IamA former member of a failed 90's BoyBand. AMA!

Have you ever thought of getting the band back together and starting a man band?

Balls Out

Good name ;P

Haha definitely not! I'm too old for all that now! But if we did we could probably tour with BSB and NKOTB....

Dude that's why it's called a man band now

"The Man Band Tour" coming the summer of 2015....

You're asian though, don't u still look like you're 18?

I'm asian so it's okay for me to say that.

Haha yes I do! Get carded at every bar! But I'm old on the inside....

How much control did y'all have over your personas, clothes, lyrics, etc?

Absolutely none. We were told how to talk, dress, act. I was pretty geeky when I started, but they bleached my hair, pierced my ears, and tanned me. Most of our clothes were forced on us by whatever designer was sponsoring us. Music wise we were never encouraged to write our own music since our manager did and made all of his money that way. We were also coached what to say on certain subjects if we were coming off too "(not sexy enough...etc)".

Can you say this also applies to "successful" boy bands?

Oh yes absolutely. Although a lot of artists are able to create a fan base on youtube or social media before they are signed or get management, in which case they have more control over their image and sound because it's already proven to work. But yes, the music industry has a very controlled image problem.

Have you heard of ed sheeran? He rejected a deal from a label because they wanted him to dye his red hair brown. I thought it was weird and quirky that they made that call but apparently not.

Love him! And not surprised. There are a lot of people making decisions that they think "are best" just to justify their jobs.

So I gather you weren't a Lou Pearlman group. Sounds like he wasn't the only one who knew how to squeeze a living out of the talent and looks of some young people.

No we weren't, but I would LOVE to hear some of those stories! I hear there was a whole complex in Florida for those bands!

Look on YouTube for Howard Stern's interview of Rich Cronin (RIP) from L.F.O. Lots of great stories about Lou and some of the other bands. Very interesting, and pretty creepy. Rich sounded like a great guy who was thrown into a boy band that made one of the worst songs ever, lyrically.. "I like girls that wear Abercrombie and Fitch.." I'm sure you know of it. Thanks for the AMA!

Thank YOU for chatting! Having a lot of fun and remembering lots of memories! I didn't know Rich died, that's pretty sad. Yeah, Lou doesn't seem like the greatest mentor.

Did you enjoy being basically told how to live? Or did you grow to resent it?

REALLY resented it for the entire time. Really wanted my freedom! I wanted to get out of it but I didn't want to miss out on the opportunity. There was a pretty big carrot being dangled in front of us, or at least I thought there was back then...

If you knew what you know now, then, would you do it again?

Yes, because I learned a lot! Also, I don't think I really had a choice. I was young and the universe was kind of guiding me where it needed to and teaching me the lessons I needed to learn. And I would never have become as passionate about songwriting had I not been in the group!

This sounds exactly how kpop groups are today.

And it shows! It's VERY slick marketing!

Did you get to keep a copy of your unreleased album?

Yes! It occasionally plays on my iPod randomly and I wistfully remember when.... And then skip to the next song.

Get the other rest of the guys to sign off (or whoever owns it) on it and release it as an independent in a limited release, sold via reddit.

Haha! I'm not sure who owns it now, but I'd rather find a way to get it to everyone for free!

Release this shit. I want a piece of 90's "boy band" era music that was unreleased. You don't understand the gold mine that you are sitting above. This kind of music only existed from 1990-2003. RELEASE. It may be silly when YOU look back on it, but I promise you that there are people that grew up to love that sound but can't get enough from the mainstream bands that released at that time.

Your music is an underground sound that produces a nostalgia (non-negative) in adults born in the late 80's that you can capitalize upon. Be serious about yourself. This isn't a joke. Find the owner of your rights and claim ownership a.s.a.p. because I would buy nostalgia for $1/min.

A lot of people are interested so I'll see what I can do! But I personally don't want to make any money from it. I'd rather make money on my own songs!

Legally, you may find yourself in deep shit if you release it without rights. Tread carefully, my friend!

Haha! I know, so many people want me to! But I would never try to make money off of it.

My cousin worked for WB and I bebefited greatly by being able to steal all her released and unreleased cd's. I remember you guys..I remember this song actually. I swear I had one of your promo cd's. Did you guys release promo albums at all?

Yes! We totally did! I know there was a nice press kit that had the full CD. Our single was the only thing that was ever sold in stores and it had a few clips on it, but no full songs other than "Jasmin"

how much money did you personally make from being in this band?

About $4000 over three years. I came out in debt.

What the fuck. 4k over THREE YEARS?! There has to be something wrong here. What???

It's pretty usual for the recording industry. It's not like other industries where you're paid. It's more like the label is a bank and gives you a loan and you eventually have to pay it back. So I probably wouldn't have made any money until we sold a couple million albums and paid back our advance money and paid all the songwriters and producers and paid for all of our tours etc....

Because of the circumstances that your group came together - everyone auditioning separately, you didn't know each other - did you and the other band members get along well? Did you interact at all outside of work, so to speak? And do you still keep in touch with any of them?

We didn't really fight but I wouldn't say we really got along as a group. I think some of us were forced to become friends since we were living in such close quarters and there was no one else around. Very few of us were from Los Angeles (where we were based) so they rented us a two bedroom apartment where six of us and a chaperone lived. So we had to get very uncomfortably close very fast. There wasn't really any "outside of work" since we were all in our teens and couldn't really go anywhere unescorted. Basically, we spent three years in that apartment unless we were touring or recording. None of us have kept in touch except through Facebook... and even then I have most of them hidden from my feed ;P

What a bizarre life for teenagers -- did y'all attend school in L.A.? You must've been educated, right?

Well, that area was a bit of an issue. I have to be a little vague on this one, but people who were supposed to be taking care of our well being were keeping the money that the label was giving us for education (for their own lavish lifestyle), and giving us occasional subpar tutoring not up to Los Angeles child performer standards. Halfway through our three years with the group "someone" (probably the union) found out and the label got in trouble (even though technically they were providing the funding). Only then were we provided with an education (the best tutor money could afford... he ended up traveling with us), but by then many of us were too far behind. I was the oldest and needed to graduate so my education was very very rushed. My diploma was basically bought for me. The others were still young enough to go back to school once the band ended and I'm sure they were very far behind....

Wow! I can't believe they didn't just enroll y'all in the local public school if nothing else. This is sounding more and more like y'all were work animals/investments to your handlers and not human beings with rights.

Well, because our schedules fluctuated a lot it was hard for us to enroll anywhere without being absent for months at a time. There were two of us from far away so we were worse off. The other four were from somewhere in California and I think they were given their school work from their schools. But with no one around to tell them to do their work they didn't do it because they were kids and had no one forcing them to. The two of us who were from far away were not registered in any school as far as I remember until it was caught by the union. I do worry about kids in the music industry... I doubt that anything has changed since and I'm sure a lot of them still experience similar situations to ours. The film/tv industry is easier to regulate because there are schedules and a lot of organization involved. The music industry is a schedule-less free for all so a lot of rules and morales fall through the cracks!

So do you still educate yourself, or do you just work now?

I work now and I learn what's relevant to whatever it is I'm doing. I make videos so I learned a little bit about film making and editing. I produce my own music so I've also taught myself that. I really learn best by just doing and then figuring it out as I go!

What went wrong?

A lot! We weren't great live because we had never worked together before we were signed... but there are a lot of boy bands who lip-sync or aren't good live so.... There were some shady music business dealings behind the scenes. Ultimately what ended us was a change at the record label. Our label was an offshoot of a larger label and they decided to shut it down. They gave our management the option to keep us, but our managers thought we could shop the album to another label. We were all sent home after a very unfair settlement and told that we'd hear from our managers when they found us a new label. It's been 14 years and I'm still waiting for that call....

So you haven't been waiting to go back to work like Kramer and the bagel shop all this time?

Yes! Fingers crossed, the call might come in any day and I'll be back touring in a boy band!

When I proposed to my wife Jasmin, I had this playing in the background https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7jrVOGHJiQ

D'aww! I'm glad my nasal teen voice contributed to your proposal! I also think it's hilarious that that vid has so many views!

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Yes... SO WEIRD! But we were young and it had it's moments of flattery, and at that age we were taught to equate the fans to success. The more fans we could get to love us, the more sales we would have. And every fan and every interaction counted. It's really sad when you think about it because we would kind of trick girls into liking us, make them feel like we were their friends, just to get their potential future sale. They would often ask if we remembered them and we would always say yes, but there were too many to remember so we were flat out lying. Our team did make us very accessible at performances so we were a group that you could get close to. I obviously feel very differently now. I'm a comedian and don't equate fans to sales since there are no sales... I really do want to get to know people and have discussions with everyone!

That sounds a bit like a stripper's job.

Haha, I was thinking that as I was typing it but I wasn't sure how the comparison would go over...

What are boy band / groupie interactions like? Is it at all like the decadent backstage legends of 80s hair metal? Or are boy band fans all too young to hang out backstage?

Haha! 80's HAIR METAL!!! We had a lot of really die hard groupies that would travel far to see us (did their parents drive them? I'm not sure...) and bring us random presents, make us signs, make us take millions of pictures and sign millions of things. I do think their parents enabled their behavior. Most were very respectful but screamed a lot. They were SO loud. Never underestimate the vocal chords of a teenaged girl. I did witness some of my cohorts take advantage of the situation, but personally I never did. I also think "the people taking care of us" were letting the fans get close to us, bringing them backstage and such, enabling the situation. I think they figured the happier the fans, the more money will come in. It does seem a little strange in retrospect....

I hate to admit it but I was one of those said fans. I remember being a fan when you guys were the Young Americans and being a part of the street team. I gave out those sparkley pencils and book covers at my middle school. I actually had a copy of the full cd. It was really good. Looking back, I realize what a creepy awkward teenage weirdo I was. I apologize.

Don't apologize! I loved me some boy bands myself! It isn't anybody's fault except for the record labels for creating us! Thanks for supporting us and handing out those pencils ( I still have one somewhere)!

I did witness some of my cohorts take advantage of the situation, but personally I never did.

What a nice guy!

scrolls

I talk about my struggle with coming out while in the boy band

Not as impressive any more haha

LOL! Exactly!

I work in the entertainment industry as well (on a much lower level than you) and ended up working a One Direction show in Dallas. The 16,000 girls all screaming together was the loudest thing I've ever heard in my life. I find myself really close to the speaker arrays at a lot of metal shows and none of that even comes close the sound produced by all those 1D fans. Good luck with your stand up!

Thanks! Yes, the sound of screaming teenaged girls... there is NOTHING like it.

What was it like to be involved in that at such a young age?

It was weird. The hardest part was afterwards because I felt like a wash-up at the age of 18. I came out of the group with a little bit of debt so I had to work at a clothing store to stay a float afterwards. I remember a few times there would be customers that would come in and recognize me. Once I was recognized when I was mopping the floor. But I have continued in the entertainment industry (first as a musical theater performer, now as a comedian) and have done bigger things since. My relationship with the entertainment industry is a life long journey....

See your memoir in 20 years

I'm already working on it! *20 years of editing later....

Was the debt due to you being in the group or unrelated matters?

The debt was from being in the group for three years and making no money. Although housing was provided, it was from other things like day to day life. We weren't always provided with food or non-performance clothing especially when were weren't on tour. My mom ended up paying for a lot of my living expenses.

Got to meet anyone famous in the industry other than Jones and Foster?

Oh lots... lets see if I remember. We did a Diane Warren song so she was around a bit. And while we were on tour we did meet some N'sync-ers. We lived in this apartment complex where a lot of teen stars lived so we ran around with Christina Milian and Raven Symone back in the day. We did the Miami Jingle ball too and I think there were a bunch of people there. I seem to be drawing a blank. I don't really get starstruck ever so celebrities don't stick in my mind.

I'm going to guess that apartment complex was Oakwood Apartments off of Barham?

Edit: Nirvana lived there while recording their album "Nevermind".

Haha YES!

Wow that is SO raven! Weird to think all the Disney stars have a dormitory of sorts they stay in.

Oh yeah it's crazy! It's by all of the studios and it's a short term furnished rental place so it's used by a lot of people during pilot season in Los Angeles (children and adults).

Was there a formula to the songrwriting to create a hit? I'm always amazed that a guy like Max Martin continually churns out hits despite the fact that many less popular pop songs have very similar components (e.g., chord progression, structure, etc.). Anything special that went on in that regard, or is it just marketing?

What surprised me the most about the majority of the songs we did was that it often started with a music track that a producer would create. It would have a beat, some guitar chords perhaps. Then a TEAM of songwriters would sit around and create melodies around that pre existing track. It seemed so mathematical and unnatural, but that's how it's done a lot of the time. I went on to be a songwriter myself and I often come up with chord progressions first, but I have never taken a completed song track and written a song over it. And I have also never really collaborated with a team because I feel songwriting is more personal when it's a singular vision or voice. But that's just me, and I haven't had a number one hit yet so....

That's really fascinating, and kind of sad at the same time. And yet so frequently, that mechanical process works. Thanks for the answer!

For sure! I know a lot of big artists write that way... Pharell, Jessie J... and it totally works! But seems a little soulless...

GOSH THAT SONG IS SO 90's. I'm actually surprised I haven't heard of it before. I would have thought the multicultural aspect of the group would have been a great addition to the 90's music boy-band craze. Was that one of the big "selling points" for the band?

Good luck with your comedic endeavors!

Yeah, I'd say the multiculturalism was a big "selling point" and the reason the band even got signed to the label! Yes, it's SUCH a 90's pop song but pretty catchy right?

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Definitely Flashlight. He actually looked a little like Justin Timberlake and was the "rapper" of the group. The girls LOVED him!

Flashlight?! What was your nickname?

Someone tried to call me "Special K" (like the cereal, not the drug... I think) but it never stuck!

I'm sorry, but that's hilarious! Be happy it never stuck. Flashlight is bad enough of a name :P

Oh yes, I thank the Cereal gods! He was actually Flashlight before he came into the group so that was his own creation!

Do you know what he does now? I can't really see a guy called flashlight being professionally versatile.

I don't! I know he released some rap albums independently!

Which one are you?

http://www.angelfire.com/myband/InsaneForYouthAsylum/ya4jess.jpg

The picture isn't loading, but I am the Asian one with blonde spiky hair. Sometimes the hair color changed, but the Asian-ness never did!

What was it like growing up in an environment like that? Do you think that you guys missed out on doing any "normal teen stuff"?

It was very strange growing up in that environment. It was a very "cool kid" environment. Everyone in the music industry is trying to be cooler than each other. It's all image based... and I am totally awkward and super smiley so I was always a bit out of place. But I learned patience and discipline and also have a really good grasp on the things that are important to me and unimportant both in the industry and in my personal life. The biggest things I missed out on because of my age were prom and graduation. I also never dated as a teen. But the other guys were always out there "macking" on girls and getting into all sorts of teenaged trouble!

"macking"

Yep, you're from the 90's.

Haha! But notice the quotes! I was being sarcastic! SARCASTIC I TELLS YA!

But the other guys were always out there "macking" on girls

Well you didnt miss out on that at least :)

Oh yea, and I'm gay anyway so...

A failed boy band member? Gay? You don't say...

Touche!

Seriously? How was that part of your experience? Did you know back then, and did your management have anything to say about it?

Sorry to bomb you with questions, but as a fellow gay guy I'm interested.

Thanks for the questions! Keep em coming! My management guessed that I was gay pretty early on even though I wasn't out. One day they had a closed door meeting with the record execs and told me that I was coming off gay and that I had to change how I acted. They didn't care if I actually WAS gay, it was more how I was being perceived. We were marketed towards teenaged girls so there couldn't be a gay member. That's when they started to style me and control what I said and did. They used to teach me how to walk "straight" up and down the aisles of a grocery store. It was a very homophobic environment including the members of the group. When the group was over I came out of the closet to my family and now I am very open about my sexuality because I want to prove to people that it isn't a hindrance. You don't have to hide in the closet to be successful no matter what your job is! If you're interested, I tell a more in-depth version of this story in the official IT GETS BETTER book in stores now (and I'm sure as an ebook).

Have any vids of your standup you'd like to share?

Sure! I perform original comedy songs and standup at clubs and colleges. I cover a wide array of subjects, but I do have a lot of LGBT/Anti-bullying material. I talk about my struggle with coming out while in the boy band in the official IT GETS BETTER book.

REEL: http://youtu.be/o3-OjiTh7LQ

This is much better than I was expecting.

Lol! *Takes a bow

Are you still in touch with your former band members?

I am Facebook friends with most of them, but they are hidden in my feed! We haven't gotten together in years, although I ran into one of them a few weeks ago at a coffee shop. It was very awkward.

It'd be weird for me to run into someone I hadn't seen in years at a coffee shop, but I can't imagine that same situation with someone I used to be in a boy band with

Yeah, it was pretty awkward but there was a hug involved. I mean it's hard to explain because we were never enemies but never really close either. Kind of like relatives you don't get a long with. They are all a big part of my past whether I want them to be or not!

Do you have any positive memories from that time period?

Yes! I will always remember the time I recorded with David Foster. I am a huge Celine Dion fan (and Canadian) so it was an honor to be in the same room as him. We were also recording a Diane Warren song so it was extra special. I remember all the other guys sitting in the waiting room playing video games or napping, but I was so excited that I just sat in the recording studio behind David as he recorded. I think he got how excited I was and started to teach me what he was doing. I ended up recording most of the background vocals that day!

but...but..."we are young americans"

Haha... I was told to lie about that too but refused.

How much money did you make during the short time? Do you still get paid for the songs being played? Did the process help you with your current comedy act?

When we signed with the label we made something like $2000. Then, we weren't paid at all during the three years besides per diem advances that went to "the people taking care of us" who then spent most of the money on themselves. When we were dropped from the label, we were "bought out" and I saw another $2000 dollars (my share of a 100k buy out). I left the group in debt. Because I didn't write any of the songs there are no royalties, and there are no royalties on performances. Plus, I doubt anyone ever plays our songs! The process definitely helped my comedy act since I perform and write original comedy songs. I also talk about my experience in my act!

What did you want to buy back then, if you had hit it big?

My mom always joked that I would have to buy her a "Grammy" dress. And a house. Mostly things for my mom I guess. Other than that I don't think I ever thought about it!

Do people still recognize you?

Not anymore! I've had a pretty long career since so I do get recognized for my comedy or theater work. I'll occasionally get a fan email asking whatever happened to us and where they can find our album.

Where can we listen to that unreleased album?

I have it! I should find a way to release it shouldn't I! Two songs that did make it out into the world is the song "Jasmin" (Music video in the description), and the song "Color Everywhere" has a ton of cheesy fan videos after a filipino artist covered it years later. But I think if you youtube Youth Asylum you'll find a bunch of clips.

You were the one who wrote the song "Color Everywhere"?! God I love that song! BTW, I'm a Filipino.

We didn't write it, but we were the first to record it. But then yes, a filipino artist recorded it later and it became huge in that community which is cool! It's a great song and I'm glad that it became big even if it wasn't due to us!

I think you guys stopped at my middle school in like '99. Do you remember being in a farm town in Ohio?

Oh it's definitely likely. With Michael Fredo? We toured a lot of middle schools!

What genres of music are your favourite? And did this effect how much you enjoyed being in the group?

I love pop music, and when we started the group was going in a very R&B direction. But we recorded an entire R&B album that ultimately the "higher ups" didn't like and threw away. When we started over we worked with producers who had done Britney Spears' album so it was more in my vocal styling and I ended up enjoying it a lot. Our album was really great for the time... would have been nice if more people heard it!

I don't even.

Didn't this album also have limited edition trading cards?

Oh yes! I am doing a full on karate kick on mine...

Did you make the band yourself? Or ...?

Nope! We all auditioned into the group. The group was already signed to a label before any of the group members were chosen. Our manager pitched to the label a "multi-ethnic boy band". Then we all auditioned and were chosen from there. We ended up being from all over North America and we were never really friends before, during, or after.

Why do you think that you guys never took off? Was it because your record label figured that America wasn't ready for a multiethnic boy band?

I do think our label was really pushing for us especially since we were ethnically diverse. Whether the American public was ready, well have they ever been? There are still very few Asian-Americans successfully signed to major labels (the guy from Black Eyed Peas is the only one I can think of!). I think it just wasn't our time. We were a little late since boy bands like N'Sync and BSB had already started to teeter out when we released our first single. The one major thing I learned about the music industry is that there are just no rules to it. It's not structured like any other industry, so it's hard for me even now to speculate on it other than to say: it just wasn't our time!

Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park.

That's three!

James Iha from Smashing Pumpkins....

That's two... ;P

I can´t sing. I'm so glad I can´t sing.

Everyone can sing in the shower!

Take a shower with me and I'll prove you wrong.

HAHA! I'm busy that day....

It's likely too late to get an answer, but I'd love it if random Redditors chimed in.

I have a theory that when people get very famous at a young age, their maturity level gets stuck at that age. (Bieber is a perfect example)

They can catch up, but only once their popularity wanes and life kicks them around a bit. (Maybe Vanilla Ice is a halfway decent example?)

What do you think, did you ever see examples that could support that theory?

I'd agree. There's a lot of Bieber examples... probably an equal amount of positive examples that we just don't hear about because they shy away from the limelight and get degrees and become scientists or something smart!

Who are your favorite current and past comedians? Where do you see yourself in ten years? How you planning on getting there?

Definitely Margaret Cho since ALWAYS! And I love Louis CK and how he has been a steady worker for so many years now and creates his own show. I would love to start creating projects for film and TV, and I think I'll always want to perform my comedy live. There is no greater feeling than making a room full of people laugh! For now I am starting to get into the college market and my plan is to take a grass roots approach and win them over show by show! I'm in it for life so I don't mind taking the long road. Especially since overnight success (the boy band) proved to not always be the answer.

College tours sound infinitely better than middle school tours.

Yes! Much nicer audiences, and I can swear if I want!

How old were you when you really got into music and trying out? Did your parent/s push to get into this, or was this more of your own desire to get into the industry?

I started performing when I was five, mostly as a dancer and a musical theater performer. I really did fall into this group. The music industry was never my aim, but through some random connections they found me and asked me to audition. I had never sung pop music professionally before, but they were looking for an Asian who could sing and dance and there I was! My parents never pushed me to do this. My mother was very encouraging, my dad was pretty mad about it. I am estranged from my dad largely because I am a performer and he disagrees with my choices. But the truth is, for all the successes and failures, I am made to be a performer and can't imagine (nor am capable of) doing anything else!

Did you fail because your songs were a little boastful?

I'd like to pretend that boastfulness would lead to failure, but if Justin Bieber and Chris Brown has taught us anything.... We didn't write any of our own songs, but even so I don't think any boastfulness in the lyrics lead to our downfall.

Who was your favorite costar and what are they doing with their lives now?

Well, to be honest I don't really follow what any of them are doing too closely. I know some are still working as singers and releasing their own stuff independently. A few months ago one of the boys got into the first round of The Voice (?) or one of those shows and they wanted to use an image of the group and had to get permission from all of us. I don't think the picture ended up on TV, and he didn't get past the first round.