New Kids on the Block interview with Parade Magazine

Parade Magazine interviewed NKOTB about their upcoming The Main Event tour, their Cottonelle sponsorship and more.

Command Performance: New Kids on the Block Get Ready to Reclaim the Road 

They’ve been performing together—off and on—for over 30 years, but Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg and Danny Wood, the five guys known as New Kids on the Block, want to prove that the boy band that sold over 80 million records worldwide still has the power to whip their fans into a frenzy.

Enter The Main Event, their upcoming 30-city North American concert tour kicking off May 1 in Las Vegas with special guests TLC and Nelly.

Parade talked to four of the five band members—minus Donnie Wahlberg, who was filming his TV show, Bluebloods—about the tour, their longtime fans and going commando. (You read that correctly.)

Are you guys looking forward to sharing the stage with TLC? 

Jordan: What’s not to look forward to? They have so many songs. Just them being on stage is going to be amazing.

Jonathan: From the moment they came out on the scene, they changed the game with their look and their attitude. They were sexy and strong. Girls loved them; guys loved them. We were huge fans of theirs from the get-go. So the fact that they’ve come back the last couple of years, the timing is perfect.

People ask how did we pick them [to tour with]. Well, we just started at the top. It’s just the perfect match for us and for our fans.

And Nelly, he’s probably a little outside the box for us but then again, not really. We’re lucky to have him as part of a great night. Our fans are going to be out of their seats from the beginning.

You’ve toured all over the world and seen a lot of things over the years. Does anything surprise you after all you’ve accomplished?

Joey: It surprises me that we can play Madison Square Garden! (Laughs). I mean, we work hard. We’ve been back together for 7 years and we want to give people a great show. We’ve kind of earned our keep as far as transcending the whole boy band thing. We’re entertainers. We want to put on a great show. But every time we put a tour together, you kind of hope for the best, and our fans keep showing up. We’re doing another 50 dates. We teamed up with TLC and Nelly, those are obviously great acts that have great hit records. So, you’re looking at a non-stop evening of entertainment. We’re very very lucky to be doing what we love to do on the biggest stages around. It’s a humbling experience but it’s also a gift and we’re looking forward to taking it to another level.

Any venue or city you’re really looking forward to playing on this tour?

Jonathan: Madison Square Garden is pretty special, but we’re Boston guys so any shows we can play at the Boston Garden makes our hearts grow another size.

You’re about to hit the road again this summer. Are your fans the same people who have been following you all along or are they new fans?

Jonathan:  I think it’s a combination. We have some new fans for sure. When we collaborated with the Backstreet Boys a couple years ago we won over some of their fans. But, basically we have the same fans we had back in the day. They’re just all grown up now.

Do your fans behave differently now than they did when they were in their teens or twenties?

Jordan: No!

Danny: No.

Joey: No differently.

Jonathan: Not really, ha! We get to be rock stars and they get to behave like they’re 12 years old again.

Joey: We’re lucky to still be doing what we love to do. Our fans are moms and they have careers and lives, so we’re like a getaway for them. And we want to give them a great night out, the time of their lives and something special every time we get together.

Are your fans the sort of people who throw their underwear on stage during your shows?

Everybody: No! (Laughing). Absolutely not.

 What about back in the day?

Joey: Every once in a while there’s the occasional bra thrown on stage. Usually, fans will toss something like panties, not really underwear. Kind of a joke, you know?

Is it something you’re discouraging now? What’s the connection with your sponsor, Cottonelle, and encouraging people to go commando?

Joey: People might think we’re asking the fans to go commando. But we’re talking about us going commando because we want to feel like rock stars and go commando and let it all hang out.

Jonathan: There’s nothing more rock & roll than going commando.

Jordan: It’s not literal.

Joey: It’s about confidence. If you’re clean, you’re confident.

How important is it to buy good toilet paper?

Joey: There are certain things you don’t skimp on. Maybe paper plates, you might short a little bit on those. But not TP. You’ve got to go for the good stuff.

OK, subject change. Do you guys still have fun together?

(Simultaneously, two guys answer, Yes! Two guys answer, No! Everybody laughs.)

Danny: I’m not having any fun right now with these dudes.

Jonathan: Hey! Danny is the grouch. He’s strong but very sensitive on the inside. Seriously, we get along better than we ever have. And we enjoy each other’s company.

Danny: I want it known that I love these guys.

Joey: He tells us that every night. Before every show.

Jonathan: And we don’t roll our eyes anymore.

Joey: And nobody says I love you back.

Danny: Everyone just looks at me—there’s silence.

They don’t say, “Me too?” or even, “ditto?”

Danny: No!

Joey: Someone will say, “Cool…”

Jonathan: It’s like in relationships when a girl or guy says, ‘I love you’ and the other person says ‘thank you.’

What is different for you now than when you started out? Are you more comfortable on stage now? Is it easier?

Jonathan: We are way more efficient. We’re like a new model of a car. We’re more aerodynamic; we don’t waste energy.

Joey: The engineering is amazing. The software is getting better and better.

Jonathan: We came back into this with mature eyes and that helped out a lot.

Visit nkotb.com for additional information about The Main Event tour and the band that back in the ‘90s inspired a nation of young women to purchase lunchboxes, sheets and pajamas bearing their image.