8/20/2019 by Eric Frankenberg Billboard

New Kids On The Block impact the Hot Tours tally dated Aug. 24, 2019, with final reports from The Mixtape Tour, featuring Debbie Gibson, Tiffany, Naughty by Nature and Salt-N-Pepa. It is the boy band’s sixth North American tour since reuniting in 2008 and its biggest yet. All told, The Mixtape Tour grossed $53.2 million and sold 662,911 tickets according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore.

NKOTB performed an impressive 55 concerts in the span of just 73 days (May 2-July 14). That makes it the most saturated North American tour of 2019 so far (Donny and Marie Osmond have played 85 shows, but as part of their ongoing Las Vegas residency). The trek averages out to $967,000 per show, which is the highest that the New Kids have ever paced on a single tour.

The tour’s highlight, a two-night stint at TD Garden, in New Kids' hometown of Boston, grossed $2.6 million and sold 27,089 tickets. It is the third-highest grossing engagement of the group’s career, behind a July 8, 2017, performance at Boston’s Fenway Park ($2.9 million) and nine-show run at London’s Wembley Arena back in May 1991. That string of UK shows grossed $2.618 million, barely outperforming their 2019 Boston earnings of $2.613 million.

Several tours that mined nostalgia of the '90s and '80s have performed well this year, from the Spice Girls to B2K to Hootie & The Blowfish. But New Kids on the Block set themselves apart, not grossing career-high numbers for a much-anticipated reunion tour but going stronger than ever after consistent touring 11 years after their 2008 trek.

Since the New Kids on the Block Live Tour (2008-10), the band has amassed $204.3 million in reported Boxscore earnings and sold 3,369,613 tickets. Over the last decade, the act has increased its average ticket from $53.35 to $80.27 and average crowd size from 7,351 to 12,053.

Elsewhere, P!nk tops the Hot Tours tally with the biggest one-week report of 2019. The Beautiful Trauma World Tour played 26 European stadiums this summer and wrapped on Aug. 19 (the tour’s final three shows will impact next week’s ranking) with a final gross of $397.3 million.

New Kids on the Block: The Hurdles They Overcame Before Enjoying Pop Music Success

by Sara Kettler | Aug 28, 2019 | Biography

In the late 1980s and early '90s, New Kids on the Block sold millions of albums, had their faces on products from notebooks and lunch boxes to sleeping bags and welcomed countless adoring fans to their concerts. Yet they started out as a group of kids from rougher parts of Boston who had no guarantees of this kind of success. Fortunately for them, from the beginning, they were willing to be guided by an experienced producer and ready to work hard on their music.

The man behind New Edition went on the hunt for 'white kids' who could sing and dance

The story of New Kids on the Block is linked to another boy band from the 1980s: New Edition. Maurice Starr (originally Larry Johnson) was the producer and promoter who helped the five black teens of New Edition achieve success. But after hits like "Candy Girl," the group decided to separate from Starr, who lost a subsequent legal battle.

Starr was determined not to let this setback define him. Instead, he wanted to achieve even greater success — and he had an idea about how to do so. As he later explained to the New York Times, "If New Edition was as big as they were, I could imagine what would happen if white kids were doing the same thing." In the summer of 1984, he asked talent agent Mary Alford to search hardscrabble Boston neighborhoods for white boys with the ability to rap, sing or dance.

Donnie and Mark Wahlberg were the first members

In Dorchester, a working-class area in Boston, Alford found 14-year-old Donnie Wahlberg. Wahlberg then met and rapped for Starr, later telling People magazine, "I did one of my best spontaneous raps ever." He became the first member of the group. Wahlberg was followed by his younger brother, 13-year-old Mark.

Other members were recruited by Wahlberg. Friend Jamie Kelly signed on early. Then Wahlberg talked to Jordan Knight, who demonstrated his singing and dancing talents for Starr and was accepted to the group. Jonathan, Jordan's older brother, didn't want to be left out, so he became a member as well. And Wahlberg friend Danny Wood got Starr's approval after showing off some breakdancing skills.

However, none of them were New Kids at this point. For reasons known only to him, Starr originally called the group Nynuk (pronounced "na-nook").

When the band got together, Boston was trying to desegregate schools

In elementary school, Wahlberg, Wood and the Knights had been bused out of Dorchester as part of an effort to desegregate Boston schools. Wood later said, "Outside of school it was a very controversial time. … We were surrounded by chaos, but in school it was amazing. We didn’t feel all that. Everyone was open to being around everyone else."

Wahlberg told Variety in 2019, "They intended to bring people together to learn about each other and be exposed to different things and that’s what happened to us." Busing not only introduced the boys to new music and other parts of life, it later allowed them to be comfortable traveling to a largely black neighborhood in order to work with Starr. Having Starr, a black man, as a producer, choreographer and songwriter for white performers also set them apart.

Two of the original members left and Joey McIntyre joined

After a few months, Mark left Nynuk (though he would late find fame as Marky Mark and then as an actor). According to his brother, Mark either "wanted to go out and steal cars with his friends" or preferred to "play basketball." Kelly also made an early exit from Nynuk. This may have been due to a lack of talent or simply a lack of commitment.

However, Starr felt the group needed a fifth member. After none of the auditions set up by the four remaining members worked out, he again turned to Alford to find a kid who could sing and dance. They landed on Joey McIntyre, a 12-year-old who lived in the neighborhood of Jamaica Plain and who had often performed at his local community theater. McIntyre passed his audition, singing Nat King Cole's "L-O-V-E," but he didn't jump at the opportunity to join the group. "I thought Dorchester was too far away,” he later told People. “The others were all buddies. I didn’t want to do it."

McIntyre eventually signed on, in part because he was a fan of New Edition. Yet he came to regret this decision. Nynuk's other members, who were all a few years older, hazed the newest member of their group to the point that McIntyre wanted to leave. But he changed his mind after Wahlberg phoned and persuaded him to continue by telling him, "We want you to shine. You can make us great." At an early performance, the crowd threw things at the band

Nynuk rehearsed diligently and took just about any gig they could get, from talent shows and social halls to retirement homes. One performance took place at a men's prison that housed one of Wahlberg's brothers. There, the band threw out cigarettes to win over the inmates.

During an early gig at the Franklin Park Kite Festival, Nynuk faced a jeering crowd that started throwing things at them. Wood's face was cut by a flying record, but Wahlberg insisted they perform because he didn't want a classmate in the crowd to see them back down. The crowd appreciated their tenacity and applauded. "Going back onstage was simply about us believing in ourselves and wanting to stand our ground," Wahlberg later said.

Their first album flopped

In 1986, the group was signed to the R&B division at Columbia Records. However, the label didn't care for the name Nynuk. As the boys had never liked the name either, they were happy to become the New Kids on the Block, a name shared with a rap song that had been co-written by Wahlberg. Their first album, the eponymous New Kids on the Block, was released in 1986.

Though the New Kids were white teens, because they liked and performed rap and R&B their music was considered "black." Starr intended for the group to win over black audiences before crossing over to white ones. However, that plan didn't work for this album. Only one song, "Be My Girl," charted on Billboard's Top 100 Singles.

After the first album flopped, their label considered dropping the New Kids. Fortunately, an A&R representative still believed in the group and stood up for them.

Thanks to a Florida radio station, NKOTB's second album turned them into stars

In 1987, the New Kids worked on their second album, much of which was recorded in a studio at Starr's house that lacked soundproofing and other amenities. And though Starr was still writing their music they were now more confident and adding their own touches.

When Hangin' Tough came out in 1988, Starr still wanted the group to target black audiences. The video for the single "Please Don't Go Girl" was released to BET and Starr focused on black radio stations, where he had connections from his days with New Edition. But then a Florida pop radio station started playing "Please Don't Go Girl." The requests poured in, and plans for promoting the album shifted.

The New Kids on the Block had found the young girls who would make up their devoted fan base. After a tough beginning, they were on their way to stratospheric success.

But then a Florida pop radio station started playing "Please Don't Go Girl." The requests poured in, and plans for promoting the album shifted.

I never really knew what the tipping point was. All I know is I never heard of them during their 1986 debut and I heard about every other damn thing that year.

Cinny said:
I never really knew what the tipping point was. All I know is I never heard of them during their 1986 debut and I heard about every other damn thing that year.

That first album went multi platinum after Hangin' Tough blew up. At that time anything New Kids was really popular. I remember seeing the lamps, bedsheets, sleeping bags, dolls, and all kinds of things in stores. They had a Saturday morning cartoon too.

Thats some good money they made! And only 4 replies on here!

Always thought Funny Feeling was an underrated gem from their 1990 album, Step By Step.

Astasheiks said:

MickyDolenz said:

Cinny said:
I never really knew what the tipping point was. All I know is I never heard of them during their 1986 debut and I heard about every other damn thing that year.

That first album went multi platinum after Hangin' Tough blew up. At that time anything New Kids was really popular. I remember seeing the lamps, bedsheets, sleeping bags, dolls, and all kinds of things in stores. They had a Saturday morning cartoon too.

True. I watched the cartoon! I didn't hear about them before Hangin' Tough though.

What it is are the people 35 and up got the bag and we ready to spend money on seeing people that we grew up with more than many other fan bases.

The only album I ever had was Hangin' Tough but eventually picked up Step By Step and I did buy their last two albums as they came out. They never really had any classic albums so to speak but their hits..and a couple album tracks combined make a great tour for sure. The Hangin' Tough Remaster is really good I must say.

paisleypark4 said:

What it is are the people 35 and up got the bag and we ready to spend money on seeing people that we grew up with more than many other fan bases.

It might be that people under that age are post-Napster. A lot of them didn't buy music in the first place. They got it free by downloading, file sharing, and now streaming. So there is not as much of a value in buying music, video games replaced it in popularity. Video games sell more than CDs. There's also the case that people film entire concerts on their phone today and post them on Youtube. So anybody can see a show for free. It's not like that old What's Happening!!! episode where a guy gets Rerun to sneak a tape recorder into a Doobie Brothers show. A lot of the audience today are bootlegging the concert openly. You can see them doing it in the Youtube footage. Cell phones are the new Bic lighter.

Another thing with the younger audience is cancel culture or being offended at any little thing. "Ellen sat at a ball game with Dubya and is friends with him, I'm not gonna watch her show anymore!" So less nostagia feelings for modern entertainers & entertainment. I don't see many of them becoming a marketing image like a Marilyn Monroe, where people buy stuff featuring her even if they've never actually watched any of her movies.

MickyDolenz said:

paisleypark4 said:

What it is are the people 35 and up got the bag and we ready to spend money on seeing people that we grew up with more than many other fan bases.

It might be that people under that age are post-Napster. A lot of them didn't buy music in the first place. They got it free by downloading, file sharing, and now streaming. So there is not as much of a value in buying music, video games replaced it in popularity. Video games sell more than CDs. There's also the case that people film entire concerts on their phone today and post them on Youtube. So anybody can see a show for free.

Well, I would not exactly expect anyone younger to care about New Kids On The Block since they fell off after 1991. You won't see anyone young at their shows unless it's they mama who brought them along.

Cinny said:

MickyDolenz said:

It might be that people under that age are post-Napster. A lot of them didn't buy music in the first place. They got it free by downloading, file sharing, and now streaming. So there is not as much of a value in buying music, video games replaced it in popularity. Video games sell more than CDs. There's also the case that people film entire concerts on their phone today and post them on Youtube. So anybody can see a show for free.

Well, I would not exactly expect anyone younger to care about New Kids On The Block since they fell off after 1991. You won't see anyone young at their shows unless it's they mama who brought them along.

Yeah thats why I said 35 and up, we going to be the ones going to these shows

I am not really sure why people dont realize WHY these things sell. Its the same reason why everything now is a REBOOT movie or a Super Hero based eons ago, or why TV shows are remakes, I mean shit Don Johnson recently interviewed said Miami Vice is coming back, as he said "I guess writers now cant come up with new ideas". And that is really it. For some reason the MUSIC industry is the one place you cant be older and still do new music and tours without people saying "they need the money" or "why bother", I mean Tom Hanks and Eddie Murphy have new films coming out, why dont we say "why dont you just rest on your millions". In the case of NKOTB this group never really stopped keeping touch with its base of fans and that is what you have to do, Yes they have 35 and uppers going and older, but the older generations are the more loyal ones, now everything is a sound bite and you are here and gone and replaced so quick. PLUS artists today are all over instagram and facebook and twitter and magazines that FANS say why do i need to pay 50 bucks to see you when I can look at my device and not waste my time. Thats not saying younger fans dont go to shows, but when the big concert draws start STOPPING playing shows, you will see a huge hole in touring. I already see it. Me personally I try to stay going to the smaller shows because those venues need to stay open, I could care less about HUGE arena shows and hockey stadiums staying open, to me those kind of shows are not the same at all, Im not going to pay 50-100 bucks and sit in a mezzaine next to someone who knows one song.

lastdecember said:

I mean shit Don Johnson recently interviewed said Miami Vice is coming back, as he said "I guess writers now cant come up with new ideas".

Was Miami Vice really a new idea? It's a cop show, and there's many of those long before Vice. If it's fashion cops, there's The Mod Squad from the 1960s. A black & white cop, then that could be I Spy. Don Johnson can't talk anyway, I've heard he's doing a new version of Nash Bridges.

Cinny said:

Well, I would not exactly expect anyone younger to care about New Kids On The Block since they fell off after 1991. You won't see anyone young at their shows unless it's they mama who brought them along.

I don't think that poster was talking about the New Kids per se, but that the older audience is more likely to go to see the popular acts of their era than the younger audience does for theirs. Like the Rolling Stones still get high grosses on their tours even though they haven't had a hit in decades. They make more money on tour than many of the currently popular acts. The Stones don't have to do a festival with a bunch of other acts either.

lastdecember said:

I am not really sure why people dont realize WHY these things sell. Its the same reason why everything now is a REBOOT movie or a Super Hero based eons ago, or why TV shows are remakes, I mean shit Don Johnson recently interviewed said Miami Vice is coming back, as he said "I guess writers now cant come up with new ideas". And that is really it. For some reason the MUSIC industry is the one place you cant be older and still do new music and tours without people saying "they need the money" or "why bother", I mean Tom Hanks and Eddie Murphy have new films coming out, why dont we say "why dont you just rest on your millions". In the case of NKOTB this group never really stopped keeping touch with its base of fans and that is what you have to do, Yes they have 35 and uppers going and older, but the older generations are the more loyal ones, now everything is a sound bite and you are here and gone and replaced so quick. PLUS artists today are all over instagram and facebook and twitter and magazines that FANS say why do i need to pay 50 bucks to see you when I can look at my device and not waste my time. Thats not saying younger fans dont go to shows, but when the big concert draws start STOPPING playing shows, you will see a huge hole in touring. I already see it. Me personally I try to stay going to the smaller shows because those venues need to stay open, I could care less about HUGE arena shows and hockey stadiums staying open, to me those kind of shows are not the same at all, Im not going to pay 50-100 bucks and sit in a mezzaine next to someone who knows one song.

My friend is going to see A-HA in concert very soon! Artists do improve unless they were trendy hacks to begin with.