New Kids on the Block
Formed in 1985, this pop group from Boston, Massachusetts, USA featured Joe McIntyre (b. 3 December 1972, Needham, Massachusetts, USA), Jordan Knight (b. 15 May 1970, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA), Jonathan Knight (b. 29 November 1968, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA), Daniel Wood (b. 14 May 1969, Boston, Massachusetts, USA) and Donald Wahlberg (b. 17 August 1969, Boston, Massachusetts, USA). They were discovered by producer/writer Maurice Starr, who had previously moulded the career of New Edition. It was Starr who presented his proteges with a rap song titled New Kids On The Block from which they took their name. Their self-titled album, released in 1986, fused rap and pop and brought them popularity among a predominately white teenage audience. However, it was not until 1988 that they broke through to the US charts with Please Don't Go Girl. In 1989, they became the biggest-selling group in America, enjoying sizeable hits with You Got It (The Right Stuff), I'll Be Loving You (Forever), Cover Girl and Didn't I. A reissue of You Got It (The Right Stuff) climbed to number 1 in the UK, thereby establishing the quintet as an act of international teen appeal.