Backstreet Boys Biography: Net Worth, Members, Age, Songs, Albums, Height, Family

Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group and boy band, widely regarded as one of the best-selling boy bands in music history, known for their tight vocal harmonies, choreographed stage shows, and a catalog of hits that defined late-1990s pop.

Formed in Orlando, Florida, the group’s five members, Nick Carter, AJ McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, and Kevin Richardson, rose to global fame in the late 1990s and early 2000s with anthems that blended R&B-influenced harmony with dance-pop production.

Quick Facts

• Members: Nick Carter, AJ McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Kevin Richardson
• Stage Name: Backstreet Boys
• Origin: Orlando, Florida, United States
• Active: 1993-present
• Nationality: American
• Occupation: Singers, Songwriters, Performers, Actors
• Net Worth: $200 million-$300 million

Early Life and Members

Backstreet Boys began when talent manager Lou Pearlman placed a newspaper ad in the Orlando Sentinel in 1992, seeking to build a vocal group in the style of New Kids on the Block with the harmonies of Boyz II Men. Open auditions across Orlando brought the founding members together over the following months.

Nick Carter

• Date of Birth: January 28, 1980
• Age: 46 years old
• Place of Birth: Jamestown, New York, United States
• Ethnicity: American
• Religion: Christian
• Parents: Robert Carter, Jane Carter
• Siblings: Bobbie Jean Carter, Leslie Carter, Aaron Carter, Angel Carter
• Education: Homeschooled and tutored while touring
• Early Life: Nick Carter was the oldest of five children in a household he has described as chaotic, marked by his parents’ frequent conflict. He auditioned for the Backstreet Boys at age 11 after choosing music over a spot on The Mickey Mouse Club, and he officially joined the group in 1993 at age 13, becoming its youngest member. Three of his four siblings, including his brother Aaron Carter, have since died.

AJ McLean

• Date of Birth: January 9, 1978
• Age: 48 years old
• Place of Birth: West Palm Beach, Florida, United States
• Ethnicity: Cuban-American
• Religion: Christian
• Parents: Robert Blue McLean, Denise McLean
• Siblings: N/A
• Education: Osceola High School
• Early Life: AJ McLean was raised largely by his mother and grandparents following his parents’ early divorce. He enrolled in a performing arts school as a child and landed roles in Nickelodeon and Disney productions before auditioning for Lou Pearlman in March 1992, becoming the first member recruited into the group that would become the Backstreet Boys.

Howie Dorough

• Date of Birth: August 22, 1973
• Age: 53 years old
• Place of Birth: Orlando, Florida, United States
• Ethnicity: Puerto Rican and Irish American
• Religion: Catholic
• Parents: Hoke Dwaine Dorough, Paula Flores-Dorough
• Siblings: John Dorough, Pollyanna Dorough, Angela Dorough, Caroline Dorough-Cochran
• Education: Edgewater High School, Valencia College
• Early Life: Howie Dorough is the youngest of five children and grew up performing in community theater and church choir in Orlando. He met AJ McLean through a mutual vocal coach at a local Latin carnival in 1989, and the two later connected with Nick Carter through the audition circuit, laying the groundwork for the group.

Brian Littrell

• Date of Birth: February 20, 1975
• Age: 51 years old
• Place of Birth: Lexington, Kentucky, United States
• Ethnicity: American
• Religion: Baptist
• Parents: Harold Baker Littrell Jr., Jacqueline Littrell
• Siblings: Harold Baker Littrell III
• Education: Tates Creek High School
• Early Life: Brian Littrell was born with a congenital heart condition that caused serious health complications in childhood, including a hospitalization at age five that forced him to repeat first grade. He grew up singing in his church choir and joined Backstreet Boys in April 1993 after his cousin Kevin Richardson arranged an audition to fill the group’s final spot.

Kevin Richardson

• Date of Birth: October 3, 1971
• Age: 54 years old
• Place of Birth: Lexington, Kentucky, United States
• Ethnicity: American
• Religion: Christian
• Parents: Jerald Wayne Richardson Sr., Ann Clyde Richardson
• Siblings: Jerald Wayne Richardson Jr., Tim Richardson
• Education: Local Kentucky schools
• Early Life: Kevin Richardson grew up on a farm in Mercer County, Kentucky, and later lived at a church-run youth camp his father managed. After his father’s death from cancer in 1991, he moved to Orlando to pursue entertainment work, and in 1993 he auditioned for the fledgling Backstreet Boys, later recruiting his cousin Brian Littrell to complete the lineup.

Formation

The core trio of AJ McLean, Howie Dorough, and Nick Carter came together first through Orlando’s audition circuit before Lou Pearlman’s casting calls brought in Kevin Richardson, who then recruited his cousin Brian Littrell to round out the group in April 1993.

Backstreet Boys performed their first show at SeaWorld Orlando on May 8, 1993, and spent the rest of that year touring malls, schools, and local venues while working to secure a record deal, eventually signing with Jive Records.

Career

Backstreet Boys broke through internationally with their 1996 self-titled debut album, powered by singles including “We’ve Got It Goin’ On” and “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart).” Their momentum carried into 1997 with Backstreet’s Back and their U.S. self-titled debut, which produced “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)” and “As Long as You Love Me.”

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The group reached its commercial peak with Millennium (1999), an album that sold more than 24 million copies worldwide and included the signature hit “I Want It That Way.” Black & Blue followed in 2000 and sold over a million copies in its opening week.

After a hiatus in the early 2000s, the group returned with the more mature Never Gone (2005), which produced “Incomplete.” Kevin Richardson left the group in 2006 to pursue other projects, and the remaining four members continued as a quartet through Unbreakable (2007) and This Is Us (2009).

Richardson rejoined in 2012, restoring the original five-member lineup for In a World Like This (2013). The group’s 2019 album DNA debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, their first chart-topping album in nearly two decades, and was supported by the DNA World Tour, which ran through 2024 and grossed over $190 million.

Their Las Vegas presence became a defining part of their later career, from the record-breaking Larger Than Life residency at Planet Hollywood between 2017 and 2019 to their ongoing Into the Millennium residency at the Sphere, which launched in 2025.

In June 2026, Backstreet Boys released the single “Bottle Up,” written by Ed Sheeran and Savan Kotecha for the animated film PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie, extending their catalog more than three decades after forming.

Social Media

• Wikipedia: Backstreet Boys
• Instagram: Backstreet Boys (@backstreetboys)
• Facebook: Backstreet Boys (@backstreetboys)
• YouTube: Backstreet Boys
• X: Backstreet Boys (@backstreetboys) / X
• IMDb: Backstreet Boys

Personal Life

Nick Carter

• Height: 1.83m / 6’0″
• Spouse: Lauren Kitt (m. 2014)
• Children: Odin Carter, Saoirse Carter, Pearl Carter
• Relationship: N/A

AJ McLean

• Height: 1.75m / 5’9″
• Spouse: Rochelle Karidis (m. 2011-2024)
• Children: Ava McLean, Elliott McLean
• Relationship: N/A

Howie Dorough

• Height: 1.68m / 5’6″
• Spouse: Leigh Boniello (m. 2007)
• Children: James Dorough, Holden Dorough
• Relationship: N/A

Brian Littrell

• Height: 1.70m / 5’7″
• Spouse: Leighanne Wallace (m. 2000)
• Children: Baylee Littrell
• Relationship: N/A

Kevin Richardson

• Height: 1.85m / 6’1″
• Spouse: Kristin Willits (m. 2000)
• Children: Mason Richardson, Maxwell Richardson
• Relationship: N/A

Net Worth

The combined net worth of Backstreet Boys is $200 million to $300 million, generated primarily through record sales, touring, their Las Vegas residencies, licensing, and individual members’ solo projects and television work.

Discography

• Backstreet Boys (1996, international) / (1997, U.S.)
• Backstreet’s Back (1997)
• Millennium (1999)
• Black & Blue (2000)
• Never Gone (2005)
• Unbreakable (2007)
• This Is Us (2009)
• In a World Like This (2013)
• DNA (2019)