- “THE CALL” (2001)
Following the storyline of the song, “The Call” shows the guys in pursuit of a girl they met in a club, hoping to hook up with her even though they have girlfriends. Unfortunately, that girl is in cahoots with the girlfriend, and they’ve amassed an army of girls to go against them all! That escalated quickly.
- “WE’VE GOT IT GOIN’ ON” (1995)
The Backstreet Boys’ debut music video wants to make sure you know it was the ‘90s: a boy band doing a synchronized dance routine in an underground club, denim jackets layered under leather jackets, Kevin Richardson rocking the dreaded mushroom cut, and AJ McLean’s insistence on wearing sunglasses inside. With a lot of energy and fun, the Backstreet Boys were putting a stake in the ground of pop music with this one, though it may not be as memorable as later videos.
- “I WANT IT THAT WAY” (1999)
Ushering in the Millennium era, “I Want it That Way” is probably the most iconic of all Backstreet Boys videos–so much so that Blink-182 parodied it in their “All the Small Things” video, not six months later. You’d be hard-pressed to find a millennial who doesn’t recognize the scenes outside of the plane, surrounded by screaming fans. The only weird part that I noticed, when watching it seventeen years after it premiered, was the weird heavenly light that shines behind the boys when they’re inside the airport. Are we insinuating that they’re dead? What a twist.
- “SHOW ME THE MEANING OF BEING LONELY” (1999)
In their darkest video, the Backstreet Boys are each watching separate, somber scenes unfold. Littrell watches as doctors attempt to save a patient–one being played by himself–alluding to his lifelong heart defect. Kevin is watching a video of him and his deceased father playing, when he was little. A girl runs at Howie but disappears before she reaches him, representing his sister who died of Lupus. The video is also dedicated to songwriter Denniz PoP, who passed away from cancer that year. It’s deeply personal, holds a somber tone, and is very well executed.
- “EVERYBODY (BACKSTREET’S BACK)” (1997)
One of the best music videos in history, period. The fact that video director Joseph Kahn didn’t just mic drop after this is amazing to me. There’s nothing about this video that I don’t like–it has an amazing concept, turning the boys into the classic movie monsters of their nightmares and ending on a fabulous dance number with the band and all the girls in the video. From Kevin’s half-and-half makeup turning him into both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, to their insistence of putting Nick in a non-sexy mummy costume, the wardrobe team outdid themselves on this one. As did the boys, who developed the concept and bankrolled it themselves when the label refused to take a risk on it, according to Entertainment Weekly‘s interview with the band for their 10th anniversary. The clever concept and tight dance routines make “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back), the best of the Backstreet Boys.
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