NKOTBSB – One Night. One Stage. Once in a Lifetime.

*A little late with posting this one but better late than never, especially if it involves these boys!

On July 6, 2011, my fantasy/wildest dream [in the category of boy-bands] came true. Kaye and I were blessed enough to score 5^th ROW tickets to the NKOTBSB [New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys] concert at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA.

The History:

I was a BIG fan of the New Kids back in 1988 when I was 8 yrs old. My pre-pubescent self had a rotating infatuation for Jordan, Jon, and Donnie [wasn’t too into cute lil Joey at the time and Danny just wasn’t my type]. Most of the time it was Jordan and his braided tail that got me squealing like a little girl. Oh wait, I was a little girl. I never got to see them in concert because they were at their peak of popularity and my parents wouldn’t take me. I don’t think they even knew how to get tickets for a concert. I did however spend all my childhood money on books on NKOTB, huge pins from Spencer’s Gifts, BOP and Tiger Beat Magazines, and of course every single $0.25 machine I came into contact with that had ANY kind of NKOTB marking on it. Sad to say that it wasn’t their songs that made me LOOOOOVE (yes, that’s FIVE O’s for each member) them. They were cute. ‘Nuff said. I did love the songs ‘I’ll Be Loving You Forever’ and ‘Didn’t I Blow Your Mind (This Time)’.

Fast forward to August 1996, my family and I went to the Philippines to visit my grandparents and my Uncle, who at the time was sick with kidney failure and undergoing dialysis. While we were there, I kept hearing a song called “Get Down” from every Jeepney, tricycle, and house we passed by (or passed by my dad’s familial home). It was very catchy but not really a song I loved and was drawn to. That was my first taste of anything Backstreet. An Aunt asked if I had heard of them, since they were from the States, but I hadn’t. Apparently they had hit it big-time overseas since the US market wasn’t too boy-band friendly at that time. December rolls around and bff Ivy goes to visit the Philippines during her winter vacation with her family. It wasn’t until she returned that my LOOOOOVE (yes, that’s ANOTHER FIVE O’s for each member of this group as well) for the Backstreet Boys was born. She had given me a taped version (off her Red background Self Titled 1^st Album – Europe and Asia release) of ‘I’ll Never Break Your Heart’ and since then I was hooked. With this group of Boys, I found a favorite and stuck with him. Howie will always and forever be my favorite Backstreet Boy =)

Back to the Present:

23 & 15 years later, here is a collaboration of 2 MEGA boy-bands that I could only dream about. I must say, it was the BEST SHOW I HAVE EVER BEEN TO!!! It was 2 hours of non-stop dancing, singing, and gyrating hip thrusts! The Kids and Boys, hereafter referred to as NKOTBSB, made use of their “penis stage” and gave every seat in the house a great show.

The "Penis Stage"

They opened and closed the show as the SUPER group NKOTBSB but mainly had their individual group sets in the middle of the show. Donnie has been my fave New Kid since the 2008 Reunion tour. That man KNOWS how to put on a show (with or without a shirt on, lol). I’m a fairly new Donnie girl but of course there will always be a special place in my heart for Jordan.

This will definitely be a night I never forget. My only regret is not attending shows in other cities ie. Staples Center in LA where Kevin made a surprise appearance or Las Vegas where they had after-parties hosted by Nick & Howie and Donnie. The merch for this tour were really cute. Kaye and I made off with a cute teal striped hoodie with a very inconspicuous ‘BSB’ embroidered on the chest and ‘Backstreet Boys’ on the right back bottom. I also bought my traditional tour book and concert tee of the combined groups.

Enough with the yapping…I’ll let the pics speak for themselves.

-Ris

PS. The Honda Center holds a special place in Kaye and my heart because that was the very first venue we attended a BSB concert. It was the ‘Into the Millennium Tour’ on October 14, 1999 when the Honda Center was still called Arrowhead Pond. This was the start of a BSB-yootiful friendship =P (yes, I know I’m cheesy).