A boy band (or boyband) is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers. Usually they are in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Being vocal groups, most boy band members do not play musical instruments, either in recording sessions or on stage, making the term somewhat of a misnomer. However, exceptions do exist. Most boy bands dance as well as sing, usually giving highly choreographed performances.
Some such bands form on their own. They can evolve out of church choral or gospel music groups, but are often created by talent managers or record producers who hold auditions. Due to this and their general commercial orientation towards an audience of preteens, teenyboppers, or teens, the term may be used with negative connotations in music journalism. Boy bands are similar in concept to girl groups.
Read more about Boy Band: Key Factors of The Concept, Music Genres, Controversy, Best-selling Boy Bands
Famous quotes containing the words boy and/or band:
“The boy stood on the burning deck,
Whence all but he had fled;
The flame that lit the battle’s wreck,
Shone round him o’er the dead.
Yet beautiful and bright he stood,
As born to rule the storm;
A creature of heroic blood,
A proud though childlike form.”
—Felicia Dorothea Hemans (1783–1835)
“What passes for identity in America is a series of myths about one’s heroic ancestors. It’s astounding to me, for example, that so many people really seem to believe that the country was founded by a band of heroes who wanted to be free. That happens not to be true. What happened was that some people left Europe because they couldn’t stay there any longer and had to go someplace else to make it. They were hungry, they were poor, they were convicts.”
—James Baldwin (1924–1987)