RANTS PAGE 2(I didn't think I'd actually have a second rant page!) What ARE Boy Bands??? Do you see a common theme in my rants?? Of course you do! My rants are all about music, or pertain to music. And obviously, boy bands are included! I gotta tell you, I'm struggling with what boy bands are these days.....are they really 5 pretty boys who dance and sing and that's it? I think I can honestly say NO, THEY ARE NOT! If this was 2 years ago my answer would probably be different. In those days I thought of boy bands as NKOTB. But, very slowly I am finding out that boy bands these days are nothing like NKOTB! There are similarities, but I truly feel that there are big differences between them! Boy bands have evolved over time! There was NKOTB that lasted for about 4 years, and didn't do much to advance themselves in their careers, except for Jordan and Joey(and an  occasional crappy  movie from Donnie). They tried to change their image, but that was basically it. Then we had the Backstreet Boys and NSync who definintely, AT FIRST, were being controlled both musically and within their personal lives. But, over the past three years both of these groups have changed in many ways. The members of these two infamous groups have penned songs on their albums, become producers, managers, actors, etc.! They don't only sing(or lip synch) and dance on stage anymore. Now, you can tell the difference in their songs when you hear them on the radio. They have earned alot of respect in the music industry, and to some people they feel that it's the end of the world. But, I see it as critics and the rest of the record industry opening up to new things and understanding that this is what ALOT of people want to hear!. And, you can NOT sit there and say these people do not have talent! I want to see you work 18 hour work days, which include dancing for hours, singing for hours, running from here to there, and doing a concert all in the same night, and getting on 14 hour flight to a different country. It takes alot of hard work, and many people don't seem to realize that! Yes, there's alot of commercialism involved, but when you break it down, these guys are making music for everyone out there and enjoying what they're doing. It's good stuff! It may not be a guitar, bass, and drums, but it's fun pop music that the majority of the population listens to! Which brings me to my next boy band... .O-Town! Ok, these boys were put together for a TV show, we know this, THEY know this. Critics are constantly picking apart this group for that reason only! If you're going to pick on a group, look at the people individually first and find out what their contributions are to the group. All five of them have written songs, the majority of them play instruments, some more than one, and one has ALREADY produced a song. People need to understand that these five guys were not picked out of the clear blue sky, they obviously have SOME talent considering how far they've gotten in the past year. But yes, they still have a long way to go to get the credit they want. And O-Town knows this. But, they definitely deserve a good amount of credit at this point. See, boy bands aren't all that bad! I just wish people would understand that! If you don't like that kind of music, that's fine! But you can't deny the fact that each one of these people have worked their asses off to get where they are today. So...are boy bands 5 pretty boys who only dance and sing?? Nope, they're five guys who were blessed with musical talent, and just happen to be luckier than YOU! And always remember that you don't have to be cute to be in a boy band.......just look at....nevermind, I don't need a psychotic TEENYBOPPER stalking me!!!! :)