It’s been about a week since the Backstreet Boys performed the final show on the DNA Tour, which ran for 4 years and 200+ shows all over the world. It was an era of Backstreet that will surely go down in history, if not for its length, but for the fact that it was interrupted by a global pandemic, postponed a few times, saw the release of a long awaited Christmas album in the midst of it all, and saw the return of the Boys to arenas.
While Kevin, Howie, Brian, AJ and Nick have since packed themselves away like Christmas decorations after a festive holiday season, presumably enjoying a little rest and relaxation before they head back to work on something new, we thought we’d relive some of the DNA magic we’ll miss most.
1. The Opening
Sure, there’s always something special about the opening of a concert, but this one was unforgettable. The slow motion individual intros coupled with music that sounded reminiscent of “Gangsta’s Paradise” set the vibe for the whole show. For us, the most notable part of the opening is that, in a show filled with greatest hits and music that everyone will likely know, the Boys opened the show with two arguable deep cuts with “Everyone” and “I Wanna Be With You”. These songs weren’t singles and one of them wasn’t even released on an album that was released in all countries. It felt like a wink to the fans that have been there through it all and something about it felt like a wink and a special moment for us.
2. “Don’t Wanna Lose You Now” and “Breathe”
Don’t get us wrong – we loved the production of the DNA Tour (we’ll get to that later) and the Boys’ crisp choreography, but the moment of the show where they performed the long awaited return of “Don’t Wanna Lose You Now” and return to their acapella roots with “Breathe” are nothing short of MAGIC. We can only hope that these two songs stay on the setlist in some form or fashion in performances to come.
3. The DNA Circle
If you know, you know. We wrote about our feelings on the DNA Circle here and we stand by it.
4. The Production
The way the setlist is broken up to present cinematic visuals playing behind the Boys as they perform was really a chef’s kiss and actually cooler to take in, the further away you were sitting. This piece of the tour was largely in part to the involvement of Rich + Tone, the creative directors and choreographers, who were involved in the DNA era from start to finish. You can watch more about the making of the tour here.
5. The Behind The Scenes Posts
The Boys themselves have admitted that this tour has brought them closer than they’ve been in a long time and if you’ve been following along on their socials, you know that most of that time has been spent on the golf course. More recently, we’ve seen them gathered for meals in different countries and visiting landmarks like the Egyptian pyramids (if you missed it, check out Nick’s Instagram reels that document the venture). We’re definitely going to miss seeing it all!
6. The Fun of It All
From the giant heart Nick and Brian formed at the end of every “Shape of My Heart” performance to AJ and Kevin “changing” onstage to Howie yelling for everyone to “put their fingers in the air”, the DNA tour gave us memories we’ll tuck away in the BSB scrapbooks of our minds. It also ran through a time when all of us needed it for one reason or another and it gave us a place to converge with friends once again after unprecedented times kept us apart. We’re forever grateful that Backstreet is, indeed, in our DNA.
What Happens On The Backstreet 