The Backstreet Boys surprise fans with rare song at BottleRock
May 25-After more than three decades, the Backstreet Boys took the crowd at BottleRock through a time capsule, with everyone from wine moms to small children screaming and dancing along as the group closed out the three-day Napa musical festival.
Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, AJ McLean and Kevin Richardson took the main stage about 30 minutes after their scheduled 8 p.m. start time. The delay was surprising, given the group already made an appearance at the festival earlier in the day alongside actor Vanessa Hudgens at the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage, where they traded choreography for cooking demos.
Still, any frustration over the late start vanished once a dramatic intro montage flashed across the stage screens, showing each member bathed in glitter and delivering smoldering stares into the camera. The crowd, which was by far the largest of the festival, erupted, especially during Richardson's appearance on the screen, drawing some of the loudest screams of the night.
The Florida-originated group burst through clouds of smoke and flashing neon lasers, dressed in matching all-white looks, instantly transforming BottleRock into a full-blown '90s fever dream as the opening beats of their 1999 anthem "Larger than Life" hurled the crowd into peak boy-band mania.
The group rolled through a string of hits, including "It's Gotta Be You" and "As Long as You Love Me," moving through each one with their instantly recognizable, tightly synchronized choreography, sharp pivots, crisp formations and that signature polish that never misses a beat. And between songs, the group made the crowd a promise: They vowed to take us through "a time machine."
In one of their first remarks to the audience, Littrell wasted no time steering the crowd toward the group's multimillion dollar Las Vegas residency at the Sphere this summer, urging fans to show up no matter how many times they've seen them live.
"You wanna come and meet us in Las Vegas? Heard it's the greatest show on Earth, that's just what they say," Littrell said.
The singer also joked that, even decades later, it's the diehard fans who are keeping their career alive.
"It's because of each and every one of you that showed up tonight that the Backstreet Boys have a job. So thank you," he said.
The group continued to keep things loose with fan favorites such as "Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely," with impressive vocals by several members who would occasionally step forward as the rest held formation behind them.
Carter paused to reflect on the group's musical evolution over the years, including their foray into rock-leaning sounds during the "Never Gone" era, the 2005 pop-rock album that marked a more mature shift in their style. He noted that "Incomplete" from the record is a song they rarely perform live, but went ahead and gave BottleRock a special performance of it.
"We dabbled a lit bit in some rock music. This one song right here was kind of our cursed comeback," Carter said.
By the time the group hit their final stretch - "Get Down (You're the One for Me)" and "Shape of My Heart" - the entire crowd had locked in. The group then doubled down on the nostalgia and donned their white fedoras; at one point, Richardson even kicked his hat into the air like a soccer ball, drawing a frenzy from the audience.
And after a laser-drenched ride down memory lane, filled with synchronized footwork and full-throttle dance breaks, the group grinned at the crowd and teased that only a "real Backstreet Boys fan" would know what was coming next before sliding straight into "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)."
The biggest moment of the night came during the finale, which fully sealed the nostalgia overload. The group stepped offstage for a few minutes, likely to catch their breath, while a pulsing, '90s-style video game montage lit up the screens. Glitchy visuals and throwback graphics teased fragments of "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)," building the anticipation until the entire crowd was buzzing.
Then, right on cue, the Backstreet Boys stormed back out and launched into the song, sending the festival into a full-scale singalong, moms belting every lyric with carefree enthusiasm while kids with squeaky voices surprisingly kept up word for word.
As festivalgoers trudged out after the long three-day stretch, half-sung voices of "everybodyyyy" could still be heard drifting through the crowd, hummed and muttered under their breath.
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This story was originally published May 25, 2026 at 7:11 PM.