Title: Teen singer succeeds sans MTV
Date: Wednesday, February 13, 2002
Source: Flint Journal
Source: http://www.mlive.com/music/fljournal/index.ssf?/xml/story.ssf/html_standard.xsl?/base/features/1013620802299533.xml
Author: Christina Fuoco
Topic: 2002 Article/Interview
Although teen pop singer Aaron Carter has had very little airplay on MTV, VH1 or commercial radio, he could make other musicians jealous with the amount of success he has found.
He's hoping to move into the mainstream music market with a little help from Britney Spears. Aaron was featured on an episode of MTV's "Junior Fake ID" during an afternoon of programming hosted by Spears.
"I'm definitely hoping for (more exposure on MTV)," Aaron said recently. "I've always been hoping for something like that. I've been waiting for my big break, but I've been fortunate to do good without it.
"It's very impressive to know that I've made it without all that. I made it without MTV and I've done without all of them."
Things weren't necessarily easy, however. Aaron had it rough during his "Summer Party" tour last year.
The tall 13-year-old (already 5-foot-10) trashed his knee and, in his words, humiliated himself.
"I was singing one of my new songs and I fell off the stage in San Antonio," he said with a laugh. "It was the most embarrassing moment I ever had. It was about a 7-foot drop and I landed smack on my knee on the concrete and fractured my knee."
Aaron played it tough for the rest of the tour, juggling an injury, performances and occasional sparring sessions with his sister Leslie. She joined her brother on his "Summer Party" tour to pump her single, "Like, Wow!," released on DreamWorks last year.
"She's 15 and going through that time where she's beating up everybody," Aaron said, innocently sounding like a pop psychologist. Leslie, currently without a label, is shopping her material around to various companies.
On his "Winter Party" tour, Aaron is going out sans siblings - and, he hopes, with better psychological and physical results. The boy group Dream Street (which features Emmy nominee Jesse McCartney, who formerly played Adam Chandler Jr. on the TV soap "All My Children") and singer Lindsay Pagano are joining Aaron for the jaunt, which runs through mid-March. It hits The Palace of Auburn Hills tonight.
Calling from a tour stop in Reading, Pa., Aaron reported that it was so far, so good.
"It's going great. It's been going really well. We've having a great time with it. No mess-ups yet," he said with a laugh. "We're just getting used to the show, the dancers and stuff. Our best shows are on the weekend, when we get up to 15,000."
Aaron, along with siblings Leslie, Bobbie Jean and the more well-known Nick, a member of the Backstreet Boys, are basically an entertainment franchise in their own right.
Aaron is touring in support of his latest album, "Oh Aaron" (Jive), his second release in the United States. Like the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync, he first found success in Europe. He piqued Americans' interest in 2000 with the album and song of the same name, "Aaron's Party (Come Get It)" (Jive). The follow-up "Oh Aaron" was scheduled for release in October, but Jive Records bumped it up to August to get the most visibility, according to Aaron.
"They had to [move it up] because a lot of albums were coming out in October," he said.
The album features two duets with his brother, the title track and "Not Too Young, Not Too Old." A cover of the Matthew Wilder '80s hit "Break My Stride," retitled "Stride (Jump on the Fizzy)," includes a rap from Aaron.
Aaron enjoyed recording with older brother Nick, who, he said, gives him advice on tackling problems he had when he was a young performer.
"He taught me when I'm really scared of the audience and there's a lot of people there to just pick out two or three (people) and visually get everybody else out of your sight," Aaron said.
Aaron Carter, with Dream Street and Lindsay Pagano
* Where: The Palace of Auburn Hills
* When: 7 p.m. today
* Tickets: $35.50 at the box office and Ticketmaster outlets, or charge at (248) 645-6666 or www.ticketmaster.com
* Details: (248) 377-0100
© 2002 Flint Journal
