Title: Aaron Carter, the little prince of pop
Author: ED CONDRAN Courier Times
Source: http://www.phillyburbs.com/couriertimes/news/news/0821carter.htm
Date: August 21, 2002
Country: US
Topic: Article/Interview
Aaron Carter is a multi-platinum monster. The 14-year-old is the youngest male solo artist to have four Top 40 singles.
"You better watch out for my little brother, he's a 10-year-old dancin' fool."
- Backstreet Boy Nick Carter during a 1998 interview
Aaron Carter should pack the Tweeter tomorrow night. The warning rendered by Nick Carter was well warranted. The mega-pop sensation's younger sibling is all that and a pack of Pokemon cards. Aaron Carter is a multi-platinum monster. The 14-year-old is the youngest male solo artist to have four Top 40 singles.
"I'm proud of the success I have," Carter said while calling from New York. "I've worked so hard for it."
Indeed. Much of Carter's childhood was sacrificed so he could follow in the footsteps of his big brother. Carter first stepped on a stage at the tender age of 7. It was evident that he possessed plenty of charisma onstage and on disc.
"A lot of that is because I love what I'm doing," Carter said. "There is nothing else I would rather be doing. It was so cool that I've gotten nothing but a good response since I started this."
Carter's first album, an eponymous 1998 disc full of bubble gum-pop and the follow-up, 1999's well-produced "Surfin' USA" were embraced in America, Japan and Germany.
"It's been wild," Carter said. "I appreciate everything I've experienced so far. The fans have been unbelievable."
The soft-spoken, well-mannered Carter has expanded his fan base by opening for the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears. "I learned a lot from whomever I shared a stage with," Carter said. "Everything I've experienced has helped me."
Prior to the release of Carter's third album, 2000's "Aaron's Party (Come Get It)," the young pinup became ubiquitous. You couldn't turn on Nickelodeon during 2000 without catching at least glimpse of Carter's glamorous mug. A video collection was released and eaten up by adoring fans at the turn of the century. Carter hadn't even hit puberty when his biography, "Aaron Carter: The Little Prince of Pop" was written. Perhaps the tome was a bit premature? "A lot had happened in my life," Carter said. "Fans are into that stuff."
Touche. Interest in Carter's burgeoning career reached a new plateau when his latest disc, "Oh Aaron," hit the bins in August of 2001. This is the first Carter release that features the junior superstar's broken voice. That makes for a much more enjoyable listen. Carter's prior work was a little disturbing since his teeny tiny mouseketeer voice was delivering lyrics that were a bit too adult for a tyke. Fortunately, the incongruity is a thing of the past for Carter.
"I'm getting there," Carter said. "I'm practically grown up. It's cool growing up before the world."
What often isn't so cool for child superstars is that it's hard to keep success as they roll into adulthood. "I know that," Carter said. "I'm just going to work as hard as I can and see what happens. It's happened in music where kids were just as successful as grownups. I'm going to work to be one of those kids."
Carter is hoping his forthcoming album "Another Earthquake," which will see the light of day Sept. 3, is another step toward adulthood. Expect Carter to preview much of the innocuous disc, which includes the breezy track "Summertime," tomorrow at the Tweeter Center. "I'm just trying to make better and better music," Carter said. "Every album should be better than the last."
Aaron Carter appears tomorrow at the Tweeter Center, One Harbour Blvd., Camden. Tickets are $36.50. Show time is 7:30 p.m. 215-569-9400.
