News
1-20-02

HOME

12-08-01
12-17-01
1-20-02
1-31-02
2-17-02

Chris shows off his women's clothes

source: vh1

As eye-popping and bootylicious as the shapely models at the Girls Rule! fashion show may be, it's likely that some onlookers and photographers won't be staring at the runway. They'll be looking at 'NSYNC's Chris Kirkpatrick, who will be debuting his FuMan Skeeto spring and summer sportswear clothing lines at the February 11 event.

While Kirkpatrick has previously shown the garments on "TRL" and at Planet Hollywood in New York's Times Square, this marks the first time the clothing will be modeled at a major fashion event.

Girls Rule!, a show sponsored by Teen magazine, will take place at 6 p.m. at the Puck Building in SoHo, and will mark the beginning of New York Fashion Week, an event where the world's top designers flock to the Big Apple to showcase their latest lines.

Kirkpatrick will unveil his casual line of urban-inspired women's streetwear with an Asian influence at the event. He'll be on hand making sure all the clothes fit the models properly, and working with the principals of his fashion company to ensure the event runs smoothly, said deputy editor of Teen Matthew Dakotah, who's helping to coordinate.

Last year, City High opened Girls Rule! with a live performance, and in the next week, Teen will announce the music act that will play this year's event, Dakotah said.

Kirkpatrick launched FuMan Skeeto two years ago, and the line is now available in Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's and Eaton's stores, in addition to many smaller specialty stores in North America. The company's logo is a mosquito with a Fu Manchu mustache.

--Jon Wiederhorn






Justin and Britney to wed

source: ananova

Britney Spears is to wed her boyfriend Justin Timberlake.

Britney has always denied she and the *NSYNC singer are engaged.

But they do intend to get married "Some time in the future," she tells today's ITV Saturday morning music show CD:UK. She appears with Big Brother winner Brian Dowling.

Cat Deeley asked her if she intends to marry her boyfriend. "It will happen some time in the future, but not this year," Britney replied.

Britney has vowed to remain a virgin until her wedding night.

She also believes eating chocolate and sneezing are like orgasms.

Meet the teen behind the stars

source: allpop

At 19, Wade Robson has already gone skydiving with Justin Timberlake, danced in Michael Jackson videos and chatted with Britney Spears about fame, love and family, and all because he's got an ear for a catchy hook and an eye for the dance moves that propel popstars to greatness.

Wade is a choreographer, producer, and writer (to name just a few of his occupations). He's also the man who planned Britney's latest tour (called "Dream Within Dream") and penned *Nsync's hit single "Gone" with Justin.

Wade started dancing "as soon as I figured out how to use my legs" and was already working on a professional dance career by age five. When he was nine, he moved from his native Australia to the U.S.

After working in music videos for awhile (including work on three Jackson videos by the time he was seven), he decided a career as a professional dancer just wasn't for him. He then became part of a rap act and began choreographing their videos, which paved the way to his current success.

"Things really kicked off when I first started working with Britney," says Wade, who was just 16 when he first crossed paths with the pop princess.

A dancer friend landed Wade a job doing choreography for Britney's very first tour. When the singer was ready to hit the stage in 2001 to tour her "Britney" album, Wade was the one who planned and directed the spectacle.

"By this point I'd already been working with her for about two years and seen her grow and change," Wade says from his home in L.A. "I knew that was something I really wanted to bring forth in the show. [I] spent some time with her, just talked about life, fame and how she deals with it, family, friends, boyfriends. Britney and I are kind of the same in that we built our lives on a dream. We had a dream from a very young age and we made it happen, and [we] just used sleeping dreams [in the live show] as a metaphor for that."

Wade's recent work with *Nsync also evolved naturally. He and Justin decided they wanted to write together when Wade was working with *Nsync on their "No Strings Attached" tour. The result of their collaboration, "Gone", is one of the musical achievements Wade is proudest of. The fact that both "Gone" and "Pop" -- which he wrote with Justin while skydiving and driving scooters around his neighbourhood -- became huge hits, was a pleasant surprise.

"We just really clicked musically right away," Wade says. "I'd be sitting at the keyboard playing something and he'd start to say 'Go and do this', and I'd be doing it. [We were] finishing each other's sentences."

Wade was considering releasing his own album but now says those plans are on "hiatus". He's concerned that a potential hit record would bring too much fame and too little control over his own affairs. So for now, he's working on music for a new artist named Christina Vidal and talking with studio heads at Warner Bros., Dreamworks, and Universal about directing a movie.

Wade says he's got a few of his own film projects he'd eventually like to work on, including a musical he says will "bring back musicals for good". First, though, he'd like to direct films by different writers to "get experience and get the juice, 'cause my films are huge and I wanna make sure I can do 'em the way I want to do 'em.

"Just look out for a lot of good songs and for me as a director".

--STEPHANIE McGRATH

*NSYNC and Chili's Grill & Bar Announce Marketing Partnership

source: prnewswire

DALLAS -- Pop recording sensation *NSYNC has signed a marketing agreement with casual dining leader Chili's Grill & Bar to star in a series of commercials promoting the restaurant's Baby Back Ribs and "To Go" service. Chili's will also be the lead sponsor of the band's next concert tour.

The venture will mark the first time in Chili's 27-year history that the company has enlisted celebrity talent for its television or radio advertising. The agreement could also include a variety of promotional opportunities yet to be finalized. The new Chili's commercials featuring *NSYNC will begin airing the week of January 21st.

"*NSYNC is one of the hottest properties in the country and a perfect match for our brand positioning," said Randy Kies, vice president of marketing for Chili's. "To be launching an ad campaign with entertainers of their caliber is exciting enough. To launch the ads just as *NSYNC is preparing for their performance during the closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics is phenomenal."

Winners of Billboard Music, MTV, People's Choice and American Music Awards, *NSYNC was dubbed "Biggest Band in the World" by Rolling Stone Magazine in 2001 and has garnered seven Grammy nominations in their rapid rise to stardom. To date, their albums have sold more than 30 million copies worldwide and the band continues to set new tour attendance records. The group's members are Lance Bass, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone, Chris Kirkpatrick and Justin Timberlake.

"We're always looking to explore new endorsement opportunities and this is one we just couldn't pass on," said Chris Kirkpatrick. "Working with the Chili's marketing team allowed us to bring our vision of the ads to this partnership -- they're a great organization to work with."

"The Chili's team gave us creative license to take their Baby Back Ribs jingle and make it feel like our own version with our kind of sound," added Justin Timberlake. "We really worked hard to create an incredible jingle and music for the commercials and we think our fans will really enjoy them."

The Chili's Baby Back Ribs Jingle, introduced in 1995, has become one of the most recognizable advertising tunes in pop-culture. The song was parodied by Mike Myers' "Fat Bastard" character in the "Austin Powers 2" movie and has also been used on "The Jamie Fox Show" as well as the new Damon Wayans sit- com, "My Wife & Kids."

With more than 775 locations, Chili's Grill & Bar is the flagship brand of Dallas-based Brinker International (NYSE: EAT) which owns, operates or franchises approximately 1,200 restaurants throughout the United States and 21 other countries. Additional brands in the Brinker portfolio include Romano's Macaroni Grill, On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina, Cozymel's Coastal Mexican Grill, Maggiano's Little Italy, Corner Bakery Cafe, Big Bowl, Rockfish Seafood Grill, and EatZi's Market and Bakery.






Lance carries the torch

source: launch

Backstreet Boy Kevin Richardson and *NSYNC's Lance Bass were among approximately 100 celebrities and everyday heroes that carried the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic torch as it made its way through downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday (January 15).

Bass used the torch to ignite a cauldron on the back of a pickup truck. The truck carried the flame from Orange County city Costa Mesa, approximately 50 miles south of Los Angeles, to L.A.'s Olvera Street, where runners resumed the relay.

Richardson carried the flame later that day on Figueroa Street to raise awareness about his environmental foundation, Just Within Reach (justwithinreach.org). However, Richardson was not the first Backstreet Boy to hold the Olympic flame--in December, Richardson's groupmate Howie Dorough carried the torch in Orlando, Florida.

Thousands of spectators lined Los Angeles streets on Tuesday to catch a glimpse of stars such as Martin Sheen of NBC's The West Wing, Laker legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson, actress Goldie Hawn, and Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan. Rafer Johnson, who won the Olympic decathlon gold medal in 1960, handed a torch to actor Arnold Schwarzenegger at Citywalk in Universal City, Schwarzenegger lit an Olympic caldron--which contained the flame overnight.

When the relay resumed Wednesday (January 16), the Olympic torch traveled up the California coast and passed through Pasadena and South Pasadena en route to Salt Lake City. Among the torchbearers yesterday were actor Chris O'Donnell and Erin Brockovich.

Los Angeles hosted the Summer Games in 1932 and 1984. This year's torch relay started in Atlanta in December, and it will end up covering more than 13,500 miles after traveling through 46 states to the XIX Winter Games, which are set to begin on February 8.

-- Jason Gelman, New York






More on *NSYNC in 'Star Wars'

source: Zap2it.com

HOLLYWOOD -- After reports that boy band 'N Sync would appear in "Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones" followed by ones that they were out due to the fans' near violent reaction, the teen idols set the record straight to Zap2it.com at the People's Choice Awards.

"You're going to hate this answer," warns Chris Kirkpatrick, the one with the highest pitch voice and dreadlocks. "Ready? Yes and no. To be more specific, maybe."

Kirkpatrick isn't being coy. He and the boys simply don't know the answer themselves.

"We were up there editing our concert movie ('Pop Odyssey Live'), and they were doing some reshoots," Kirkpatrick recalls. "And literally, just a few of us were there. I guess George's daughter is a big fan and she had mentioned it during the re-shoot. And so we got to sneak in a few scenes, but we're not even sure if they're going to make the film. We don't even know what it's going to turn out to be, because we shot just a bunch of different stuff."

'N Sync is well aware of the uproar among "Star Wars" fans at the mere thought of the beloved franchise being sullied by their teeny-bopper presence. They're almost as reviled as Jar Jar Binks.

"We're big 'Star Wars' fans," Kirkpatrick explains, "and we have nothing against every other 'Star Wars' fan out there. And I think it's important for people to know that we're trying to"

"Don't worry about it, we're not Obi-Wan Kenobi," interrupts J.C. Chasez, the one who shares lead vocals with "the cute one" Justin Timberlake, who along with "the fat one" Joey Fatone is not in attendance to accept the award for Favorite Musical Group or Band. Lance Bass, who toplined the box office dud "On the Line" last year with Fatone, is present, but doesn't say much.

"You know, we were little kids with the light sabers running around, and it was real flattering to even just be at the ranch and hanging out," Kirkpatrick continues, "and I'm sure that if anybody who is as big a 'Star Wars' fan as us if not bigger would have gotten the same opportunity, they would have taken it."

J.C. offers this bit of conciliation to the fans: "You know they're going to make it CIG, or whatever they do CGI put it over our heads and we'll be aliens."






Lance responds to 'On the Line's inclusion on Ebert and Roeper's 'Worst of 2001' list

source: Zap2it.com

HOLLYWOOD -- *NSYNC's Lance Bass' transition from boy band singer to movie star in "On the Line" was met with both box office failure and critical drubbing. The nation's most high profile movie reviewers, Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper, even hated the movie enough to name it one of "Worst of 2001."

When confronted with "On the Line's" inclusion on the list at the People's Choice Awards, where *N Sync was accepting the award for Favorite Musical Band or Group, Bass was blissfully unaware of Ebert and Roeper's dis.

"I didn't know that," the teen idol responds.

"On the Line" fell under Ebert and Roeper's "Don't Quit Your Day Job" category, described as "films featuring some familiar faces who tried to make the leap to movie stardom and landed face-down with a horrible splat."

"We usually go from what they say to opposite of what they say," Bass counters with his personal movie-going habits. "So I'm kind of flattered."

Chris Kirkpatrick, the *N Sync member with the highest pitch voice and dreadlocks, chimes in to support Bass. "That can only help DVD sales, now can't it?" he posits, referring to the extra publicity Ebert and Roeper have given the movie.

Despite "On the Line's" scant $4.4 million total gross, don't count Bass out yet. "I plan to do more movies, and I love it," he declares.

Those future projects won't include the rumored *N Sync band movie, according to Kirkpatrick. "I can't act," he explains self-deprecatingly as the reason. "I'm just stupid."