Unsynchronized - Season 1 Episode 4 - Behind the Boards

00:00 --> 00:00:01,539
[Drum'n bass beatboxing noises]

1
00:00:20,170 --> 00:00:22,969
One band, 5 voices, and this time

2
00:00:22,969 --> 00:00:25,767
we're looking at the one who doesn't

3
00:00:25,767 --> 00:00:28,566
fit the usual pop star mold. Louder

4
00:00:28,566 --> 00:00:31,365
than the rest in some ways, quieter

5
00:00:31,365 --> 00:00:34,163
than the rest in others. I'm talking

6
00:00:34,163 --> 00:00:36,962
about JC Chasez — the reserved one, the

7
00:00:36,962 --> 00:00:39,761
serious one, and the member whose 2001

8
00:00:39,761 --> 00:00:41,923
stayed mostly inside the bubble of

9
00:00:41,923 --> 00:00:44,810
*NSYNC. This was a year he kept his head

10
00:00:44,810 --> 00:00:47,376
down, focused on the work, and let the

11
00:00:47,376 --> 00:00:49,300
music speak louder than he did.

12
00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:52,828
A year when he carried some of the

13
00:00:52,828 --> 00:00:54,171
group's heaviest creative load without

14
00:00:54,171 --> 00:00:55,782
projecting much of himself beyond the

15
00:00:55,782 --> 00:00:58,539
stage. Whether he was front and

16
00:00:58,539 --> 00:01:00,510
center or tucked behind the scenes, JC

17
00:01:00,510 --> 00:01:02,763
stayed in his lane and played his part

18
00:01:02,763 --> 00:01:04,734
with the kind of precision that didn't

19
00:01:04,734 --> 00:01:07,269
always translate into visibility. Let's

20
00:01:07,269 --> 00:01:10,055
rewind the year and take a closer look

21
00:01:10,055 --> 00:01:12,145
with today's episode: Behind the Boards.

22
00:01:12,145 --> 00:01:14,583
I'm your host, Nicole Raposo. Welcome to

23
00:01:14,583 --> 00:01:16,325
Unsynchronized, a deep dive podcast

24
00:01:16,325 --> 00:01:19,111
getting into how *NSYNC got out of sync

25
00:01:19,111 --> 00:01:21,549
and eventually called it quits. Before we

26
00:01:21,549 --> 00:01:24,336
dive in, I want to be upfront.

27
00:01:24,336 --> 00:01:27,122
JC's 2001 didn't leave much of a solo

28
00:01:27,122 --> 00:01:29,930
footprint. The media wasn't focused on

29
00:01:29,930 --> 00:01:32,674
him, and he wasn't projecting much of

30
00:01:32,674 --> 00:01:35,026
himself beyond the group. His presence

31
00:01:35,026 --> 00:01:37,770
was steady and essential, but often kind

32
00:01:37,770 --> 00:01:40,122
of invisible — not because the spotlight

33
00:01:40,122 --> 00:01:42,865
skipped over him, but because it

34
00:01:42,865 --> 00:01:45,609
tended to shine through him. So today,

35
00:01:45,609 --> 00:01:48,353
we're looking at the moments when

36
00:01:48,353 --> 00:01:51,295
he did stand out — and also the

37
00:01:51,295 --> 00:01:53,918
work he carried and the ways he shaped

38
00:01:53,918 --> 00:01:56,213
the year from inside the bubble of

39
00:01:56,213 --> 00:01:58,508
*NSYNC. 2001 opens with JC exactly

40
00:01:58,508 --> 00:02:01,132
where he'll spend most of the year: inside

41
00:02:01,132 --> 00:02:03,427
the *NSYNC machine, doing the work,

42
00:02:03,427 --> 00:02:05,722
showing up when he's needed, and rarely

43
00:02:05,722 --> 00:02:07,690
stepping forward alone. But January gives

44
00:02:07,690 --> 00:02:10,313
us one of the few months where his

45
00:02:10,313 --> 00:02:12,601
creativity briefly slips into view.

46
00:02:13,781 --> 00:02:16,311
On January 3rd, JC does something rare

47
00:02:16,311 --> 00:02:18,840
for this era — he appears somewhere solo.

48
00:02:18,840 --> 00:02:20,647
At the Grammy nominations press

49
00:02:20,647 --> 00:02:22,816
conference, he's the only member of

50
00:02:22,816 --> 00:02:25,345
*NSYNC present. It's not a solo moment

51
00:02:25,345 --> 00:02:27,875
in the artistic sense — he's not promoting

52
00:02:27,875 --> 00:02:30,766
himself — but it's still one of the few

53
00:02:30,766 --> 00:02:33,657
times in 2001 where JC shows up in

54
00:02:33,657 --> 00:02:36,544
the public record by himself, even if he

55
00:02:36,544 --> 00:02:38,276
is carrying the responsibility of

56
00:02:38,276 --> 00:02:40,702
representing all five. It's a small moment,

57
00:02:40,702 --> 00:02:43,474
but it tells you a lot about how

58
00:02:43,474 --> 00:02:45,553
he operated in this year's study —

59
00:02:45,553 --> 00:02:47,979
reliable and willing to step forward when

60
00:02:47,979 --> 00:02:49,711
the group needed a face.

61
00:02:51,291 --> 00:02:54,101
And two days later, on January 5th, we get

62
00:02:54,101 --> 00:02:56,287
a glimpse into JC's creative interior in

63
00:02:56,287 --> 00:02:58,473
an MTV interview. He talks about the

64
00:02:58,473 --> 00:03:00,971
early stages of the next album. He noted

65
00:03:00,971 --> 00:03:03,469
that pop music was on an aggressive kick

66
00:03:03,469 --> 00:03:06,279
at the time, as he put it, and said that

67
00:03:06,279 --> 00:03:08,777
*NSYNC wanted to keep the energy but find

68
00:03:08,777 --> 00:03:10,650
something a little funky. He described

69
00:03:10,650 --> 00:03:12,637
the group as experimenting with sounds,

70
00:03:12,637 --> 00:03:15,124
recording more songs than they planned to

71
00:03:15,124 --> 00:03:17,966
use, and really working to shape the new

72
00:03:17,966 --> 00:03:20,809
album from the inside out. It's one of

73
00:03:20,809 --> 00:03:23,296
the only moments in 2001 where JC

74
00:03:23,296 --> 00:03:25,428
articulates the creative thesis of the

75
00:03:25,428 --> 00:03:27,560
Celebrity album before the public even

76
00:03:27,560 --> 00:03:29,692
knows what's coming. Then, on January

77
00:03:29,692 --> 00:03:32,179
9th, *NSYNC appears on Larry King Live,

78
00:03:32,179 --> 00:03:34,666
and JC gives his most substantial early

79
00:03:34,666 --> 00:03:37,525
commentary. A caller lumps

80
00:03:37,525 --> 00:03:40,356
together girls and cybersex and space

81
00:03:40,356 --> 00:03:43,186
cowboys in a question she has

82
00:03:43,186 --> 00:03:45,613
about his songwriting process, and JC

83
00:03:45,613 --> 00:03:48,039
reacts with a dry, slightly bewildered

84
00:03:48,039 --> 00:03:50,870
comment that shows a sense of humor

85
00:03:50,870 --> 00:03:53,297
that doesn't always come through on

86
00:03:53,297 --> 00:03:56,127
camera. He said, “Wait — cybersex and

87
00:03:56,127 --> 00:03:58,730
space cowboys? That was weird.” But then

88
00:03:58,730 --> 00:04:01,567
after that, he goes on to actually answer

89
00:04:01,567 --> 00:04:03,695
the question. He explained that “Space

90
00:04:03,695 --> 00:04:06,532
Cowboy” is a song about the human spirit

91
00:04:06,532 --> 00:04:09,369
and imagining survival at the end of the

92
00:04:09,369 --> 00:04:11,852
world. He framed the song “Digital Get

93
00:04:11,852 --> 00:04:14,334
Down” as a playful exploration more so

94
00:04:14,334 --> 00:04:16,462
than something created for shock value.

95
00:04:17,242 --> 00:04:19,889
It's one of the only times in

96
00:04:19,889 --> 00:04:22,536
2001 where JC talks openly about what

97
00:04:22,536 --> 00:04:25,183
he was thinking when he wrote something.

98
00:04:25,183 --> 00:04:27,830
And he wasn't defensive or embarrassed or

99
00:04:27,830 --> 00:04:30,477
trying to sanitize anything. He was just

100
00:04:30,477 --> 00:04:33,124
honest and thoughtful and a little nerdy.

101
00:04:33,124 --> 00:04:35,771
The exact version of JC that rarelymade it onto TV.

102
00:04:38,432 --> 00:04:41,113
And then at the end of the month, we swing to almost a complete

103
00:04:41,113 --> 00:04:43,794
opposite end of the spectrum. On January

104
00:04:43,794 --> 00:04:46,476
28th, *NSYNC performs with Aerosmith,

105
00:04:46,476 --> 00:04:48,391
Nelly, and Britney Spears at the Super

106
00:04:48,391 --> 00:04:51,072
Bowl XXXV halftime show. It's a massive,

107
00:04:51,072 --> 00:04:53,753
high‑visibility event, but for JC, it's

108
00:04:53,753 --> 00:04:56,434
not a moment of individual expression.

109
00:04:56,434 --> 00:04:58,732
It's a great moment, and a reminder that

110
00:04:59,242 --> 00:05:02,159
in 2001, his public footprint stayed

111
00:05:02,159 --> 00:05:04,347
almost entirely inside the boundaries

112
00:05:04,347 --> 00:05:06,535
of *NSYNC. Even without a lot of

113
00:05:06,535 --> 00:05:09,088
visibility, January still sets the tone

114
00:05:09,088 --> 00:05:11,276
for JC. For the rest of the year,

115
00:05:11,276 --> 00:05:14,193
we see brief flashes of JC the

116
00:05:14,193 --> 00:05:16,745
songwriter — the thinker with a creative

117
00:05:16,745 --> 00:05:18,933
interior life. But we also

118
00:05:18,933 --> 00:05:21,548
see a little bit of JC the

119
00:05:21,548 --> 00:05:24,337
performer — the reliable part of the

120
00:05:24,337 --> 00:05:26,728
machine, and the one who's mainly visible

121
00:05:26,728 --> 00:05:29,517
only in the context of the group.

122
00:05:29,517 --> 00:05:32,306
February 2001 is one of those

123
00:05:32,306 --> 00:05:35,096
months where JC's public footprint almost

124
00:05:35,096 --> 00:05:37,486
disappears. There are no major

125
00:05:37,486 --> 00:05:39,479
interviews, no solo appearances, no big

126
00:05:39,479 --> 00:05:41,875
headlines — at least not ones centered
on him.

127
00:05:45,373 --> 00:05:48,002
But that absence is still part of the

128
00:05:48,002 --> 00:05:50,961
story. So while the rest of the pop music

129
00:05:50,961 --> 00:05:53,262
landscape may have been louder and more

130
00:05:53,262 --> 00:05:55,563
chaotic, JC spent February doing what he

131
00:05:55,563 --> 00:05:58,193
did best: working. This is the month when

132
00:05:58,193 --> 00:06:00,494
the Celebrity album really begins to take

133
00:06:00,494 --> 00:06:03,183
shape. The holiday cycle

134
00:06:03,183 --> 00:06:06,002
is over, the group isn't on the road, and

135
00:06:06,002 --> 00:06:08,195
the studio becomes the center of

136
00:06:08,195 --> 00:06:10,388
gravity again. Whenever *NSYNC went into

137
00:06:10,388 --> 00:06:12,894
album mode, JC was one of the driving

138
00:06:12,894 --> 00:06:15,087
engines. In the last episode, I noted

139
00:06:15,087 --> 00:06:17,594
that Chris told some fans the group

140
00:06:17,594 --> 00:06:19,787
had recorded six songs by Valentine's Day.

141
00:06:19,787 --> 00:06:21,980
There's no reason to believe JC wasn't

142
00:06:21,980 --> 00:06:24,366
deeply involved in that process. It's the

143
00:06:24,366 --> 00:06:27,201
kind of work he seemed to thrive on:

144
00:06:27,201 --> 00:06:29,328
writing, experimenting, and helping to

145
00:06:29,328 --> 00:06:32,163
take *NSYNC's sound in a new direction.

146
00:06:33,553 --> 00:06:36,356
There's also a small moment in the middle

147
00:06:36,356 --> 00:06:38,808
of the month. I'm still looking for

148
00:06:38,808 --> 00:06:40,910
confirmation, but according to some fan‑

149
00:06:40,910 --> 00:06:43,363
made sources, this may have been around

150
00:06:43,363 --> 00:06:45,815
the time when *NSYNC filmed their segment

151
00:06:45,815 --> 00:06:48,268
for the MTV Icon: Janet Jackson special —

152
00:06:48,268 --> 00:06:50,370
specifically the music video for their

153
00:06:50,370 --> 00:06:53,173
cover of “That's the Way Love Goes.”

154
00:06:53,173 --> 00:06:55,816
So for JC,

155
00:06:55,816 --> 00:06:58,414
February becomes a month defined by the

156
00:06:58,414 --> 00:07:01,384
things we can't see: the studio

157
00:07:01,384 --> 00:07:02,868
sessions, the production, the

158
00:07:02,868 --> 00:07:05,466
songwriting — the quiet work on a new

159
00:07:05,466 --> 00:07:08,435
album that would push the group into new

160
00:07:08,435 --> 00:07:11,404
territory in more ways than one. It was

161
00:07:11,404 --> 00:07:13,631
a month where his contributions were

162
00:07:13,631 --> 00:07:16,121
real but invisible. And that's a theme

163
00:07:16,121 --> 00:07:18,581
that will follow him through much of the

164
00:07:18,581 --> 00:07:21,378
rest of 2001. March gives

165
00:07:21,378 --> 00:07:24,055
us a moment that's both a major

166
00:07:24,055 --> 00:07:26,733
group appearance and also not a group

167
00:07:26,733 --> 00:07:29,410
appearance at the same time. On the

168
00:07:29,410 --> 00:07:32,087
13th, MTV aired its first‑ever MTV

169
00:07:32,087 --> 00:07:34,382
Icon special — which I just mentioned —

170
00:07:34,382 --> 00:07:37,059
put together to honor Janet

171
00:07:37,059 --> 00:07:38,971
Jackson. The ceremony was actually

172
00:07:38,971 --> 00:07:41,722
recorded a few days prior. On March

173
00:07:41,722 --> 00:07:44,342
10th, all five members of *NSYNC appeared

174
00:07:44,342 --> 00:07:46,587
in the prerecorded video tribute for

175
00:07:46,587 --> 00:07:49,581
“That's the Way Love Goes,” but only Chris

176
00:07:49,581 --> 00:07:51,826
and Justin attended the ceremony itself

177
00:07:51,826 --> 00:07:54,446
to introduce the segment. Based on my

178
00:07:54,446 --> 00:07:57,065
research, I can't determine where JC was

179
00:07:57,065 --> 00:08:00,059
that night — or Lance and Joey, for that

180
00:08:00,059 --> 00:08:02,973
matter. My guess is

181
00:08:02,973 --> 00:08:05,306
that if they weren't preparing for some

182
00:08:05,306 --> 00:08:07,306
mandatory public appearance, they were in

183
00:08:07,306 --> 00:08:09,639
the studio working on the next album.

184
00:08:09,639 --> 00:08:11,972
Production for *On the Line* hadn't started

185
00:08:11,972 --> 00:08:14,638
yet, so there's no reason to believe that

186
00:08:14,638 --> 00:08:16,971
Lance and Joey were in Toronto or

187
00:08:16,971 --> 00:08:18,971
Chicago. The simplest explanation is the

188
00:08:18,971 --> 00:08:21,637
most likely one: the three of them were

189
00:08:21,637 --> 00:08:24,202
working on Celebrity. So March

190
00:08:24,202 --> 00:08:26,031
becomes another moment where JC's

191
00:08:26,031 --> 00:08:28,225
presence is mainly felt within the

192
00:08:28,225 --> 00:08:30,785
boundaries of *NSYNC. He's showing up for

193
00:08:30,785 --> 00:08:33,345
the group, he's contributing even as they

194
00:08:33,345 --> 00:08:35,905
honor a bigger celebrity, but he's not

195
00:08:35,905 --> 00:08:37,734
the face of the moment.

196
00:08:39,224 --> 00:08:41,993
April 2001 is a month where we finally

197
00:08:41,993 --> 00:08:44,762
start to get a fuller picture of JC's

198
00:08:44,762 --> 00:08:47,184
approach to music. The Summer 2001 issue

199
00:08:47,184 --> 00:08:49,261
of Yamaha Access magazine was released,

200
00:08:49,261 --> 00:08:51,684
and it contained one of the strongest

201
00:08:51,684 --> 00:08:54,452
pieces of JC commentary that we get for

202
00:08:54,452 --> 00:08:56,875
all of 2001. It's presented as an

203
00:08:56,875 --> 00:08:59,298
interview with *NSYNC, but only he and

204
00:08:59,298 --> 00:09:02,098
Justin are featured in the

205
00:09:02,098 --> 00:09:04,402
interview, and JC's answers are

206
00:09:04,402 --> 00:09:06,246
thoughtful, grounded, and musically

207
00:09:06,246 --> 00:09:09,011
literate in a way that stands

208
00:09:09,011 --> 00:09:11,755
out even now. He

209
00:09:11,755 --> 00:09:13,859
talked about some of the biggest

210
00:09:13,859 --> 00:09:15,963
misconceptions around *NSYNC — the lip‑

211
00:09:15,963 --> 00:09:17,716
syncing accusations, the idea that

212
00:09:17,716 --> 00:09:20,522
they're a plastic band, and the way that

213
00:09:20,522 --> 00:09:22,626
people underestimate the work behind what

214
00:09:22,626 --> 00:09:25,431
they do. He answered with a mix of

215
00:09:25,431 --> 00:09:27,886
humility and quiet pride. He also said

216
00:09:27,886 --> 00:09:30,341
that they wanted to be respected someday,

217
00:09:30,341 --> 00:09:33,241
not as rock stars, but just as

218
00:09:33,241 --> 00:09:36,057
artists who do their jobs well. He also

219
00:09:36,057 --> 00:09:38,522
talked about having a sense of humor,

220
00:09:38,522 --> 00:09:40,283
having self‑awareness, and not taking

221
00:09:40,283 --> 00:09:42,395
themselves too seriously. But the most

222
00:09:42,395 --> 00:09:44,860
revealing moment in the interview is when

223
00:09:44,860 --> 00:09:47,325
JC talks about control. He explained that

224
00:09:47,325 --> 00:09:49,790
ever since signing with Jive Records, the

225
00:09:49,790 --> 00:09:52,254
group had grabbed the reins of their

226
00:09:53,534 --> 00:09:55,706
career. They write their own video

227
00:09:55,706 --> 00:09:57,878
treatments, they choose the directors,

228
00:09:57,878 --> 00:09:59,688
they pick their own choreographers.

229
00:09:59,688 --> 00:10:01,860
They were finally being taken seriously

230
00:10:01,860 --> 00:10:04,393
as artists, and they weren't going to

231
00:10:04,393 --> 00:10:06,565
waste the opportunity. It's one of the

232
00:10:06,565 --> 00:10:08,737
clearest statements we've ever gotten

233
00:10:08,737 --> 00:10:11,633
from him about how the Celebrity album

234
00:10:11,633 --> 00:10:14,611
came to be — not as a label‑driven

235
00:10:14,611 --> 00:10:16,943
project, but as something the group built

236
00:10:16,943 --> 00:10:19,942
on their own. He even gave us some

237
00:10:19,942 --> 00:10:21,607
numbers for the upcoming project: 30

238
00:10:21,607 --> 00:10:23,940
songs being developed, but eventually

239
00:10:23,940 --> 00:10:26,272
only 13 to be chosen. Then comes the line

240
00:10:26,272 --> 00:10:28,604
that reveals the most about how JC thinks

241
00:10:28,604 --> 00:10:30,603
of songwriting: “We've actually been

242
00:10:30,603 --> 00:10:33,268
doing it since the beginning. It was just

243
00:10:33,268 --> 00:10:35,087
a matter of waiting until the songs got

244
00:10:35,087 --> 00:10:37,813
good enough to put on the records.”

245
00:10:37,813 --> 00:10:40,118
It was a quiet statement, but it really

246
00:10:40,118 --> 00:10:42,907
says a lot. JC doesn't

247
00:10:42,907 --> 00:10:45,433
talk about songwriting as branding. He

248
00:10:45,433 --> 00:10:48,381
talks about it as a craft — something

249
00:10:48,381 --> 00:10:50,907
you grow into, something you practice,

250
00:10:50,907 --> 00:10:53,855
until the day you realize you're finally

251
00:10:53,855 --> 00:10:56,802
ready to show people what you've been

252
00:10:56,802 --> 00:10:59,750
working on. But at the same time,

253
00:10:59,750 --> 00:11:02,365
there's a layer of magnanimity — maybe

254
00:11:02,365 --> 00:11:05,005
too much. He frames the group's

255
00:11:05,005 --> 00:11:07,205
songwriting progress as a collective

256
00:11:07,205 --> 00:11:09,405
evolution, but the album credits and the

257
00:11:09,405 --> 00:11:12,045
ASCAP registry tell a different story.

258
00:11:12,045 --> 00:11:14,685
I don't doubt that most members of

259
00:11:14,685 --> 00:11:17,325
*NSYNC had tried their hand at

260
00:11:17,325 --> 00:11:19,965
songwriting at some point, but I don't

261
00:11:19,965 --> 00:11:22,605
believe anyone had as many songwriting

262
00:11:22,605 --> 00:11:25,282
credits as JC. By that point, he had

263
00:11:25,282 --> 00:11:28,158
co‑written one‑third of the group's most

264
00:11:28,158 --> 00:11:30,675
successful album, and as we'll see later

265
00:11:30,675 --> 00:11:33,551
in this episode, he had a significant

266
00:11:33,551 --> 00:11:36,427
role in their final studio album too.

267
00:11:36,427 --> 00:11:39,312
He mentioned Stevie Wonder, Sting, Seal,

268
00:11:39,312 --> 00:11:41,811
and U2 as his songwriting heroes —

269
00:11:41,811 --> 00:11:44,311
artists who create songs that take you

270
00:11:44,311 --> 00:11:47,227
somewhere, songs you never get tired of.

271
00:11:47,227 --> 00:11:50,143
He described his own process with

272
00:11:50,143 --> 00:11:53,060
craftsman‑like simplicity: sometimes the

273
00:11:53,060 --> 00:11:55,143
melody comes first, sometimes it's a

274
00:11:55,143 --> 00:11:58,059
riff, sometimes it's a vibe you can't

275
00:11:58,059 --> 00:12:00,860
stop playing until it turns into

276
00:12:00,860 --> 00:12:02,895
something. Then there's his touring

277
00:12:02,895 --> 00:12:04,591
philosophy, which was another moment when

278
00:12:04,591 --> 00:12:06,626
JC's strategic mind started to show

279
00:12:06,626 --> 00:12:08,660
through. He explained that they were

280
00:12:08,660 --> 00:12:10,695
touring before the new album came out

281
00:12:10,695 --> 00:12:13,069
because they wanted the audience to hear

282
00:12:13,069 --> 00:12:15,443
the new songs without feeling like the

283
00:12:15,443 --> 00:12:17,817
group was, in his words, “shoving

284
00:12:17,817 --> 00:12:20,476
albums down people's throats.” They

285
00:12:20,476 --> 00:12:22,952
wanted people to choose the music, not to

286
00:12:22,952 --> 00:12:25,841
have it forced on them. It's a

287
00:12:25,841 --> 00:12:28,729
surprisingly mature take for a pop act

288
00:12:28,729 --> 00:12:31,618
that was still pretty close to their

289
00:12:31,618 --> 00:12:34,506
commercial peak. On April 13th, JC

290
00:12:37,395 --> 00:12:39,046
attended the Blockbuster Entertainment

291
00:12:39,126 --> 00:12:41,445
Awards with Justin and Chris. Lance and

292
00:12:41,445 --> 00:12:44,095
Joey were in Canada filming *On the Line*,

293
00:12:44,095 --> 00:12:46,415
so the three who were stateside held

294
00:12:46,415 --> 00:12:48,734
things down until later in the month.

295
00:12:48,734 --> 00:12:51,053
Later in the month, all five appeared

296
00:12:51,053 --> 00:12:53,372
together on a special episode of TRL

297
00:12:53,372 --> 00:12:55,691
called “TRL at Your House.” It's light‑

298
00:12:55,691 --> 00:12:57,679
hearted and fun, but still worth

299
00:12:57,679 --> 00:13:00,026
revisiting for little flashes of JC's
personality.

300
00:13:00,026 --> 00:13:02,912
And somewhere around that time, in late
April, Entertainment

301
00:13:02,912 --> 00:13:04,983
Weekly interviewed the group about the

302
00:13:04,983 --> 00:13:07,055
upcoming album. When asked

303
00:13:07,055 --> 00:13:09,719
about the logic behind the new tour,

304
00:13:09,719 --> 00:13:12,144
JC responded that they loved

305
00:13:12,144 --> 00:13:13,877
performing, they felt strongest when they

306
00:13:13,877 --> 00:13:15,956
were on stage, and they needed new

307
00:13:15,956 --> 00:13:18,381
material to keep the show fresh — hence

308
00:13:18,381 --> 00:13:20,806
the new album. He repeated that

309
00:13:20,806 --> 00:13:23,781
the album wasn't released before the tour

310
00:13:23,781 --> 00:13:25,658
because they weren't trying to force the

311
00:13:25,658 --> 00:13:27,536
music on people. They wanted the audience

312
00:13:27,536 --> 00:13:29,413
to decide for themselves. Overall, April

313
00:13:29,413 --> 00:13:32,332
was a month where JC's philosophy about a

314
00:13:32,332 --> 00:13:34,916
few different things started to come into

315
00:13:34,916 --> 00:13:37,177
focus. We got to see how he thinks about

316
00:13:37,177 --> 00:13:40,085
songwriting, what he thinks about giving

317
00:13:40,085 --> 00:13:42,023
the audience a choice, what he thinks

318
00:13:42,023 --> 00:13:44,284
about the group's momentum, and also

319
00:13:44,284 --> 00:13:46,222
about the responsibility of being taken

320
00:13:46,222 --> 00:13:48,160
seriously as an artist in a year where

321
00:13:48,160 --> 00:13:50,744
so much about JC was hidden from public

322
00:13:50,744 --> 00:13:53,282
view. It was nice to gain some insight

323
00:13:53,282 --> 00:13:55,635
into how he thinks and feels about his

324
00:13:55,635 --> 00:13:57,987
role within *NSYNC and about *NSYNC as a

325
00:13:57,987 --> 00:14:00,046
whole.

326
00:14:03,046 --> 00:14:05,421
May is another month where JC's public

327
00:14:05,421 --> 00:14:08,134
presence is minimal, at least in terms of

328
00:14:08,134 --> 00:14:10,508
solo events, but that's mainly because

329
00:14:10,508 --> 00:14:13,222
*NSYNC was about to undertake one of the

330
00:14:13,222 --> 00:14:15,596
biggest tours of their careers. The first

331
00:14:15,596 --> 00:14:17,970
half of May was dominated by rehearsals

332
00:14:17,970 --> 00:14:20,684
for the Pop Odyssey tour, and while we

333
00:14:20,684 --> 00:14:23,058
don't have detailed footage of all of

334
00:14:23,058 --> 00:14:25,625
JC's contributions, we know from the

335
00:14:25,625 --> 00:14:27,843
group's history that whenever *NSYNC

336
00:14:27,843 --> 00:14:30,800
went into tour mode, JC was front and

337
00:14:30,800 --> 00:14:33,018
center playing his part. Around mid‑May,

338
00:14:33,018 --> 00:14:35,975
the group filmed the music video for

339
00:14:35,975 --> 00:14:38,932
“Pop,” and it was a major creative moment

340
00:14:38,932 --> 00:14:41,150
for *NSYNC. The video was pretty

341
00:14:41,150 --> 00:14:43,367
ambitious visually, the song itself was

342
00:14:43,367 --> 00:14:45,908
dense rhythmically, and it was a clear

343
00:14:45,908 --> 00:14:47,855
departure from earlier lead singles from

344
00:14:47,855 --> 00:14:50,449
prior albums. JC wasn't the face of the

345
00:14:50,449 --> 00:14:53,044
video the way Justin was, but the

346
00:14:53,044 --> 00:14:55,315
ethos behind “Pop” aligned closely with

347
00:14:55,315 --> 00:14:58,234
what JC had said earlier in the year

348
00:14:58,234 --> 00:15:00,504
when he talked about *NSYNC doing things

349
00:15:00,504 --> 00:15:03,099
that were more funky. MTV filmed a “Making

350
00:15:03,099 --> 00:15:05,735
the Video” special for the music video,

351
00:15:05,735 --> 00:15:08,577
and JC appears in it, as do all of the

352
00:15:08,577 --> 00:15:11,420
members of *NSYNC. But his standout

353
00:15:11,420 --> 00:15:13,450
moments, interestingly enough, weren't

354
00:15:13,450 --> 00:15:15,075
actually about him.

355
00:15:15,075 --> 00:15:17,720
Just for some context, Joey was still

356
00:15:17,720 --> 00:15:20,046
recovering from his leg injury that he

357
00:15:20,046 --> 00:15:22,759
got during tour rehearsals, and there are

358
00:15:22,759 --> 00:15:25,473
snippets in the MTV special where he's

359
00:15:25,473 --> 00:15:28,186
practicing the dance — at least from the

360
00:15:28,186 --> 00:15:30,900
waist up. Their choreographer Wade Robson

361
00:15:30,900 --> 00:15:33,226
was doing the wide shots to fill in for

362
00:15:33,226 --> 00:15:35,939
Joey, and JC appeared to be helping Joey

363
00:15:35,939 --> 00:15:38,893
practice the choreography.

364
00:15:38,893 --> 00:15:40,760
It was a brief interaction, but I thought

365
00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:43,746
it was really cute. There's also a bit

366
00:15:43,746 --> 00:15:46,732
in the special where JC probably talks

367
00:15:46,732 --> 00:15:49,345
the most out of any of the footage

368
00:15:49,345 --> 00:15:52,331
of him in the special, and it's not

369
00:15:52,331 --> 00:15:55,317
about the song or about himself — it's

370
00:15:55,317 --> 00:15:58,058
to praise Joey for still pushing through

371
00:15:58,058 --> 00:16:00,518
and showing up for the music video. And

372
00:16:00,518 --> 00:16:03,329
I think it says a lot about JC

373
00:16:03,329 --> 00:16:06,139
that the most he talks in that entire

374
00:16:06,139 --> 00:16:08,950
MTV special isn't about himself or the

375
00:16:08,950 --> 00:16:11,409
song, but it's about someone else.

376
00:16:14,447 --> 00:16:17,419
And I think it's reflective of a part

377
00:16:17,419 --> 00:16:19,648
of JC that doesn't really get

378
00:16:19,648 --> 00:16:21,876
acknowledged or praised very often, and

379
00:16:21,876 --> 00:16:24,848
that's the part of him being a steady

380
00:16:24,848 --> 00:16:27,448
member of the group, but also being

381
00:16:27,448 --> 00:16:29,677
supportive and being focused on everyone

382
00:16:29,677 --> 00:16:32,649
else in the group being able to be

383
00:16:32,649 --> 00:16:34,877
their best and do their best.

384
00:16:35,367 --> 00:16:38,286
Also in the middle of the month, manager

385
00:16:38,286 --> 00:16:41,205
Melinda Bell did an MSN web chat with

386
00:16:41,205 --> 00:16:43,394
some *NSYNC fans. Someone asked whether

387
00:16:43,394 --> 00:16:45,947
the members had solo contracts signed. JC

388
00:16:45,947 --> 00:16:48,501
was included in that denial by default,

389
00:16:48,501 --> 00:16:51,420
but so far in 2001, there was nothing

390
00:16:51,420 --> 00:16:53,973
indicating that he was looking to leave

391
00:16:53,973 --> 00:16:56,592
*NSYNC. He wasn't building a solo brand,

392
00:16:56,592 --> 00:16:59,093
and he wasn't positioning himself in a

393
00:16:59,093 --> 00:17:01,952
way to do that. He was fully enmeshed

394
00:17:01,952 --> 00:17:04,453
in the group and their creative cycles.

395
00:17:04,453 --> 00:17:06,597
The Pop Odyssey tour was originally

396
00:17:06,597 --> 00:17:09,456
supposed to start on May 18th, but it

398
00:17:09,456 --> 00:17:12,314
actually kicked off on the 23rd and it

399
00:17:12,314 --> 00:17:14,458
was the biggest stage production that

400
00:17:14,458 --> 00:17:17,218
*NSYNC had ever attempted — the

401
00:17:17,218 --> 00:17:19,783
one that JC described in the Yamaha All

402
00:17:19,783 --> 00:17:21,386
Access interview as the biggest

403
00:17:21,386 --> 00:17:24,235
production of all time. And

404
00:17:24,235 --> 00:17:27,176
this is where a lot of the behind‑

405
00:17:27,176 --> 00:17:30,117
the‑scenes work of the past few months

406
00:17:30,117 --> 00:17:32,690
finally became visible — not just in terms

407
00:17:32,690 --> 00:17:35,631
of the actual stage and the show, but

408
00:17:35,631 --> 00:17:37,836
the vocal work, the harmonies, the

408
00:17:37,836 --> 00:17:39,674
arrangements, the musical through‑lines

410
00:17:39,674 --> 00:17:42,248
of the show. So while May

411
00:17:42,248 --> 00:17:44,997
didn't offer any solo JC moments in terms of

412
00:17:44,997 --> 00:17:47,025
interviews or appearances, it did put him

413
00:17:47,025 --> 00:17:49,342
in the position where he seemed to shine

414
00:17:49,342 --> 00:17:52,239
the best — as one of the lead

415
00:17:52,239 --> 00:17:54,944
singers of *NSYNC. June

416
00:17:54,944 --> 00:17:57,879
2001 gives us one of the only glimpses of

417
00:17:57,879 --> 00:18:00,162
JC doing creative work outside of *NSYNC,

418
00:18:00,162 --> 00:18:02,770
even if it never reached the public the

419
00:18:02,770 --> 00:18:05,705
way it was meant to. This is the month

420
00:18:05,705 --> 00:18:07,662
when Wild Orchid’s unreleased album *Fire*

421
00:18:07,662 --> 00:18:09,945
was supposed to hit stores. Promo copies

422
00:18:09,945 --> 00:18:11,901
were printed, press materials were made,

423
00:18:11,901 --> 00:18:14,836
and the CD itself had a release date of

424
00:18:14,836 --> 00:18:17,834
June 5th. And tucked inside that album

425
00:18:17,834 --> 00:18:20,042
were three tracks written and produced by JC

426
00:18:20,042 --> 00:18:22,784
Chasez. To understand why this

427
00:18:22,784 --> 00:18:25,577
matters, it helps to know who Wild

428
00:18:25,577 --> 00:18:27,971
Orchid was. The group — Stephanie Rydell,

429
00:18:27,971 --> 00:18:29,966
Renee Sandstrom, and Stacey Ferguson,

430
00:18:29,966 --> 00:18:32,759
better known as Fergie — had been around

431
00:18:32,759 --> 00:18:35,552
since the early 90s. They were labelmates

432
00:18:35,552 --> 00:18:38,345
with *NSYNC at RCA, and Stephanie Rydell in

433
00:18:38,345 --> 00:18:40,739
particular had a longstanding

434
00:18:40,739 --> 00:18:42,685
relationship with JC. They were part of

435
00:18:42,685 --> 00:18:45,253
the same creative orbit — the same

436
00:18:45,253 --> 00:18:47,821
network of young performers who grew up

437
00:18:47,821 --> 00:18:50,388
in and around the entertainment industry.

438
00:18:50,388 --> 00:18:52,589
*Fire* was meant to be the third album

439
00:18:52,589 --> 00:18:55,523
for Wild Orchid, and it was recorded

440
00:18:55,523 --> 00:18:58,091
between 1999 and 2000. But the project

441
00:18:58,091 --> 00:19:00,658
ran into trouble — delays, some

442
00:19:00,658 --> 00:19:03,373
personal struggles inside the group, and a

443
00:19:03,373 --> 00:19:06,225
shifting landscape within their record

444
00:19:06,225 --> 00:19:08,262
label. The lead single, “Stuttering,”

445
00:19:08,262 --> 00:19:10,706
came out in 2001 but didn’t chart

445
00:19:10,706 --> 00:19:13,557
well, and by September RCA had dropped

447
00:19:13,557 --> 00:19:16,409
the group and shelved the album. But

448
00:19:16,409 --> 00:19:19,260
before all of that, JC had made

449
00:19:19,260 --> 00:19:22,112
some considerable contributions to their

450
00:19:22,112 --> 00:19:24,149
album. On the promo CD for *Fire*,

451
00:19:24,239 --> 00:19:27,012
he is credited as a writer and

452
00:19:27,012 --> 00:19:29,784
producer on these three songs: “Just

453
00:19:29,784 --> 00:19:32,161
Another Girl,” “Fire” (the title track),

454
00:19:32,161 --> 00:19:34,934
and “You Knew.” These weren’t demos

455
00:19:34,934 --> 00:19:37,707
or half‑finished ideas — they were

456
00:19:37,707 --> 00:19:40,084
completed songs, fully produced and

457
00:19:40,084 --> 00:19:42,064
intended for commercial release. They

458
00:19:42,064 --> 00:19:45,057
represent one of the few times in 2001

459
00:19:45,057 --> 00:19:47,846
when JC’s creative identity extended

460
00:19:47,846 --> 00:19:49,589
beyond *NSYNC, and it's a reminder that

461
00:19:49,589 --> 00:19:52,378
even during the height of the group’s

462
00:19:52,378 --> 00:19:54,818
fame, he was still building a skill set

463
00:19:54,818 --> 00:19:57,607
that lived outside the spotlight. June

464
00:19:57,607 --> 00:20:00,047
was dominated by the ongoing Pop Odyssey

465
00:20:00,047 --> 00:20:02,487
tour — the spectacle, the nightly

466
00:20:02,487 --> 00:20:04,230
performances — but there was still that

467
00:20:04,230 --> 00:20:06,980
parallel story running in the background,

468
00:20:06,980 --> 00:20:08,842
and that story was about JC writing and

469
00:20:08,842 --> 00:20:11,323
producing for other artists and

470
00:20:11,323 --> 00:20:12,875
contributing to a project that should

471
00:20:12,875 --> 00:20:14,736
have been part of the 2001 pop landscape

472
00:20:14,736 --> 00:20:17,218
but never got its chance.

473
00:20:20,499 --> 00:20:23,267
July 2001 was a month where JC

474
00:20:23,267 --> 00:20:25,245
Chasez appeared everywhere — Rolling Stone,

475
00:20:25,245 --> 00:20:28,013
V Magazine, and Billboard — but the

476
00:20:28,013 --> 00:20:30,781
version of him that showed up depended

477
00:20:30,781 --> 00:20:33,550
entirely on who was doing the writing.

478
00:20:33,550 --> 00:20:35,923
This month really provided a clear

479
00:20:35,923 --> 00:20:38,295
example of how the media projected

480
00:20:38,295 --> 00:20:41,064
identities onto him rather than trying to

481
00:20:41,064 --> 00:20:44,034
see him for who he was. The biggest

482
00:20:44,034 --> 00:20:46,180
spotlight came from Rolling Stone, which

483
00:20:46,180 --> 00:20:47,969
released its August issue early.

484
00:20:49,439 --> 00:20:51,978
Music journalist Touré framed JC as the

485
00:20:51,978 --> 00:20:54,880
shy, pensive one in the group — someone

486
00:20:54,880 --> 00:20:57,782
who is “a few notches below mellow” off

487
00:20:57,782 --> 00:21:00,684
stage. He also said that JC was most

488
00:21:00,684 --> 00:21:03,223
likely to meander right past you so

489
00:21:03,223 --> 00:21:05,399
silently you wouldn't even notice him.

490
00:21:07,179 --> 00:21:09,862
The profile tries to make sense of

491
00:21:09,862 --> 00:21:12,544
him by leaning on his tastes — the

492
00:21:12,544 --> 00:21:14,844
Merlot and Cabernet wines, the Picasso

493
00:21:14,844 --> 00:21:17,526
prints, the 66‑lb Helmut Newton book,

494
00:21:17,526 --> 00:21:20,209
and the abstract paintings he did

495
00:21:20,209 --> 00:21:22,125
to understand things. Sometimes,

496
00:21:22,125 --> 00:21:24,807
whether it was meant to be flattering or

497
00:21:24,807 --> 00:21:27,490
not, it came across as a caricature.

498
00:21:28,120 --> 00:21:31,093
JC's interests are treated

499
00:21:31,093 --> 00:21:32,580
as unusual,

500
00:21:34,150 --> 00:21:36,684
as if liking red wine or modern art made

501
00:21:36,684 --> 00:21:39,218
him kind of an alien inside his own

502
00:21:39,218 --> 00:21:42,116
group. It's also the

503
00:21:42,116 --> 00:21:44,908
first major moment where the press, at

504
00:21:44,908 --> 00:21:47,699
least in 2001, positions JC as different,

505
00:21:47,699 --> 00:21:50,491
but not necessarily in a positive way.

506
00:21:50,491 --> 00:21:52,884
Whereas Chris and Joey were flattened

507
00:21:52,884 --> 00:21:55,277
into jokes, JC was flattened into

508
00:21:55,277 --> 00:21:58,068
something else — the too‑mature one, the

509
00:21:58,068 --> 00:22:00,461
one with the greatest distance between

510
00:22:00,461 --> 00:22:02,785
his onstage and offstage persona, the

511
00:22:02,785 --> 00:22:05,552
one who doesn't quite fit the boy‑band

512
00:22:05,552 --> 00:22:08,352
mold. Even his loyalty gets

513
00:22:08,352 --> 00:22:10,916
framed through this lens: “I love my four

514
00:22:10,916 --> 00:22:13,159
best friends, and there's no way I'm

515
00:22:13,159 --> 00:22:16,043
going to let them down.” It's a line that

516
00:22:16,043 --> 00:22:18,607
reads less like PR and more like a

517
00:22:18,607 --> 00:22:20,530
personal ethic the article doesn't quite

518
00:22:20,530 --> 00:22:23,094
know what to do with. Then came Vibe

519
00:22:23,094 --> 00:22:25,017
magazine, which also released its August

520
00:22:25,017 --> 00:22:26,940
issue in July. Writer Mimi Valdez

521
00:22:26,940 --> 00:22:29,645
constructed a write‑up on a racialized

522
00:22:29,645 --> 00:22:32,333
premise: first, that *NSYNC was the only

523
00:22:32,333 --> 00:22:34,638
boy band that mattered to Black

524
00:22:34,638 --> 00:22:37,327
audiences; second, that their new music

525
00:22:37,327 --> 00:22:39,632
would, in her opinion, win more African

526
00:22:39,632 --> 00:22:42,320
American fans; and third, that proximity

527
00:22:42,320 --> 00:22:45,009
to Black artists was a form of cultural

528
00:22:45,009 --> 00:22:47,698
validation for the group. It's a framing

529
00:22:47,698 --> 00:22:50,647
that should have raised eyebrows. But what

530
00:22:50,647 --> 00:22:53,362
seemed to draw the most backlash from the

531
00:22:53,362 --> 00:22:55,737
piece was JC's one clumsy line: “I don't

532
00:22:55,737 --> 00:22:58,112
know how the ghetto pass happened, but I'm

533
00:22:58,112 --> 00:23:00,752
glad it did.” Everything

534
00:23:00,752 --> 00:23:03,568
else he said in the article was

535
00:23:03,568 --> 00:23:05,177
respectful, deferential, pretty much

536
00:23:05,177 --> 00:23:07,590
rooted in admiration for the Black

537
00:23:07,590 --> 00:23:10,405
performers he grew up listening to.

538
00:23:10,405 --> 00:23:12,819
But because he's earnest, and because

539
00:23:12,819 --> 00:23:15,634
he's speaking from inside a dynamic he

540
00:23:15,634 --> 00:23:18,047
didn't create, his comment became a

541
00:23:18,047 --> 00:23:20,460
lightning rod instead of the article's

542
00:23:20,540 --> 00:23:23,374
premise. As someone who used to read Vibe

543
00:23:23,374 --> 00:23:25,853
magazine, I remember some pushback in the

544
00:23:25,853 --> 00:23:28,332
following issue as readers wrote in

545
00:23:28,332 --> 00:23:30,456
saying they resented the implication

546
00:23:30,456 --> 00:23:32,581
that acceptance from the Black community

547
00:23:32,581 --> 00:23:34,706
equated to being “ghetto.” JC is

548
00:23:34,706 --> 00:23:37,539
responsible for what he said — and it was

549
00:23:37,539 --> 00:23:39,664
pretty cringe‑worthy — but the whole

550
00:23:39,664 --> 00:23:42,081
premise of the article is cringe‑worthy.

551
00:23:42,931 --> 00:23:44,732
Meanwhile, NME painted a completely

552
00:23:44,732 --> 00:23:46,534
different picture. In a straightforward

553
00:23:46,534 --> 00:23:48,336
interview about the group's European

554
00:23:48,336 --> 00:23:50,859
plans, JC came across as grounded, self‑

555
00:23:50,859 --> 00:23:53,381
aware, and focused on the work. He

556
00:23:53,381 --> 00:23:55,543
admitted that they had neglected their

557
00:23:55,543 --> 00:23:58,066
overseas audience, saying, “We used to be

558
00:23:58,066 --> 00:24:00,588
huge over there — now we can't get

559
00:24:00,588 --> 00:24:03,111
arrested in Europe.” He also talked about

560
00:24:03,181 --> 00:24:05,401
wanting to rebuild that connection, and

561
00:24:05,401 --> 00:24:07,251
he emphasized the group's musicianship:

562
00:24:07,251 --> 00:24:10,211
“We are five musicians. We are five singers.”

563
00:24:10,211 --> 00:24:12,801
He explained why they used to perform

564
00:24:12,801 --> 00:24:15,391
a cappella overseas — just to prove they

565
00:24:15,391 --> 00:24:17,981
weren't lip‑syncing. It's one of the

566
00:24:17,981 --> 00:24:20,941
clearest mid‑year snapshots of JC as the

567
00:24:20,941 --> 00:24:22,791
group's spokesperson and someone who

568
00:24:22,791 --> 00:24:24,854
understands the craft, the audience, and

569
00:24:24,854 --> 00:24:27,232
what was at stake when it came to *NSYNC

570
00:24:27,232 --> 00:24:29,935
and touring. And then there's

571
00:24:29,935 --> 00:24:31,824
the Billboard feature called “*NSYNC

572
00:24:31,824 --> 00:24:33,712
Shoulders the Burden of Celebrity.” In

573
00:24:33,712 --> 00:24:36,231
the piece, JC talked about the new album

574
00:24:36,231 --> 00:24:38,749
not as a marketing exercise but as a

575
00:24:38,749 --> 00:24:40,952
creative statement, saying, “We set out to

576
00:24:40,952 --> 00:24:43,470
make a record that was more reflective of

577
00:24:43,470 --> 00:24:45,673
what turns us on musically.” He pushed

578
00:24:45,673 --> 00:24:47,562
back against the bubblegum stereotype,

579
00:24:47,562 --> 00:24:50,515
saying that pop music comes in a lot of

580
00:24:50,515 --> 00:24:52,464
different flavors, and he described the

581
00:24:52,464 --> 00:24:55,063
rawness of the song “Gone” in its live

582
00:24:55,063 --> 00:24:57,012
arrangement, the tightness of the group

583
00:24:57,012 --> 00:24:59,936
on stage, and how he really took pride in

584
00:24:59,936 --> 00:25:02,534
their harmonies. He even tried to put a

585
00:25:02,534 --> 00:25:04,808
positive spin on the risky decision to

586
00:25:04,808 --> 00:25:07,082
perform six unreleased songs on the Pop

587
00:25:07,082 --> 00:25:09,803
Odyssey tour, saying that “by the end of

588
00:25:09,803 --> 00:25:12,258
each one, the crowd is with us.”

589
00:25:12,258 --> 00:25:14,362
They're positive comments from JC, but

590
00:25:14,362 --> 00:25:16,817
they also read a bit like emotional

591
00:25:16,817 --> 00:25:19,272
labor — JC smoothing over choices he

592
00:25:19,272 --> 00:25:21,727
didn't make, reinforcing unity, protecting

593
00:25:21,727 --> 00:25:24,182
the collective. But buried in that same

594
00:25:24,182 --> 00:25:26,286
Billboard piece was a detail very few

595
00:25:26,286 --> 00:25:29,091
people probably noticed: a mention

596
00:25:29,191 --> 00:25:31,807
of JC's music‑publishing imprint. The

597
00:25:31,807 --> 00:25:34,049
article listed music on the Celebrity

598
00:25:34,049 --> 00:25:36,291
album as being published by Tennman Tunes,

599
00:25:36,291 --> 00:25:39,280
which was JC's own publishing entity.

600
00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:41,521
Shazam Music and Zomba Enterprises. This

601
00:25:41,521 --> 00:25:43,763
is the first public confirmation I've

602
00:25:43,763 --> 00:25:46,752
seen that JC wasn't just writing on the

603
00:25:46,752 --> 00:25:48,994
Celebrity album — he was actually owning

604
00:25:48,994 --> 00:25:51,359
his work. Publishing is where the real

605
00:25:51,359 --> 00:25:53,482
creative control lives, and the fact that

606
00:25:53,482 --> 00:25:56,213
JC had an imprint of his own shows just

607
00:25:56,213 --> 00:25:58,337
how seriously he took his craft. The

608
00:25:58,337 --> 00:26:00,158
Billboard article also noted that the

609
00:26:00,158 --> 00:26:01,978
group would be pursuing other outside

610
00:26:01,978 --> 00:26:04,691
projects after the tour. But

611
00:26:04,691 --> 00:26:07,066
JC insisted on unity and on continued

612
00:26:07,066 --> 00:26:09,103
hard work, saying, “Nothing will seriously

613
00:26:09,103 --> 00:26:11,478
distract us from working on this album

614
00:26:11,478 --> 00:26:13,854
harder and longer than any other we've

615
00:26:13,854 --> 00:26:16,569
made.” At a moment when the media seemed

616
00:26:16,569 --> 00:26:18,944
to already be framing Celebrity as a

617
00:26:18,944 --> 00:26:20,641
transitional project — and maybe the

618
00:26:20,641 --> 00:26:23,016
beginning of the end — JC still sounded

619
00:26:23,016 --> 00:26:25,392
like someone who believed in the group’s

620
00:26:26,572 --> 00:26:28,971
future. On July 24th, the Celebrity album was

621
00:26:28,971 --> 00:26:31,713
released in the US. It sold almost 1.9

622
00:26:31,713 --> 00:26:34,455
million copies in its first week — still a

623
00:26:34,455 --> 00:26:36,511
huge achievement, even if the media

624
00:26:36,511 --> 00:26:38,567
downplayed it because it didn't surpass

625
00:26:38,567 --> 00:26:41,309
No Strings Attached. But for JC, the real

626
00:26:41,309 --> 00:26:44,051
story is that he co‑wrote about one‑third

627
00:26:44,051 --> 00:26:46,612
of the album: “Selfish,” “Up Against the

628
00:26:46,612 --> 00:26:49,492
Wall,” “The Game Is Over,” and “The Two

629
00:26:49,492 --> 00:26:52,012
of Us.” But then there's the promotional

630
00:26:52,012 --> 00:26:54,532
material. Back when I was still doing

631
00:26:54,532 --> 00:26:57,412
Riddle on Her Mind, a follower sent me

632
00:26:57,412 --> 00:27:00,292
images of posters that had been for sale

633
00:27:00,292 --> 00:27:02,452
on eBay — promotional posters that

634
00:27:02,452 --> 00:27:05,332
seemed like they may have been from early

635
00:27:05,542 --> 00:27:08,524
in the album’s release. One

636
00:27:08,524 --> 00:27:11,503
poster listed four songs: “Pop,” “Gone,”

637
00:27:11,503 --> 00:27:14,108
“Girlfriend,” and “The Game Is Over.”

638
00:27:14,108 --> 00:27:17,087
Three of those four became singles, and it

639
00:27:17,087 --> 00:27:20,065
makes me wonder if “The Game Is Over” was

640
00:27:20,065 --> 00:27:23,043
going to be positioned to become a single

641
00:27:23,043 --> 00:27:26,021
as well. The second poster had a short

642
00:27:26,021 --> 00:27:28,669
blurb with some song titles and

643
00:27:28,669 --> 00:27:30,700
songwriting and production mentions.

644
00:27:30,700 --> 00:27:33,545
They only mentioned one song written by

645
00:27:33,545 --> 00:27:36,389
JC — “Selfish” — but the song was

646
00:27:36,389 --> 00:27:39,233
credited to Brian McKnight, and JC wasn't

647
00:27:39,233 --> 00:27:42,077
mentioned at all. I found that strange,

648
00:27:42,077 --> 00:27:44,109
especially because most of the paragraph

649
00:27:44,109 --> 00:27:46,953
was dominated by songs written by Justin

650
00:27:46,953 --> 00:27:49,938
and Wade Robson — and with the exception

651
00:27:49,938 --> 00:27:52,871
of one, Justin was credited as a writer

652
00:27:52,871 --> 00:27:55,804
in that blurb. It was a weird

653
00:27:55,804 --> 00:27:58,736
oversight, but between the two posters, it

654
00:27:58,736 --> 00:28:01,250
raises the question: why weren't JC's

655
00:28:01,250 --> 00:28:04,183
contributions being promoted and

656
00:28:04,183 --> 00:28:06,278
highlighted more in July? 2001 was

657
00:28:06,278 --> 00:28:09,187
a month where JC was at his most

658
00:28:09,187 --> 00:28:12,122
visible — but also, unfortunately, at his

659
00:28:12,122 --> 00:28:14,324
most misread. In the places where his

660
00:28:14,324 --> 00:28:16,893
voice comes through clearly, he's not the

661
00:28:16,893 --> 00:28:19,462
refined one, or the odd one, or the

662
00:28:19,462 --> 00:28:22,398
guy with the “ghetto pass.”

663
00:28:25,263 --> 00:28:27,374
He's the songwriter, he's the producer,

664
00:28:27,374 --> 00:28:29,836
he's the craftsman, he's the loyalist,

665
00:28:29,836 --> 00:28:32,651
and he's the person trying to keep the

666
00:28:32,651 --> 00:28:35,114
group grounded while the world is trying

667
00:28:35,114 --> 00:28:37,576
to pull them apart. August 2001 opens

668
00:28:37,576 --> 00:28:40,391
with a rare moment of clarity — a moment

669
00:28:40,391 --> 00:28:42,502
when JC's voice cuts through the

670
00:28:42,502 --> 00:28:44,613
noise of the summer’s media distortions.

671
00:28:45,373 --> 00:28:47,824
On August 4th, Launch.com published a

672
00:28:47,824 --> 00:28:50,276
short commentary about the song “Pop.”

673
00:28:50,276 --> 00:28:53,136
Celebrity had just debuted at #1 with

674
00:28:53,136 --> 00:28:55,996
nearly 1.9 million copies sold in its

675
00:28:55,996 --> 00:28:58,856
first week. But the lead single was

676
00:28:58,856 --> 00:29:01,307
already slipping down the Billboard Hot

677
00:29:01,307 --> 00:29:04,167
100. The chart narrative was forming: the

678
00:29:04,167 --> 00:29:06,442
single was underperforming by some

679
00:29:06,442 --> 00:29:09,026
people’s standards. So that meant the

680
00:29:09,026 --> 00:29:11,611
experiment didn't land — and maybe the

681
00:29:11,611 --> 00:29:14,196
public didn't “get” the song. But JC

682
00:29:14,196 --> 00:29:17,150
didn't flinch. To him, “Pop” was the most

683
00:29:17,150 --> 00:29:20,104
exciting song on the radio at the time,

684
00:29:20,104 --> 00:29:23,058
and in the article he talked about it

685
00:29:23,058 --> 00:29:25,274
with conviction — not defensiveness, but

686
00:29:25,274 --> 00:29:26,843
genuine artistic pride.

687
00:29:26,843 --> 00:29:29,062
He described the hybrid structure, the

688
00:29:29,062 --> 00:29:31,650
rock guitars layered over a dance beat,

689
00:29:31,650 --> 00:29:33,500
the stacked harmonies, the

690
00:29:33,500 --> 00:29:35,718
aggressive vocal chants, and the energy

691
00:29:35,718 --> 00:29:38,677
that he felt nothing else on the radio

692
00:29:38,677 --> 00:29:41,266
had. It was one of the clearest

693
00:29:41,266 --> 00:29:43,855
articulations all year of what that song

694
00:29:43,855 --> 00:29:46,443
— and really what Celebrity — was trying to

695
00:29:46,443 --> 00:29:49,378
do: push pop music forward and

696
00:29:49,378 --> 00:29:52,238
not always chase what was safe. And it's

697
00:29:52,238 --> 00:29:54,741
one of the few moments where JC's

698
00:29:54,741 --> 00:29:56,528
understanding of the group's innovation

699
00:29:56,528 --> 00:29:59,388
is allowed to stand on its own without

700
00:29:59,388 --> 00:30:01,266
being filtered through someone else's lens.

701
00:29:59,388 --> 00:30:01,176
being filtered through a journalist's

702
00:30:01,176 --> 00:30:03,838
agenda. But there's

703
00:30:03,838 --> 00:30:06,795
another layer here — one that JC himself

704
00:30:06,795 --> 00:30:09,752
didn't address. It seems to me that

705
00:30:09,752 --> 00:30:12,708
he defended the song “Pop” because he

706
00:30:12,708 --> 00:30:15,665
believed in the music. But looking at

707
00:30:15,665 --> 00:30:17,777
things from a structural standpoint,

708
00:30:17,777 --> 00:30:20,734
maybe the media wasn't entirely wrong to

709
00:30:20,734 --> 00:30:23,597
question the rollout. *NSYNC

710
00:30:23,597 --> 00:30:26,070
was still in tour rehearsals when the

711
00:30:26,070 --> 00:30:28,896
single was sent to radio. They filmed the

712
00:30:28,896 --> 00:30:31,369
music video days before the song was

713
00:30:31,369 --> 00:30:33,842
released. Their new tour started about

714
00:30:33,842 --> 00:30:36,315
eight days after the single dropped, and

715
00:30:36,315 --> 00:30:38,435
the video didn't premiere until they had

716
00:30:38,435 --> 00:30:41,261
already been on the road for about a

717
00:30:41,261 --> 00:30:43,734
week. Then, aside from the newly released

718
00:30:43,814 --> 00:30:46,166
single, they were still performing other

719
00:30:46,166 --> 00:30:48,910
unreleased songs every night on the Pop

720
00:30:48,910 --> 00:30:51,840
Odyssey tour. But the album

721
00:30:51,840 --> 00:30:54,212
was still two months away. Getting back

722
00:30:54,212 --> 00:30:56,922
to JC — he believed in the song, but

723
00:30:56,922 --> 00:30:59,633
the process around it was flawed, and I

724
00:30:59,633 --> 00:31:02,344
can see why it became a point of

725
00:31:02,344 --> 00:31:05,054
tension that the media wanted to exploit.

726
00:31:05,054 --> 00:31:07,765
Two days later, on August 6th, JC

727
00:31:07,765 --> 00:31:10,475
turned 25. It seems like a pretty quiet

728
00:31:10,475 --> 00:31:13,431
milestone — no big headlines, no major

729
00:31:13,431 --> 00:31:16,423
birthday‑themed press — but it sits at

730
00:31:16,423 --> 00:31:19,414
the center of a year where he

731
00:31:19,414 --> 00:31:21,979
was already being framed as everything

732
00:31:21,979 --> 00:31:24,543
from “odd” to “refined” to maybe

733
00:31:24,543 --> 00:31:27,108
“misunderstood.” I think it's worth noting

734
00:31:27,108 --> 00:31:29,672
how differently the media treated age

735
00:31:29,672 --> 00:31:32,516
within *NSYNC. When Chris turned

736
00:31:32,516 --> 00:31:34,639
30 in October, his birthday became

737
00:31:34,639 --> 00:31:36,763
shorthand for the supposed decline of

738
00:31:36,763 --> 00:31:39,594
teen pop — a symbol the press used to

739
00:31:39,594 --> 00:31:42,426
declare the genre past its expiration

740
00:31:42,426 --> 00:31:44,550
date. And I understand that for many

741
00:31:44,550 --> 00:31:47,027
people, leaving their 20s is a bigger

742
00:31:47,027 --> 00:31:49,858
deal than turning 25 — but still, when JC

743
00:31:49,858 --> 00:31:52,553
turned 25, the media barely noticed.

744
00:31:52,553 --> 00:31:55,095
He was the second‑oldest member of the

745
00:31:55,095 --> 00:31:57,100
group, but his birthday didn't generate

746
00:31:57,100 --> 00:32:00,178
any think pieces or the same hand‑wringing

747
00:32:00,178 --> 00:32:03,083
about boy bands aging out.

748
00:32:03,083 --> 00:32:05,624
I don't think the silence from the media

749
00:32:06,724 --> 00:32:09,274
was respect — I think it was invisibility.

750
00:32:09,274 --> 00:32:11,504
For the most part, JC didn't seek

751
00:32:11,504 --> 00:32:14,053
attention, and the media didn't give him

752
00:32:14,053 --> 00:32:15,965
any — not outside the group.

753
00:32:15,965 --> 00:32:18,514
Chris’s age was narratively useful;

754
00:32:19,354 --> 00:32:21,268
JC’s wasn’t. And that contrast says

755
00:32:21,268 --> 00:32:23,564
more about the media than it does

756
00:32:23,564 --> 00:32:26,243
about either of them. Then, on August

757
00:32:26,243 --> 00:32:28,922
20th, *NSYNC performed on the Today

758
00:32:28,922 --> 00:32:31,601
Show’s Summer Concert Series. The

759
00:32:31,601 --> 00:32:33,514
performance was bright, polished, and

760
00:32:33,514 --> 00:32:35,428
familiar — a reminder that beneath all

761
00:32:35,428 --> 00:32:37,724
the mid‑year narratives — the Rolling

762
00:32:37,724 --> 00:32:40,438
Stone caricature, the Vibe backlash —

763
00:32:40,438 --> 00:32:42,666
the group was still functioning,

764
00:32:42,666 --> 00:32:44,894
still working, still delivering. For

765
00:32:44,894 --> 00:32:47,122
JC, it was a moment where the noise

766
00:32:47,122 --> 00:32:50,092
quieted down and his work got

767
00:32:50,092 --> 00:32:53,063
to speak for itself. So overall, August

768
00:32:53,063 --> 00:32:55,662
was a smaller month than July — but it

769
00:32:55,662 --> 00:32:58,632
was also a cleaner one. September 2001

770
00:33:01,441 --> 00:33:03,927
is a month that starts with celebration

771
00:33:03,927 --> 00:33:06,413
but ends with silence — and JC’s story

772
00:33:06,413 --> 00:33:09,255
sits right at the center of that shift.

773
00:33:09,255 --> 00:33:11,741
On September 1st, *NSYNC played the final

774
00:33:11,741 --> 00:33:14,582
show of their Pop Odyssey tour in Mexico

775
00:33:14,582 --> 00:33:17,424
City. It was the end of the biggest

776
00:33:17,424 --> 00:33:20,276
tour of their career. Five days later, on

777
00:33:20,276 --> 00:33:22,555
September 6th, the group swept all four

778
00:33:22,555 --> 00:33:24,834
categories at the MTV Video Music Awards.

779
00:33:24,834 --> 00:33:27,763
It was a major high point at the end of

780
00:33:27,763 --> 00:33:30,693
the summer. Then came one of the

781
00:33:30,693 --> 00:33:32,647
most striking moments of JC’s entire

782
00:33:32,647 --> 00:33:35,251
year. *NSYNC appeared at the taping of

783
00:33:35,251 --> 00:33:36,553
Michael Jackson’s 30th Anniversary

784
00:33:36,553 --> 00:33:38,832
Special. The special was filmed over two

785
00:33:38,832 --> 00:33:40,785
nights — September 7th and September 10th.

786
00:33:40,895 --> 00:33:43,367
The exact night of their performance

787
00:33:43,367 --> 00:33:45,427
isn't clearly documented, but the

788
00:33:45,427 --> 00:33:47,899
appearance itself is searchable. You can

789
00:33:47,899 --> 00:33:50,783
still find footage of it on YouTube,

790
00:33:50,783 --> 00:33:53,667
and it included one of JC’s most

791
00:33:53,667 --> 00:33:55,727
electrifying performances of the year.

792
00:33:55,727 --> 00:33:58,199
When *NSYNC emerged from the stage

793
00:33:58,199 --> 00:34:01,083
portals behind the Jacksons, JC came out

794
00:34:01,083 --> 00:34:03,829
singing with a force that I can

795
00:34:03,829 --> 00:34:06,072
only describe as explosive — a full‑

796
00:34:06,072 --> 00:34:08,316
throttle chest‑voice attack that cut

797
00:34:08,316 --> 00:34:10,933
right through the audience. He was also

798
00:34:10,933 --> 00:34:13,925
the only member of *NSYNC who received a

799
00:34:13,925 --> 00:34:16,542
solo line in the song “Dancing Machine,”

800
00:34:16,542 --> 00:34:18,412
effectively sharing lead vocals with

801
00:34:18,412 --> 00:34:21,030
Michael Jackson. It was a rare moment

802
00:34:21,030 --> 00:34:23,569
where JC's vocal power is foregrounded

803
00:34:23,569 --> 00:34:26,489
on a global stage—unfiltered and

804
00:34:26,489 --> 00:34:29,370
unmistakable. Some sources place

805
00:34:29,370 --> 00:34:31,566
*NSYNC's contribution to the "What's Going

806
00:34:31,566 --> 00:34:34,129
On?" charity single around the same time,

807
00:34:34,129 --> 00:34:36,691
but the timeline is difficult to verify.

808
00:34:36,691 --> 00:34:38,522
The project involved multiple recording

809
00:34:38,522 --> 00:34:41,450
sessions around the time of 9/11, and the

810
00:34:41,450 --> 00:34:42,914
surviving documentation is somewhat

811
00:34:42,914 --> 00:34:45,477
inconsistent. What is clear is that the

812
00:34:45,477 --> 00:34:48,039
group participated and they were part of

813
00:34:48,039 --> 00:34:50,958
the recording effort. JC’s solo moment is

814
00:34:50,958 --> 00:34:53,855
small; he got to sing a couple

815
00:34:53,855 --> 00:34:56,752
of lines. And then on September 11th,

816
00:34:56,752 --> 00:34:59,234
the world changed. After the terrorist

817
00:34:59,234 --> 00:35:01,303
attacks, the entertainment industry shut

818
00:35:01,303 --> 00:35:03,372
down, tours paused, appearances were

819
00:35:03,372 --> 00:35:05,855
cancelled, and the promotional cycle for

820
00:35:05,855 --> 00:35:08,752
Celebrity went quiet. The momentum of the

821
00:35:08,752 --> 00:35:11,139
summer evaporated, more or less. For JC,

822
00:35:11,139 --> 00:35:13,676
it marked the end of the most visible

823
00:35:13,676 --> 00:35:16,531
stretch of the year—the end of the time

824
00:35:16,531 --> 00:35:18,751
where the group had been everywhere, only

825
00:35:18,751 --> 00:35:20,655
to disappear overnight into the same

826
00:35:20,655 --> 00:35:22,558
national pause that touched every corner

827
00:35:22,558 --> 00:35:24,461
of American life. September was the

828
00:35:24,461 --> 00:35:26,364
turning point, and every month afterward

829
00:35:26,364 --> 00:35:28,584
felt different. October 2001 is a quieter

830
00:35:28,584 --> 00:35:31,233
month for JC, not because

831
00:35:31,233 --> 00:35:33,534
he disappears, but because the entire

832
00:35:33,534 --> 00:35:35,452
entertainment industry is operating under

833
00:35:35,452 --> 00:35:37,753
a different emotional register. After the

834
00:35:37,753 --> 00:35:40,054
shutdown in mid-September, most artists

835
00:35:40,054 --> 00:35:42,355
returned to public life through charity

836
00:35:42,355 --> 00:35:43,889
events, tributes, and benefit

837
00:35:43,889 --> 00:35:46,190
performances. For *NSYNC, the defining

838
00:35:46,190 --> 00:35:48,875
moment of the month is the United

839
00:35:48,875 --> 00:35:51,637
We Stand concert in Washington, D.C. on

840
00:35:51,637 --> 00:35:54,026
October 21st. It's a moment defined less

841
00:35:54,026 --> 00:35:56,074
by individual spotlight and more by

842
00:35:56,074 --> 00:35:57,781
collective purpose. And that collective

843
00:35:57,781 --> 00:35:59,828
framing is important, because October is

844
00:35:59,828 --> 00:36:02,559
the month when JC has no front-facing

845
00:36:02,559 --> 00:36:05,289
solo work at all. While Joey is doing

846
00:36:05,289 --> 00:36:08,019
press for On the Line and Chris is

847
00:36:08,019 --> 00:36:10,067
trying to restart the FuMan Skeeto

848
00:36:10,067 --> 00:36:12,115
promotional schedule that was derailed in

849
00:36:12,115 --> 00:36:14,292
September, JC's only documented

850
00:36:14,292 --> 00:36:16,233
appearances are group commitments:

851
00:36:16,233 --> 00:36:18,174
ensemble charity work, collective

852
00:36:18,174 --> 00:36:21,086
performances, and the "What's Going On"

853
00:36:21,086 --> 00:36:23,726
video shoot. From

854
00:36:23,726 --> 00:36:26,661
what I could see, there were no

855
00:36:26,661 --> 00:36:28,758
individual interviews, no solo press

856
00:36:28,758 --> 00:36:30,855
hits, no personal projects being

857
00:36:30,855 --> 00:36:33,790
promoted. It's a quiet month for him,

858
00:36:33,790 --> 00:36:36,307
and that quiet is telling. Generally

859
00:36:36,307 --> 00:36:38,823
speaking, JC wasn't someone who sought

860
00:36:38,823 --> 00:36:41,758
media attention on his own and in

861
00:36:41,758 --> 00:36:44,606
return, the media, for the most part, didn't

862
00:36:44,606 --> 00:36:47,055
seek him out. October became a month

863
00:36:47,055 --> 00:36:49,503
where his presence was felt only within

864
00:36:49,503 --> 00:36:51,952
the group, not as an individual figure.

865
00:36:51,952 --> 00:36:54,401
In contrast to the visibility of other

866
00:36:54,401 --> 00:36:56,850
members of *NSYNC, JC sort of receded

867
00:36:56,850 --> 00:36:58,949
into the collective—not because he

868
00:36:58,949 --> 00:37:01,398
couldn't stand out, but because he didn't

869
00:37:01,398 --> 00:37:04,327
really seem to desire to do so. There

870
00:37:04,327 --> 00:37:07,215
didn't seem to be this urge to push

871
00:37:07,215 --> 00:37:09,741
himself forward during a moment when the

872
00:37:09,741 --> 00:37:11,907
industry was still finding its footing.

873
00:37:11,907 --> 00:37:14,073
October doesn't offer the kind of

874
00:37:14,073 --> 00:37:16,599
standout JC moments that define July or

875
00:37:16,599 --> 00:37:19,126
the performance spotlight that he had in

876
00:37:19,126 --> 00:37:21,652
early September. Instead, it shows him in

877
00:37:21,652 --> 00:37:24,364
a different light: present, steady, and

878
00:37:24,364 --> 00:37:26,268
committed to the group's shared efforts

879
00:37:26,268 --> 00:37:28,489
during a national moment of grief and

880
00:37:28,489 --> 00:37:31,326
recalibration. November opened with the

881
00:37:31,326 --> 00:37:33,811
Veterans Day concert on South Beach in

882
00:37:33,811 --> 00:37:36,650
Miami. It was one of the first upbeat,

883
00:37:36,650 --> 00:37:38,425
celebratory events that the group

884
00:37:38,425 --> 00:37:40,554
participated in after the post-9/11

885
00:37:40,554 --> 00:37:43,039
industry shutdown. It doesn't offer any

886
00:37:43,039 --> 00:37:45,523
JC-specific moments—not any more than

887
00:37:45,523 --> 00:37:48,362
what you'd expect in your typical *NSYNC

888
00:37:48,362 --> 00:37:49,782
performance. He's present, he's

889
00:37:49,782 --> 00:37:52,154
professional, and he's part of the

890
00:37:52,154 --> 00:37:53,911
collective; nothing more, nothing less.

891
00:37:53,911 --> 00:37:56,370
On November 20th, all five members appeared

892
00:37:56,370 --> 00:37:58,479
together on MTV's Total Request Live.

893
00:37:58,479 --> 00:38:00,938
During the program, they each had an

894
00:38:00,938 --> 00:38:03,047
opportunity to say what they were

895
00:38:03,047 --> 00:38:05,858
grateful for that year. And when JC was

896
00:38:05,858 --> 00:38:08,669
forced to choose, he said "The Pop Odyssey

897
00:38:08,669 --> 00:38:11,274
Tour." The next day, November 21st, *NSYNC

898
00:38:11,274 --> 00:38:13,911
appeared on BET's 106 & Park. Earlier

899
00:38:13,911 --> 00:38:16,548
this season, I had mentioned this as

900
00:38:16,548 --> 00:38:19,185
their first appearance on the show, but

901
00:38:19,185 --> 00:38:21,445
after doing a little additional digging

902
00:38:21,445 --> 00:38:23,706
and reviewing some sources, it's become

903
00:38:23,706 --> 00:38:26,343
clear to me that their first actual

904
00:38:26,343 --> 00:38:28,980
appearance on 106 & Park was in

905
00:38:28,980 --> 00:38:31,617
June of 2001. So the November visit

906
00:38:31,687 --> 00:38:34,017
was their return. This appearance was

907
00:38:34,017 --> 00:38:36,736
important not because JC had any standout

908
00:38:36,736 --> 00:38:39,454
moments, but because the show itself sits

909
00:38:39,454 --> 00:38:42,362
at the center of racialized commentary

910
00:38:42,362 --> 00:38:44,662
surrounding *NSYNC that year.

911
00:38:44,662 --> 00:38:47,429
*NSYNC's presence on BET was being treated

912
00:38:47,429 --> 00:38:50,085
as sort of a cultural anomaly, and it's a

913
00:38:50,085 --> 00:38:52,409
narrative that flattened the group's

914
00:38:52,409 --> 00:38:54,069
actual musical influences and erased the

915
00:38:54,069 --> 00:38:56,061
complexity of their audience. JC doesn't

916
00:38:56,061 --> 00:38:58,053
have a standout moment during their stint

917
00:38:58,053 --> 00:39:00,377
on 106 & Park, but his presence is part

918
00:39:00,377 --> 00:39:03,365
of the larger group story. So overall for

919
00:39:03,365 --> 00:39:06,021
JC, November was a month of collective

920
00:39:06,021 --> 00:39:08,863
visibility, but individual silence. He

921
00:39:08,863 --> 00:39:10,639
shows up, he performs, he participates,

922
00:39:10,639 --> 00:39:12,770
but he doesn't speak as an individual

923
00:39:12,770 --> 00:39:15,256
artist. December continues a pattern that

924
00:39:15,256 --> 00:39:17,386
we've seen all throughout the course of

925
00:39:17,386 --> 00:39:19,872
2001. On the 4th, *NSYNC

926
00:39:19,872 --> 00:39:22,784
attended the Billboard Music Awards.

927
00:39:22,784 --> 00:39:24,481
Since the group performed the song "Gone,"

928
00:39:24,481 --> 00:39:26,856
there were no standout vocal moments for

929
00:39:26,856 --> 00:39:29,231
JC at that time. His time came later

930
00:39:29,231 --> 00:39:31,946
during the ensemble performance of "What's

931
00:39:31,946 --> 00:39:33,982
Going On" when *NSYNC joined other

932
00:39:33,982 --> 00:39:36,018
collaborators from the All Star Charity

933
00:39:36,018 --> 00:39:38,054
single. On December 8th, JC participated

934
00:39:38,054 --> 00:39:40,090
in the Challenge the Children holiday

935
00:39:40,090 --> 00:39:42,375
event in Orlando, handing out gifts to

936
00:39:42,375 --> 00:39:45,170
kids. It's a warm, grounded, philanthropic

937
00:39:45,170 --> 00:39:47,565
moment, even if it wasn't widely covered

938
00:39:47,565 --> 00:39:50,359
by the press. Three days later, on

939
00:39:50,359 --> 00:39:53,154
December 11th, the group Scene 23

940
00:39:53,154 --> 00:39:55,549
released their album called *Introducing

941
00:39:55,549 --> 00:39:57,545
Scene 23*. Scene 23 was a short-lived

942
00:39:57,545 --> 00:40:00,339
group, and they were the winners

943
00:40:00,339 --> 00:40:03,094
of the second season of the reality TV

944
00:40:03,094 --> 00:40:05,665
show Popstars. They were essentially

945
00:40:05,665 --> 00:40:07,914
a manufactured group, and they never

946
00:40:07,914 --> 00:40:09,841
broke through commercially. Their

947
00:40:09,841 --> 00:40:11,448
album had almost no promotional push,

948
00:40:11,448 --> 00:40:13,376
which is why most listeners today don't

949
00:40:13,376 --> 00:40:15,625
remember the group or its members. But

950
00:40:15,625 --> 00:40:17,874
buried in that project are two songs co-written

951
00:40:17,874 --> 00:40:20,444
by JC: one called "He Said, She Said"

952
00:40:20,444 --> 00:40:23,119
and the other called "Respect Me." It's a

953
00:40:23,119 --> 00:40:25,501
small reminder that even in 2001, he was

954
00:40:25,501 --> 00:40:27,884
contributing material to acts outside of

955
00:40:27,884 --> 00:40:29,926
*NSYNC. The album's low profile meant that

956
00:40:29,926 --> 00:40:32,308
his involvement barely registered publicly,

957
00:40:32,308 --> 00:40:34,351
but it's one of the clearest examples of

958
00:40:34,351 --> 00:40:35,712
how active he was as a songwriter during

959
00:40:35,712 --> 00:40:38,435
this year, even if the work didn't carry

960
00:40:38,435 --> 00:40:41,157
his name to the spotlight. Mid-December

961
00:40:41,157 --> 00:40:43,988
brought MTV's TRL Holiday Special

962
00:40:43,988 --> 00:40:46,707
featuring *NSYNC. The program aired on

963
00:40:46,707 --> 00:40:48,501
December 19th and it was a lighthearted,

964
00:40:48,501 --> 00:40:50,654
festive occasion. Something nice and low-stakes

965
00:40:50,654 --> 00:40:53,166
to round things out for the group

966
00:40:53,166 --> 00:40:55,319
before they went their separate ways for

967
00:40:55,319 --> 00:40:58,189
holiday breaks. Around this

968
00:40:58,189 --> 00:41:00,701
point in the month, according to Lance

969
00:41:00,701 --> 00:41:03,334
Bass's memoir, this was when Justin

970
00:41:03,334 --> 00:41:05,978
proposed an extended break for the group.

971
00:41:05,978 --> 00:41:08,244
For context, Lance recalls him and Joey

972
00:41:08,244 --> 00:41:10,888
being in a hotel room listening to CDs,

973
00:41:10,888 --> 00:41:12,128
and then Justin comes in to talk to them

974
00:41:12,128 --> 00:41:14,379
about the break. After Justin left the

975
00:41:14,379 --> 00:41:16,950
room, Lance says that JC entered and he

976
00:41:16,950 --> 00:41:19,843
looked visibly upset. Lance expressed

977
00:41:19,843 --> 00:41:22,093
that he thought things were going to be

978
00:41:22,093 --> 00:41:24,665
fine for the group, but he recalls JC

979
00:41:24,665 --> 00:41:26,272
saying, "Well, I think it's great for

980
00:41:26,272 --> 00:41:28,844
Justin, but it may be the beginning of

981
00:41:28,844 --> 00:41:31,416
the end." JC has never publicly confirmed

982
00:41:31,416 --> 00:41:33,737
or denied this version of events.

983
00:41:33,737 --> 00:41:36,279
No one else in the group has directly

984
00:41:36,279 --> 00:41:38,502
confirmed or denied it either. But if

985
00:41:38,502 --> 00:41:40,409
what Lance says is accurate, it suggests

986
00:41:41,459 --> 00:41:44,106
that maybe there were some moments when

987
00:41:44,106 --> 00:41:46,422
JC wasn't completely neutral about the

988
00:41:46,422 --> 00:41:48,739
group's future, and that maybe he had

989
00:41:48,739 --> 00:41:51,055
some private doubts and fears. Even if

990
00:41:51,055 --> 00:41:53,041
these were things that he didn't voice

991
00:41:53,041 --> 00:41:55,357
publicly, it paints a bit of a different

992
00:41:55,357 --> 00:41:57,674
picture from the typical JC we see,

993
00:41:57,674 --> 00:41:59,990
which is somebody who projects unity and

994
00:42:10,191 --> 00:42:12,969
One correction I want to make before I

995
00:42:12,969 --> 00:42:15,746
round out 2001 is in Joey's episode,

996
00:42:15,746 --> 00:42:18,524
I previously said that the music video

997
00:42:18,524 --> 00:42:21,302
for "Girlfriend" debuted on New Year's Eve

998
00:42:21,302 --> 00:42:24,129
of 2001. That's not accurate, and that's

999
00:42:24,129 --> 00:42:26,984
a mistake on my part. What happened is

1000
00:42:26,984 --> 00:42:29,481
that TRL was actually showing previews of

1001
00:42:29,481 --> 00:42:32,335
the music video in the last couple of

1002
00:42:32,335 --> 00:42:35,190
days of 2001, but the music video didn't

1003
00:42:35,190 --> 00:42:37,330
officially premiere on MTV until early

1004
00:42:37,330 --> 00:42:39,828
2002. So if you were remembering the

1005
00:42:39,828 --> 00:42:42,325
"Girlfriend" music video as a 2002 moment,

1006
00:42:42,325 --> 00:42:44,694
you're right. I got some of my sources

1007
00:42:44,694 --> 00:42:46,832
mixed up, but I wanted to set the record

1008
00:42:46,832 --> 00:42:49,430
straight. So looking

1009
00:42:49,430 --> 00:42:52,375
back at 2001 for JC Chasez, what

1010
00:42:52,375 --> 00:42:55,319
did we learn about him? I think

1011
00:42:55,319 --> 00:42:58,263
the first thing we learn about him

1012
00:42:58,263 --> 00:43:01,207
is that his creative identity was real,

1013
00:43:01,207 --> 00:43:04,151
but the public rarely saw it. JC

1014
00:43:04,151 --> 00:43:07,096
seems to be somebody who has a

1015
00:43:07,096 --> 00:43:09,619
lot of deep thoughts about music.

1016
00:43:09,849 --> 00:43:12,435
He operated as a craftsman, as a

1017
00:43:12,435 --> 00:43:15,022
songwriter, and he comes across as

1018
00:43:15,022 --> 00:43:17,608
very articulate when he's given the

1019
00:43:17,608 --> 00:43:20,194
space to speak honestly about music.

1020
00:43:20,194 --> 00:43:22,780
But those kinds of moments were

1021
00:43:22,780 --> 00:43:25,366
rare. He didn't build a persona

1022
00:43:25,366 --> 00:43:27,952
around his artistry and didn't really

1023
00:43:27,952 --> 00:43:30,538
offer himself up in a way

1024
00:43:30,538 --> 00:43:33,152
that the media thought needed

1025
00:43:33,152 --> 00:43:35,931
more probing or deeper engagement. So

1026
00:43:35,931 --> 00:43:38,709
as a result, for the most

1027
00:43:38,709 --> 00:43:41,488
part, the public was exposed to

1028
00:43:41,488 --> 00:43:44,267
his physical voice, but not his

1029
00:43:44,267 --> 00:43:47,045
figurative voice. Like, not really

1030
00:43:47,045 --> 00:43:49,824
being exposed so much to the mind

1031
00:43:49,824 --> 00:43:52,140
behind the music.

1032
00:43:52,890 --> 00:43:55,398
The second thing I think

1033
00:43:55,398 --> 00:43:57,906
we learned about him is

1034
00:43:57,906 --> 00:44:00,414
that his public image was

1035
00:44:00,414 --> 00:44:02,922
constructed by others, and his

1036
00:44:02,922 --> 00:44:05,430
near invisibility was sort of

1037
00:44:05,430 --> 00:44:07,939
structural. JC didn't project a

1038
00:44:07,939 --> 00:44:10,447
specific image or public persona,

1039
00:44:10,447 --> 00:44:12,955
and the media filled that vacuum

1040
00:44:12,955 --> 00:44:15,832
however they wanted to. We saw that

1041
00:44:15,832 --> 00:44:18,676
with the Rolling Stone article where

1042
00:44:18,676 --> 00:44:21,113
the writer framed JC as refined and

1043
00:44:21,113 --> 00:44:23,956
a little odd. We saw that with the

1044
00:44:23,956 --> 00:44:26,800
Vibe magazine piece by Mimi Valdez

1045
00:44:26,800 --> 00:44:29,643
where she racialized the appeal of

1046
00:44:29,643 --> 00:44:32,080
*NSYNC and basically set JC up to

1047
00:44:32,080 --> 00:44:34,924
have that "ghetto past" moment. But

1048
00:44:34,924 --> 00:44:37,539
that cringy comment and other outlets

1049
00:44:37,539 --> 00:44:40,534
tended to treat him as a de facto

1050
00:44:40,534 --> 00:44:43,529
spokesperson and didn't do much probing

1051
00:44:43,529 --> 00:44:46,523
into JC as the individual artist.

1052
00:44:46,523 --> 00:44:49,090
And this wasn't because JC lacked

1053
00:44:49,090 --> 00:44:51,230
personality; it's because he didn't

1054
00:44:51,230 --> 00:44:53,797
perform a personality for the press.

1055
00:44:53,797 --> 00:44:56,757
Didn't do much self-promotion, didn't

1056
00:44:56,757 --> 00:44:59,450
seem to chase interviews, didn't

1057
00:44:59,450 --> 00:45:02,143
really build a unique brand around

1058
00:45:02,143 --> 00:45:04,837
himself. And as a result, like I

1059
00:45:04,837 --> 00:45:07,530
said earlier, it seems like the

1060
00:45:07,530 --> 00:45:10,223
media rarely sought him out. He

1061
00:45:10,223 --> 00:45:12,917
simply didn't fit the media's

1062
00:45:12,917 --> 00:45:15,610
template for any boy band archetype.

1063
1064
00:45:15,690 --> 00:45:18,232
So they left him alone. I think the

1065
00:45:18,232 --> 00:45:21,137
third thing we learned about JC is

1066
00:45:21,137 --> 00:45:24,043
that he was loyal to *NSYNC and he

1067
00:45:24,043 --> 00:45:26,948
was not preparing to leave. Nothing

1068
00:45:26,948 --> 00:45:29,490
in 2001 suggested that JC was

1069
00:45:29,490 --> 00:45:32,032
drifting away or trying to make a way

1070
00:45:32,032 --> 00:45:34,937
outside of the group. His side

1071
00:45:34,937 --> 00:45:37,814
projects were small, they were pretty

1072
00:45:37,814 --> 00:45:40,590
quiet, and they were compatible with

1073
00:45:40,590 --> 00:45:42,574
the *NSYNC schedule. He repeatedly

1074
00:45:42,574 --> 00:45:44,557
emphasized his commitment to the

1075
00:45:44,557 --> 00:45:47,334
group in interviews, even saying that

1076
00:45:47,334 --> 00:45:50,110
they planned to work on Celebrity

1077
00:45:50,110 --> 00:45:52,887
harder and longer than any album they

1078
00:45:52,887 --> 00:45:55,664
had ever made. And if Lance's memoir

1079
00:45:55,664 --> 00:45:58,491
is accurate, then JC seeming upset at

1080
00:45:58,491 --> 00:46:00,867
Justin's proposal to take an extended

1081
00:46:00,867 --> 00:46:03,640
break, even to the point of him

1082
00:46:03,640 --> 00:46:06,413
saying it might be the beginning of

1083
00:46:06,413 --> 00:46:09,185
the end, that only makes sense if

1084
00:46:09,185 --> 00:46:11,958
JC wanted *NSYNC to continue. If

1085
00:46:11,958 --> 00:46:14,334
Lance's recollection is accurate, I

1086
00:46:14,334 --> 00:46:16,711
think that moment hints at a contrast

1087
00:46:16,711 --> 00:46:19,676
between JC's public confidence in

1088
00:46:19,676 --> 00:46:22,517
the group versus some private

1089
00:46:22,517 --> 00:46:24,141
concerns that he only shared within

1090
00:46:24,141 --> 00:46:25,251
the group.

1091
1092
00:46:25,251 --> 00:46:28,123
We can't know exactly what he felt,

1093
00:46:28,123 --> 00:46:30,996
but the difference between what he

1094
00:46:30,996 --> 00:46:33,869
tended to project publicly and what

1095
00:46:33,869 --> 00:46:36,331
he may have expressed privately is

1096
00:46:36,331 --> 00:46:37,711
worth noting.

1097
1098
00:46:37,711 --> 00:46:40,160
These public comments about *NSYNC and

1099
00:46:40,160 --> 00:46:43,017
how they evolve over the course of

1100
00:46:43,017 --> 00:46:45,466
the so-called hiatus will become an

1101
00:46:45,466 --> 00:46:47,915
important thread as this podcast series

1102
00:46:47,915 --> 00:46:50,772
continues. So that's where we'll leave JC

1103
00:46:50,772 --> 00:46:53,629
for the year 2001. Before I close

1104
00:46:53,629 --> 00:46:56,486
out this episode completely, I have two

1105
00:46:56,486 --> 00:46:58,607
quick announcements. First, there's going

1106
00:46:58,607 --> 00:47:01,115
to be a special episode of Unsynchronized

1107
00:47:01,115 --> 00:47:03,623
in March. I'm participating in an event

1108
00:47:03,623 --> 00:47:05,772
called Podcasthon, and it's when

1109
00:47:05,772 --> 00:47:07,564
podcasters around the world release

1110
00:47:07,564 --> 00:47:09,713
special episodes in support of the

1111
00:47:09,713 --> 00:47:12,221
charity of their choice. Podcasthon is

1112
00:47:12,221 --> 00:47:14,370
about convincing as many hosts as

1113
00:47:14,370 --> 00:47:16,878
possible to dedicate one episode of their

1114
00:47:16,878 --> 00:47:19,641
show to a charity of their choice and

1115
00:47:19,641 --> 00:47:21,741
to release these episodes simultaneously

1116
00:47:21,741 --> 00:47:24,681
in a coordinated effort mid-March 2026,

1117
00:47:24,681 --> 00:47:27,201
creating a massive and international wave

1118
00:47:27,201 --> 00:47:29,721
of inspiring audio content. The objective

1119
00:47:29,721 --> 00:47:32,661
is to raise awareness for a huge

1120
00:47:32,661 --> 00:47:35,601
number of charities worldwide. If any of

1121
00:47:35,601 --> 00:47:38,541
my listeners happen to be podcasters, too,

1122
00:47:38,781 --> 00:47:40,933
and if this nonprofit initiative

1123
00:47:40,933 --> 00:47:43,516
resonates with you, please register as

1124
00:47:43,516 --> 00:47:46,099
a host at podcasthon.org/register.

1125
00:47:46,099 --> 00:47:48,681
It's quick, free, and easy. This

1126
00:47:48,681 --> 00:47:50,833
year, the special episode of

1127
00:47:50,833 --> 00:47:53,416
Unsynchronized will be in support of

1128
00:47:53,416 --> 00:47:55,998
the Internet Archive. Podcasthon 2026

1129
00:47:55,998 --> 00:47:58,581
runs from March 14th through the

1130
00:47:58,581 --> 00:48:01,131
20th, and my special episode will launch

1131
00:48:01,131 --> 00:48:04,015
on March 19th. The

1132
00:48:04,015 --> 00:48:06,135
second announcement is that the Podcasthon

1133
00:48:06,135 --> 00:48:08,608
episode will be the only episode

1134
00:48:08,608 --> 00:48:11,435
next month in March. I'll be taking a

1135
00:48:11,435 --> 00:48:14,262
mid-season break. A little hiatus if you

1136
00:48:14,262 --> 00:48:17,088
will, but unlike *NSYNC, when I say

1137
00:48:17,088 --> 00:48:19,915
I'll be back after my hiatus, I actually

1138
00:48:19,915 --> 00:48:20,622
mean it.

1139
1140
00:48:23,842 --> 00:48:25,789
The next regular episode of

1141
00:48:25,789 --> 00:48:28,126
Unsynchronized will be available on April

1142
00:48:28,126 --> 00:48:30,852
30th, 2026, and that episode is about

1143
00:48:30,852 --> 00:48:33,578
none other than Mr. James Lance Bass,

1144
00:48:33,578 --> 00:48:36,304
the business-minded one, the one with

1145
00:48:36,304 --> 00:48:39,030
the super deep voice, the one with

1146
00:48:39,030 --> 00:48:41,757
the frosted tips, and the man whose

1147
00:48:41,757 --> 00:48:44,483
2001 was defined by a kind of

1148
00:48:44,483 --> 00:48:46,698
controlled multitasking: producing and

1149
00:48:46,698 --> 00:48:49,380
starring in a film, running a management

1150
00:48:49,380 --> 00:48:52,062
company, and still showing up for *NSYNC

1151
00:48:52,062 --> 00:48:54,743
as much as he could. Until next

1152
00:48:54,743 --> 00:48:57,425
time, this has been Nicole Raposo. Thanks

1153
00:48:57,425 --> 00:49:00,107
for joining me. And remember, you can't

1154
00:49:00,107 --> 00:49:02,023
spell 'Unsynchronized' without 'NSYNC'. See

1155
00:49:02,023 --> 00:49:03,172
y'all in April.

1156
00:49:07,652 -->  00:49:16,462
[Drum'n bass beatboxing noises]