O-Town (also known as OTWN or OTOWN) is an American

boy band A boy band is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform Love song, love songs marketed towards girls and young ...

formed from the first season of the

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

series ''

Making the Band ''Making the Band'' is an ABC/MTV reality television series that exists in separate iterations, each focusing on a specific music act. It spawned musical acts O-Town, Da Band, Danity Kane, Day26, and Donnie Klang. Except for the first iteration o ...

'' in 2000. As of 2015, the group consists of Erik-Michael Estrada, Trevor Penick, Jacob Underwood, and Dan Miller. The original line up included Ashley Parker Angel. Ikaika Kahoano was originally part of the band but was replaced by Miller after dropping out of the group. After releasing two albums near the end of the boy band fad of the late 1990s and early 2000s, the group disbanded in 2003. The group was originally managed by

Lou Pearlman Louis Jay Pearlman (June 19, 1954 – August 19, 2016) was an American record producer. He was the person behind many successful 1990s boy bands, having formed and funded the Backstreet Boys. After their massive success, he then developed NSYNC. ...

during their first season of ''Making the Band'', but later managed by Mike Cronin and Mike Morin for their debut album and remaining television seasons.

History

Formation and debut album (2000–2001)

O-Town was assembled in 2000 for the first season of the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

reality television series ''

''; the group was named after

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

, the city where auditions were held. In the selection process,

and a panel of judges selected

Ashley Parker Angel Ashley Parker Angel is an American musician and actor who rose to prominence as a member of the boyband O-Town. After the band dissolved he had a brief solo music career, and was the only former band member who declined to go on a reunion tour w ...

Erik Michael Estrada O-Town (also known as OTWN or OTOWN) is an American boy band formed from the first season of the reality television series ''Making the Band'' in 2000. As of 2015, the group consists of Erik-Michael Estrada, Trevor Penick, Jacob Underwood, and ...

, Trevor Penick, Jacob Underwood, and Ikaika Kahoano. However, Kahoano left for personal reasons and was replaced by Dan Miller. After season one, former

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

executive

Clive Davis Clive Jay Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer, A&R executive, record executive, and lawyer. He has won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer, in 2000. From 1967 to 1 ...

signed O-Town to his new label

J Records J Records was an American record label owned and operated by Bertelsmann Music Group until it was transferred to Sony Music Entertainment when they acquired all of BMG’s record labels in late 2008. It was distributed through the RCA Music Gro ...

. Their first release, the self-titled ''

O-Town O-Town (also known as OTWN or OTOWN) is an American boy band formed from the first season of the reality television series ''Making the Band'' in 2000. As of 2015, the group consists of Erik-Michael Estrada, Trevor Penick, Jacob Underwood, and ...

'', boosted by the publicity of the weekly television series, debuted at no. 5 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart and sold more than three million copies worldwide. Their first single, "Liquid Dreams", peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In the late spring of 2001, O-Town released " All or Nothing", and the song became their biggest hit of their career as a group. "All or Nothing", reaching no. 3 on the Hot 100. In 2001, the group was the opening act for

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

Dream Within a Dream Tour The Dream Within a Dream Tour was the fourth concert tour by American entertainer Britney Spears. It was launched in support of her third studio album, '' Britney'' (2001). The tour was promoted by Concerts West, marking the first time Spears di ...

in the U.S.

''O2'' and split (2002–2003)

O-Town's second album ''O2'' was released in November 2002 by J Records. It included a newer single, "We Fit Together". The album was observed to have a different sound from O-Town's debut album, with a mix of "soulful ballads and songs with more of a rock ‘n’ roll approach," according to ''Contemporary Musicians''.

MTV News MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...

reported that O-Town hoped that the album would show the group to be more than " 'NSYNC wannabes." However, with teen pop trending down in listener interest in 2002, ''O2'' did not sell as well as the first O-Town album. As a result, in 2003, J Records released O-Town from their contract, and the group disbanded.

Solo careers (2003–2013)

The members of O-Town moved on to solo careers. The most successful member was Ashley Parker Angel, who was signed to

Universal Universal is the adjective for universe. Universal may also refer to: Companies * NBCUniversal, a media and entertainment company ** Universal Animation Studios, an American Animation studio, and a subsidiary of NBCUniversal ** Universal TV, a ...

Blackground Records Blackground Records 2.0 (legal name Blackground Records, LLC, formerly known as Blackground Records) is an American record label founded and owned by Jomo and Barry Hankerson. Initially named Blackground Enterprises, the label switched its name t ...

, and also given his own reality show on MTV, '' There and Back''. Angel released a solo album, '' Soundtrack to Your Life'', in 2006. In 2007, he began playing the role of Link Larkin in the

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production of ''

Hairspray Hairspray may refer to: * Hair spray, a personal grooming product that keeps hair protected from humidity and wind * ''Hairspray'' (1988 film), a film by John Waters ** ''Hairspray'' (1988 soundtrack), the film's soundtrack album ** ''Hairspray ...

''. Trevor Penick signed to Mach 1 Music and performed as Tre Scott. Erik Michael Estrada stayed in the music business as a songwriter. Jacob Underwood went on to start his own country band, Jacob's Loc. In 2013, Angel declined to join an O-Town reunion: "It was a difficult decision, but ultimately necessary to move on with the next chapter of my career."

''Lines & Circles'' and single ''Empty Space'' (2013–present)

On May 28, 2014, O-Town released a preview of the single "Skydive" on SoundCloud. The single is from their third studio album ''Lines & Circles''. The album was released on August 24, 2014. In 2017, they premiered a new single "Empty Space" in addition to announcing a new EP. They also announced a new 2017 tour featuring

Ryan Cabrera Ryan Frank Cabrera ( ) (born July 18, 1982) is an American musician. He began his career as a lead singer for the Dallas band Rubix Groove before pursuing his solo career. Following the 2001 release of independent album '' Elm St.'', he released ...

on select dates, as well as some spots on the ''I Love the 90s'' nationwide tour. Their ''Part 1'' EP was released on August 4, 2017. In June 2019, O-Town planned on filing a trademark for their band name, which

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

believed was too similar to the

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmant ...

label. On August 2, 2019, they released ''The O.T.W.N. Album''.

Members

;Current * Erik-Michael Estrada (2000–2003, 2013–present) * Dan Miller (2000–2003, 2013-present) * Jacob Underwood (2000–2003, 2013-present) * Trevor Penick (2000–2003, 2013–present) ;Former *

(2000–2003) *

Ikaika Kahoano LMNT (pronounced "element") was an American boy band that was active from 2000 to 2003. The group's name was selected by the band's original line-up from contest entries solicited by ''Teen People'' magazine. It at first consisted of three singer ...

(2000)

Discography

;Studio albums * ''

'' (2001) * '' O2'' (2002) * '' Lines & Circles'' (2014) * ''The O.T.W.N. Album'' (2019)

Awards and nominations

Tours

Opening act

–

(2001) * Pop2000Tour hosted by

Lance Bass James Lance Bass (; born May 4, 1979) is an American singer, dancer, actor, film, and television producer. He grew up in Mississippi and rose to fame as the bass singer for the American pop boy band NSYNC. NSYNC's success led Bass to work in film ...

. (active) *Viral campaign surfaced which suggested O-Town as the headliner for the Upstate NY annual festival at the Afton Fairgrounds. Rumor turned out to be false, disappointing many local fans (2000).

References

External links

O-Town Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Otown American boy bands Lou Pearlman Musical groups disestablished in 2003 Musical groups established in 2000 Musical groups from Orlando, Florida Musical groups reestablished in 2013 Teen pop groups Participants in American reality television series Sony BMG artists Vocal quintets