PART THREE
It’s me again, the old woman Julia…LOL Part two was a little jam packed, but there is still more. Things slow down in part three of the series for me and for the boys…maybe it was just a way of letting me rest up for what was to come several years later.
2006-2009
Well 2005 was an awesome year. I got to see these guys four times and met them twice. I seriously had the bug and was anticipating the next album and new tour…then June 2006 Kevin announced he was leaving the group to pursue other things. Everyone was freaking out even though the other guys said they are not replacing him and they would continue without him. During this time it seemed the Original Nick Chicks all got busy with real life again. Most of the girls were either in college or finishing and starting their new careers and as things with the Yahoo Groups we kind of lost touch. They forum was changed also after Never Gone, it was not called Weird World and was just placed in the backstreetboys.com site. I think some of us tried it but it just wasn’t the same.
Finally in 2007 late, the remaining four guys released Unbreakable. It was great having new music from them. At that time in my life I had one kid in high school and one in middle school. They both played sports and I was going constantly. I got the album and loved it. I heard there was a tour and thought about going but there was a lot of stuff going on in the family so I chose not to attend. Of course I did feel a little guilty.
Then when they released This is Us in 2009 I knew I had to see them again no matter what. When tickets went on sale I bought a single ticket I didn’t care if I had to go by myself. Come to find out one of my friend Marlena as going, so I knew I would get to see her. I didn’t do the Sound Check Party for this show, it was still kind of foreign to have to pay, but I was there early enough I actually heard the sound check and saw it from afar. My friend was helping with the Wylee stuff pre concert and I helped her so I had early admission.
After I got to my seat, which was actually a table with three other girls we sat and waited on the show to start. I was sitting there and because I followed Andrew Fromm (writer of “I Need You Tonight”) on Twitter I knew he was going to be there. I saw him come down and started down our aisle. I stopped him to say hi and he took a picture with us.
The show was great…it was so great to see them live again. Nick was looking might hot that night and that wasn’t because it was humid as hell. I was close to the side of the stage so I got some decent pictures but the lighting is still an issue. This show renewed my love for these guys that had kind of wavered a little. 
2010-2012
To be honest, the beginning of my most recent craziness was probably in 2010 when the announcement was made that New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys were going on tour together. I was unsure and excited at the same time. How would this work who would open for who, yada yada? I had loved Backstreet Boys since 1997 and while I never disliked New Kids on the Block I never was in that fandom. They broke about the time I was graduating high school and I was more into Duran Duran at the time.
The initial announcement was not without the jokes about the stage that is now referred to as the “penis stage” but the more this was talked about the more excited I became. So when Atlanta was on the tour schedule I was so happy. I made plans to get my tickets. I had to be at this show. When I did get my tickets they were on the “shaft” part of the penis stage, I was so excited and June 22, 2011 could not come soon enough.
During the lead up to the concert Facebook and Twitter was all the buzz. I continued my connection with some of my older Yahoo list peeps and also found new friends. It was a few days before the show, Karah, one of the girls I met through another on Twitter, asked if I was going to the Atlanta show. She and a friend were coming up from Valdosta for the show. We said maybe we will see each other, she indicated she would be carrying a Jonas Brothers bag. I told her I would look for her.
The day before the show I started thinking, there were still Backstreet Boys VIP packages available. I was on the fence about paying for a meet and greet, but I was taking my niece and I folded without telling her that morning before the show. I bough us Silver VIP for both of us. This would give us a sound check and a meet and greet picture with the guys. I didn’t care that we would probably have to share the pic with some other strangers.
On our way down to the show I sprung the news on her and I though she was going to die. This was her second concert and she was meeting them. Remember the first concert was front row. LOL
We get to Atlanta and park in a lot close to Philips Arena. As I was paying the machine, what do I see a Jonas Brothers bag. I thought could this be Karah, I mean how many Jonas Brother bags would be at a NKOTBSB show. I called out her name and low and behold it was her. How cool to meet someone else from the internet in person? We all walk in together. She and her friend didn’t have the VIP so we said maybe we can meet up after we are done in the food court. My niece and I go to wait in line for VIP. Luckily we got inside before the rain started pouring down.
The sound check was fun, and then came time for the meet and greet. The only sad part about this was the stupid barrier that they stood behind and you got the orders no hugs just shake hands and such. But I was glad just to be there and Nick did kind of lean in. It was quick but it was an up close look again at the pretty blonde one. Now back to meet up with Karah and her friend Kara.
We grabbed something to drink and waited for the doors to open. We also observed many of the usually trashy dressed people at the show and made comments about them. At the time of this meeting with Karah little did we know what the next few years would have in store. It was great having a BFF close that I could do these fun things with.
Then it was show time and OMG what a show it was. I loved seeing the two groups together and individually. I was on the back row of the section I was in but little did I know how cool that would be. During the NK set and they start singing Tonight, they come out into the crowd and who just happened to be right behind me. DONNIE WAHLBERG holy smokes! Here he is coming back down towards me. I got a hand slap and I may have freaked a little.
Nick of course was his usual crazy hot self and who knew at that time what this picture of him and Jordan could potentially lead to.
The show ended and I was now a true convert to New Kids on the Block. I could not deny it any more. I was just sad I knew I couldn’t go to another show and this would be one to see again.
After the show I continued chatting with Karah and others about the show. She was seeing it again in Orlando and I as extremely jealous. I followed her adventures on twitter in her journey and witnessed first hand Jonathan and Jordan Knight trying to run into a watermelon truck. That truly was too funny.
During my conversations with Karah I saw she was communicating with a girl from England. Then not sure how it came up but she ask me if I was Mama Ju from Weird World. I about died, it was one of the Original Nick Chicks. We had all kinda lost touch over the years but it was so great to re-connect. I asked if she knew of others out on twitter or facebook. We eventually found several people over the next few months. We have even created a Facebook page to reconnect with each other.
I also made plenty of new friends because of this NKOTBSB show. I started conversing with Angie. She was from Memphis, TN. We realized we had a lot in common and not just boy bands. She is a little younger than me but we seem to be cut from the same cloth. It is so scary that we began to be able to finish each others sentences, had the same sarcastic attitudes. We quickly became BFFs. It was just so bad that we lived so far from each other.
After all the NKOTBSB fun for the year, Karah had decided to take a job in Athens. This is like 45 minutes from me. After she got up here and settled we found out we had more in common than boy bands. We also like country music. She was able to get tickets to see Luke Bryan’s farm tour in October and asked me if I wanted to go. I am always game for a show so we went. It was awesome. They filmed it for a GAC special and Karah and I found ourselves on the footage multiple times when it aired. This was the beginning of many of these. We were filmed again during the Jason Aldean concert in 2013 also.
During the winter of 2012, Jordan Knight from NKOTB put out a solo album and I was all on that. It featured a single with Donnie Wahlberg. He announced a tour and he was coming to Atlanta. I decided to go, even though I knew I would be going alone. I was good with that. I loved his solo CD so I knew it would be a good show. He offered a VIP meet and greet thing and I decided at the last minute to do that. I was excited to meet a New Kid. He was very sweet and the show was awesome.
The summer of 2012 found NKOTBSB touring Europe and it was Lisa’s turn to see them so we lived vicariously through her adventures. Luckily for all fans they filmed the concert the O2 arena in London. We all planned to watch it in our own homes here in the US. During the show, AJ made the announcement he was going to be a dad and then a rumored announcement that many had heard, they announced that Kevin was coming back to the group and they would be going into the studio in a few weeks. This made my heart truly happy that it was confirmed, but now I was going to be torn between Nick and Kevin. Could I share my feelings again? The answer is yes or I hoped.
End Part 3 🙂