’Sync are well known as classics from the 90’s. They were not only known by their classic 90’s pop music and their plethora of fans, but also for their choreographed dance moves when performing. The moves were often simplistic motions of doing a slide to the left, pointing at the audience and putting their hand to their heart. Although called cheesy by some, those moves were effective in making the fans scream even louder (if possible). This made boy bands become a joke or embarrassing in some people’s opinions, further altering the view of boy bands in the public eye. Boy bands have come back today with the Jonas Brothers, Big Time Rush, and the infamous One Direction. One Direction has become widely popular after receiving third place in the UK’s X Factor. The amount of fans that they have is what has made them special. Their UK 2013 tour sold out in minutes of being released, and crashed multiple ticket selling sites. This has happened at almost every tour they have had. But what makes them so popular? “They make catchy songs and their target audience is like teenage girls and like people our age use technology to help spread their popularity faster and to more people,” Newtown High School Junior Sam Rodriguez said. One Direction has become so popular that they even have been compared to the Beatles. Some people take offense to this claiming that One Direction is a sham and does not have the honor to be compared to the Beatles, while other claim that it is very true. “I don’t agree with One Direction being compared to the Beatles because I think that they Beatles where much better and the style of music was so different,” Rodriguez said. Throughout the ages boy bands have gone in and out of style. With different genres of music and growing up in different times they all differ in many ways, but the one fact that keeps them united is their popularity, making them some of the most famous people in history. Photo credit to www.themycenaean.org.
