History of the Boy Band

So this is an article I wrote for my school newspaper a while back. I really enjoyed the topic and thought the piece turned out pretty well so, naturally, I thought I'd share it on the internet! So, without further ado, a brief history of the boy band! 

             The boy band is one of the most famous archetypes of western pop culture in the twentieth century. From The Beatles to The Backstreet Boys, boy bands have made a huge impact on our society over the years. Their music, (sometimes painful,) and their fans (always painful) define them as the trend-setting, scream-inducing young boys that they are.

            These boys have been a huge influence on youth since the early 1960’s making teen girls squeal at their very sight, and annoying, and baffling teen boys, until their fifteen minutes are up.

            The influences that boy bands have on society have changed over the years, as well as their longevity and quality of music, but a few things have stayed the same. Surprisingly, the differences between the fan girls of the 1960s and the ones that exist today, (i.e myself) are minimal. Consequently, the boy bands, despite the change in trends do remain relatively similar. To fully understand this, we need to go back to the beginning. The point in time when the boy band climbed out of the primordial ooze and began it’s evolution into the billion dollar industry it is today. This journey began in a city in northern England, where a young John Lennon suggested the idea of starting a band to his friends. After several years and a few rejections, (such as the infamous one from Decca records) The Beatles were formed and became the most popular musicians in the world. These four lads from Liverpool drew young girls from all around, their popularity sky-rocketing, re-creating the buzz that Elvis once did, and re-introducing the world to the fan girl. Ever since this historic time period, the hype around boy bands has been labelled Beatlemaina, after the legendary band, and the craziness they brought about.

            The next time this mania hit the world was in the early 1970s when singing and dancing groups such as the Jackson 5, The Partridge Family and The Bay City Rollers took the eyes off The Mother Country and the invasion of boy bands that hailed from there, and onto the talent that America yielded. These groups became fabulously popular, all thanks to the hoards of teenage girls that loved them.

Bands throughout the following decades were met with the same teenage enthusiasm, which only grew stronger through the popularity of television and eventually, the internet. Pop acts such as Menudo, N`Sync, and The Backstreet Boys were next to follow in the long line of teen idols.

With their catchy tunes and cute hair-dos, these boys made teen hearts melt -and records sell- thus marking the point in time where boy bands turned into a billion-dollar industry.

Since then our society has been graced with the presence of musical artists such as The Jonas Brothers, Cody Simpson, Justin Bieber, and most recently, the modern British Invasion that includes the likes of Ed Sheeran, JLS and One Direction.

Throughout the past half century though fashions have changed and music styles have evolved, the dedication of the fans has been constant, and so has the ability of the boy bands to make their fans swoon (and buy concert tickets).

So what have we learned from this history lesson? That cute boys, hyper-emotional teenage girls, a catchy tune, and clever management is the recipe for a whole lot of influence, and even more money.