Nick Lachey’s ‘Super Shady’ Confession Exposes the Dark Side of the ’90s Boy Band Era
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Nick Lachey is revealing the dark side of his 98 Degrees boy–band fame, and it’s not a great look for anyone involved.
The two-part documentary, Boy Band Confidential, airing on April 13 on Investigation Discovery (ID) channel at 9 p.m. ET, reminisces about an era of bubblegum pop, chaotic fashions, and iconic choreography, but there was still an underbelly of murkiness when it came to dating.
Lachey was in his early 20s when he went on his first tour with 98 Degrees, and it’s natural to want to date — but the record label wanted to make sure it was all above board.
“This is going to sound super shady, but … I remember our first tour, someone at the label gave us a book, and it was the age of consent in every state in the country,” Lachey revealed in the documentary, per The Guardian. “And like, we kept that book on the tour bus.”
It’s not surprising to hear that members of any band might hook up with a fan, but the age of consent varies from state to state — and sometimes it’s as young as 16. As any famous musician will tell you, the “groupie” narrative comes with the territory, but it doesn’t excuse the inappropriate, and often illegal, events that have occurred over the decades.
Rolling Stone was the first publication to coin the phrase “groupie” in 1969. They wrote in the tagline, “If we tell you what a groupie is, will you really understand?” Kate Hudson earned an Academy Award nomination in 2001 for her portrayal as Penny Lane in Almost Famous — a heartbreaking, yet glamorous, role that showed the highs and the lows of traveling with a band.
In the era of #MeToo, though, it was clear many men had abused underage girls.
“We’re now often looking back on groupie culture,” Muses podcast hosts Chanty and Lynx told Cosmopolitan in July 2022. ‘We can re-examine some parts. We’re not looking back with starry eyes – some things weren’t okay, the age differences, aspects of consent. The important thing is that now, we’re having these conversations. And, hopefully, [rock stars and celebrities] are now much more aware of how important it is that these relationships take place between consenting adults.”
Lachey’s admission about the 98 Degrees tour bus rules also has us side-eyeing his relationship with Jessica Simpson again. They began dating when she was 18, and he was 24. During their on-again, off-again courtship, Simpson admitted in her 2020 memoir, Open Book, that their age difference was an issue.
Simpson wrote, “My childishness, which seemed so cute and sweet when I was first with him, seems to annoy him. Now, everything I said seems to annoy him.”
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Before you go, click here to see famous men who routinely date women half their age.