And That's Life...: The Life of a Former Boy-Bander: Nsync Edition

I was in the car on my way home the other day and an old Christmas song from Nsync came on. I admit, I still know the words and can still decipher which one of them is singing...sad eh? This got me thinking though, whatever happened to all the boy bands? Obviously they broke up but I mean, what happened to the members? More importantly, why do I care? I don't know but I'm curious so I'm going to find out where these guys went. We all know that the Backstreet Boys and the New Kids on the Block tried to resurrect their singing careers and bring back their boy bands. To this, a lot of us went "WHY!?" but there were some happy fans out there so I won't criticize...well, not too much. So, what happened to Nsync?

In 2002, they broke millions of girls' hearts when they decided to take a "break." Every girl knows what the words "we need a break" means in a relationship but fans kept hope alive while Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez started their solo albums. That hope was killed when the official website shut down in 2006 and the hope was further stamped on in 2007 when Lance Bass said it was official. Uh duh, they didn't make a CD for four years and Timberlake's career was on fire, of course it was over, but for those few delusional fans with hope it was really really over. Before anyone asks, I lost interest long before this having put my Nsync CDs aside when I started High School (I still listened a bit I will admit but it was then that I became a closet Nsync fan). So where did these guys go? Let's take a look.

The easiest one to track down is, of course, Justin Timberlake.

Yup, that's little Justin when Nsync first started out. He was 14 when the group began. He and Chasez provided the lead vocals for the group so it isn't surprising that in 2002 he released his solo album Justified. After proving he could sell over 10 million copies world-wide on his own there was no looking back. He released Future Sex/Love Sounds in 2006. After selling another 10 million copies of this CD and multiple Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year, Justin decided to take a break from recording to focusing on his acting. His films have included Black Snake Moan, Shrek the Third, Friends with Benefits, Bad Teacher and the Academy Award Nominated movie The Social Network. He has also become a frequent host/guest star on Saturday Night Live and won the Emmy for "Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series" in both 2009 and 2011 for his appearances on the show. He also formed "The Justin Timberlake Foundation" which promotes music education in the schools. To say that Timberlake made a name for himself outside of Nsync would be an understatement. He has made sure that people know he is more than choreographed dance moves and spiffy costumes. He is also more than the boy we once knew as the one who wore matching denim outfits with Britney Spears...yeah, I had to remember that moment. He has been dating Jessica Biel for a long time now and dresses much better than he did since that horrible moment. For this we can be grateful. My props go out to the man for making a name for himself when he could have rode the Nsync fame until they vanished into obscurity.

Oh boy, it's worse than you remember isn't it?

Thanks iVillage for the flashback!

Almost 32 years old now, the boy now

dresses better. I am glad he is doing so well!

Next up: Lance Bass!

Remember Lance? Of course you do! He was the quiet, sweet guy in the group that stole many girl's hearts with his deep voice and gentle disposition. What happened to Lance? Well, in 2002 he tried to pursue his dream of being an astronaut and went through cosmonaut training. He planned on attending the Soyuz space capsule but sponsors pulled out and he was denied a seat on the voyage. In 2006, Bass came out to People Magazine with the declaration of "I'm Gay!" To some, this came as a shock. Afterall, he dated Danielle Fishel (Topanga on Boy Meets World) and locked lips with Emmanuel Chriqui in their movie On the Line. For the rest of us it was a "yup, saw that coming" moment. Either way, the boy is gay and he is out. I think the teenage Lance fan in many women cried when they read that magazine. Anyway, Bass hasn't been nearly as prominent as his friend Justin but he appeared on Dancing With the Stars in season 7 and placed third with his partner Lacey Schwimmer. He has also done a few small roles in a handful of movies and tv series but no starring roles since his teen-targeted movie On the Line in 2001. He has been very involved in charities however. The Lance Bass Foundation helps children of low-income families with health needs and he launched "uBid for Hurricane Relief" to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. He also appeared on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and donated money to a camp for disabled Russian children. He also released a memoir in 2007 titled "Out of Sync" in which he addresses his sexuality and his life as a member of Nsync which was a big step for the normally quiet Nsyncer.

Poor Lance may never see space.

Lance is now 32 and stepping out

into the spotlight a bit more.

Joey!

Oh boy, remember how often that boy changed his hair colors? Blond tips, red hair, PICK A COLOR MAN! But still we loved him. He was the goofy one and teenage girls loved it. After the break-up, Joey went on to act in a few movies, most notably My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Other than this, and a few titles most of us didn't see, we didn't see a lot of Joey from about 2003-2007 on screen. However, he was on stage in the plays Rent and Little Shop of Horrors from 2002-2004. In 2007, Joey became a contestant on season 4 of Dancing With the Stars (yup, he paved the way for Lance). He was paired with Kym Johnson and took second place to which I still say, "He was robbed!" but thus is life. Dancing seemed to reignite Joey's on-screen career. He went on to host The Singing Bee, guest starred on some TV shows, made a handful of TV Movies and, as of 2010, he is the announcer on The Family Feud. Putting aside from show business, it is nice to note Joey has had a full family life since Nsync. In 2004, he married long-time girlfriend Kelly Baldwin and they have two little girls, Briahna (age 10) and Kloey (almost 2). It looks like Joey has found a nice balance between a family life and a career. Joey will be 35 in January.

What a cute family!

I still haven't seen anyone

top his Jive!

Chris Kirkpatrick, where have you been?

Who could forget those horrible, HORRIBLE braids? I thought they were horrible even when I was 12 and thought this group was awesome. Don't worry, the braids have disappeared but unfortunately for Chris the photos and memories of that terrible fashion choice live on....anyway, Chris was the member of Nsync that was accredited with forming the group. He was also the oldest member and is one of the harder ones to track down. He didn't launch a movie career but he did do a voice for The Fairly OddParents cartoon. Remember popstar Chip Skylark on the show? Yup, that was Chris. Other than this, we didn't see much of Chris until 2007 when Chris appeared on the VH1 reality series Mission Man Band. Yeah, you read that right: Man Band. The premise of the show was to take four former boy banders, put them together in a house for a month and see if they could create music and a stage presence that would wow people into loving pop bands again. (Jeff Timmons from 98 degrees, Rich Cronin from LFO (may he rest in peace) and Bryan Abrams from Color Me Badd were also on the show). In January of 2007 the band performed at an Orlando Magic basketball game where they were booed off the court...I guess we know how well the Man Band idea was accepted. Chris was part of another reality music show in 2008 when he appeared on the second season of CMT's Gone Country. The idea of this show is to guide celebrities into a new career path of country music with the help of Big and Rich's John Rich. Chris didn't win but Rich said that he had one of the strongest songs of the season, and a possible chart topper, with "That'll Get Ya By." It also appears that Chris was part of a band called Nigels 11. There is a website dedicated to the band and a MySpace page but the MySpace page hasn't been updated since 2009 and the main website hasn't been updated since early 2010, with no tour dates listed, so I think it is safe to say that Nigels 11 is no more. There isn't much information on Chris besides this. He doesn't appear to be married and still seems to be trying to catch another taste of the fame he had with Nsync. I never watched Mission Man Band but I remember a friend of mine commenting on how much of a douche Chris seemed to be...I might go look at old episodes to see if it's true.

Chris is now 40.

And Finally: JC Chasez

I was a young JC fan once upon a time. When JC and Justin decided they wanted to pursue solo careers in 2002, I hoped that I would enjoy their CDs...I admit that I didn't buy either of their cds though I listened a little on the radio. In 2004 JC released Schizophrenic and the only sales information I can find say that he sold around 170,000 copies...not quite the millions that Timberlake sold. Chasez was also dropped from the 2004 Pro Bowl's half-time performance due to Timberlake's Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction" with Janet Jackson. The NFL feared that lyrics from Chasez's song "Some Girls Dance with Women" were too sexual and they were headed toward a terrible repeat. JC began work on a second album, The Story of Kate, but that was never released due to his separation from Jive records. Don't feel too bad for him though. He has gone on to write songs for David Achuleta, Backstreet Boys (yup, the former "enermy"), Girls Aloud and more. He has also been a judge on America's Best Dance Crew since 2008. He has also guest starred on a few TV shows and done a few movies with his most recent one, Red Sky, being in post-production. No plot has been released on IMDB at this time for Red Sky. As for JC's personal life. He's not married, no kids and has recently been battling rumors that he is gay. He claims to be straight and single so there isn't much to know about that.

His hair sure was Schizophrenic

in this picture...

JC is 35 now.

So, there you have it. That's what happened to the members of Nsync. Justin kept being a superstar while the others settled into different forms of fame. JC and Joey seem to be living comfortably, Chris is struggling to find another band and Lance has finally begun appearing in public more. Well, that settles the questions that popped into my head...and all because I heard a song on the radio. This launched me into detective mode. Maybe I'll do this again soon with 98 degrees or another boy band that has been lost through the years. Until then, I hope you enjoyed!