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Nickolas Gene Carter (born January 28, 1980) is an American singer and actor. He is best known as a member of the pop group the Backstreet Boys. As of 2015, Carter has released three solo albums, Now or Never, I'm Taking Off and All American during breaks between Backstreet Boys schedules, and a collaboration with Jordan Knight titled Nick & Knight. He has made occasional television appearances and starred in his own reality shows, House of Carters and I (Heart) Nick Carter. He gained fame in the mid-1990s and early 2000s as a teen idol. He is also the older brother of the late singer Aaron Carter and the late singer Leslie Carter.
Early life[]
Carter was born in Jamestown, New York, where his parents, Jane Eleonora Schneck (née Spaulding, previously Carter) and Robert Carter (1952-2017), owned a bar called the Yankee Rebel. He has Welsh, Irish, German, and English ancestry, but according to a DNA test, Carter is predominantly (sixty-two percent) North and West European, eleven percent Scandinavian, and nine percent Italian, with his remaining genetic makeup being Middle Eastern, Iberian, and Balkan. Several years later, when Nick was 4, the family moved to Ruskin, Florida, by Tampa, and managed the Garden Villa Retirement Home, where they added to the family. Carter's siblings are Bobbie Jean (1982-2023), Leslie (1986-2012), and twins Aaron (1987-2022) and Angel (born 1987). Although he's the oldest of 5, his father had a daughter named Ginger Lee Carter (born January 16, 1972-May 29, 2023) from a previous marriage. When his parents divorced in 2003, his father remarried Ginger R. Elrod (born December 5, 1974) in 2004 and had a son named Kaden Brent Carter in June 2005. He states in J-14 that having siblings, "I guess you could say it was a happy change, because now I have lots of siblings. My dad, who's an only child, got all the attention [from his parents when he was a kid], but he had to make friends. I could make friends, but I always knew I had someone to play with and hang out with."
Career[]
Early years[]
Growing up, Carter began his acting and singing career at a young age when his mother heard him outside and enrolled him in voice lessons with a voice teacher named Marianne Prinkey. She later got him dance lessons in ballet, tap, and hip hop at Karl and DiMarco's School of Theatre and Dance when he was 10. He also did several commercials, such as the Florida State Lottery and The Money Store, talent shows, and the Florida State Fair. He auditioned for several acting roles in the late 1980s and early 1990s and performed around Tampa Bay, FL. As a kid, he described himself as the weird kid whose friends were older people and was consistently picked on a lot until fourth grade, after his family moved to Apollo Beach, Florida. His first role was the lead in the fourth-grade production of Phantom of the Opera as Raul at Miles Elementary School. His performance was so energetic that he received a standing ovation, with people crying in the audience about how wonderful the boy's voice projected. He also did an educational video called "Reach For the Book," a show called "The Klub," and performed at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers home games for two years. He also appeared in the 1990 Johnny Depp film Edward Scissorhands as a child playing on a Slip 'N Slide. He stated, "It would be going too far to say I was actually in Edward Scissorhands because I was so far in the background that you can't tell it's me. It would be better to say I was on the set of the film... I was in the scene when Edward looks out of a window to the neighborhood. For a split second, he sees some kids playing - one of them was me. I was sliding on a yellow piece of plastic we used to call a Slip n' Slide. They were long flat sheets with water coming out of holes and were popular with kids at the time. I had to slide on one in the background of a shot. It was great fun being on the set but it was really cold and they made us do it a lot of times”.
One of his dance teachers, Sandy, placed him in his first group, "Nick and the Angels." Between 1989 and 1993, Carter covered various popular songs by other artists, including "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do" and "Uptown Girl," and a few original songs he would perform at events. These recordings ended up on an unofficial release called Before the Backstreet Boys 1989–1993 by Dynamic Discs, Inc., released in October 2002. It is revealed that through several auditions, Nick met AJ McLean and Howie Dorough, and they became friends.
He and his siblings grew up in an unconventional, dysfunctional family. He had a rough childhood due to his parents constantly fighting and screaming violently at each other. according to his material cousin john spauling, all 5 siblings were the victims of bad parenting, of poor choices, of neglect.His friends growing up were either dead, drug addicts, or in prison, and eventually, performing was Carter's most giant escape from his problems. At age 12, he put in a winning performance on the 1992 New Original Amateur Hour.
Backstreet Boys[]
- Main article: Backstreet Boys
At 12, Carter auditioned for Disney's The Mickey Mouse Club and the Backstreet Boys. He was asked to join the group and was given the choice of either joining The Mickey Mouse Club with a $50,000 contract or this new music group by his mother, Jane, who wanted him to join The Mickey Mouse Club to stay in school. Little did she know that her son, like two of his bandmates, was bullied and disliked at Orange and Young junior high schools for having time off class for auditions and acting assignments, as Nick's first aspiration was to become an actor. As a small preteen, he was beaten up by guys and outcasted by pretty girls. He was so scared, hurt, and confused by his jealous classmates (guys and girls) that he left to be homeschooled. A week later, he was asked to join the group and was given the choice of either joining The Mickey Mouse Club with a $50,000 contract or this new music group. Nick chose to go with the group instead, as The Mickey Mouse Club was canceled a few years later. After he joined the group, he had his own personal tutor on tour. In 2013 or 2014, Nick has recently received his GED, as shown on I Heart Nick Carter.
At only 13 years old, Carter, AJ McLean, Brian Littrell, Howie Dorough, and Kevin Richardson formed the pop group Backstreet Boys on April 20, 1993. Nick is the youngest member, the cute one, and the heartthrob. He was the popular one amongst fans. Despite now being 43 years old, he’s still called the baby of the group. The group has recorded several albums, beginning in the mid-1990s, the latest being 2019's DNA. In March 2016, the group announced they would begin an exclusive headlining residency at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas called Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life. By 2022, their first holiday album, A Very Backstreet Christmas, was released.
Solo career[]
In 2002, when the Backstreet Boys expressed a strong desire to leave their management company, The Firm, Carter was the first member of the group to choose to remain with them to manage his solo career and work on a solo album. Around then, Carter started writing songs and recording during his downtime when Jive asked him to do a solo album. As the group began recording their new album without him, he started working on his first solo album. In September 2002, Carter released the first single from his solo album, "Help Me," which did well on radio countdowns, landing at #1 on various stations, including New York City's Z100, and achieved considerable worldwide success while the other single, "I Got You" was a minor hit in Europe. On October 29, 2002, his first solo album Now Or Never was released and sold over 500,000 copies in the first week. It reached No. 17 on the Billboard 200 charts and was certified gold in the United States and Canada. The album made the charts in many countries as well. He also launched a worldwide tour in support of the album. He was No. 9 of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" in 2000 and was voted by readers of the teen magazine Cosmogirl's "Sexiest Man in the World" in their October 2002 issue, beating out such competition as actor Brad Pitt and rival pop star Justin Timberlake for the title, launching a media-hyped "rivalry" between Timberlake and Carter, culminating in a friendly 2009 meeting off-camera on the set of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon where Carter defeated Timberlake in an arm-wrestling match. He was also featured on the cover of the magazine.
Carter went on tour in early 2003, where he performed at smaller venues like clubs, much smaller venues than what he had been used to with Backstreet Boys. That same year, Carter started working on his second solo album, which was put on hold when the Backstreet Boys returned to the studio to record a new album in 2004. One of the tracks from the earlier recording sessions was used as the theme song to the television series House of Carters in 2006. "Let It Go" was written by Carter, Matthew Gerrard, and Bridget Louise Benenate. It would be eight years before Carter finally focused on another solo album. Carter started to work on the album in 2008, but most of the recording of his second solo album, "I'm Taking Off," took place during any downtime he had in between Backstreet Boys touring in 2010. "I'm Taking Off" was first released in Japan on February 2, 2011, and later released in the U.S. on May 24, 2011, on iTunes only. The album was later released in other countries on different dates. It was Carter's first solo album without the help of a major label. He co-wrote every song released except a bonus track in Japan. In Germany, the album was released by Glor, Canada 305 Records, and in Japan, AMEX.
Carter recorded a duet with pop singer Jennifer Paige called "Beautiful Lie" in 2009. In 2010, Nick Carter started recording new songs for his second solo album, working with Rami Yacoub, Carl Falk, Toby Gad, Josh Hoge, and Claude Kelly, among many others. Carter's new album titled I'm Taking Off was released on February 2, 2011, in Japan, in Germany on June 3, 2011, and in the USA via iTunes on May 24. In June 2011, Nick's second solo album reached No. 8 in Japan, selling over 20,000 copies.
In January 2014, Carter recorded a duet album with Jordan Knight from the fellow boy band New Kids on the Block. They both worked on a duet album called their collaboration Nick & Knight, which debuted at #24 on the US Billboard 200 and #14 in Canada. The tour to support the album ran through September–November 2014. They announced their album and tour on April 30th on Good Morning America. The self-titled album was released on September 2, 2014. Fans were able to get a taste of the album when they pre-ordered it by receiving a download of the song “Just the Two of Us.” The first single “One More Time” was released on July 15, 2014. The album features a few tracks written by Nick and Jordan.
In 2015, Carter announced he would be working on a third solo album for release later that year. The album was called “All American” and was released digitally on November 25 via iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play. The CD release was delayed until February 2016 and released in Japan that same month. He worked with Dan Muckala, Natasha Bedingfield, and others for most of the album. This album would see Nick returning to a pop/rock sound like Now or Never. Some tracks on the album also sound like the ’50s and ’60s. The first single from his new album, entitled "I Will Wait," was released on Vevo on October 1st, 2015, and is an acoustic ballad. The new CD, All American, was released on November 25, 2015. In support of the album, Carter toured in February and March 2016. Canadian pop/rock singer Avril Lavigne is also featured on Carter's album. She sings with him in the song "Get Over Me."
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Carter announced that he would be releasing new solo projects.
Two months after Aaron's death, Carter honored his little brother with a new single, "Hurts to Love You," and the music video featured images of Aaron via photos and home movies. Some of the lyrics to the track include, "It hurts to love you but I love you still/ Miss you with all my heart, you know I always will." On August 18, Carter released a new single, Superman, dedicating it to his family after everything they had been through with Aaron's death and how his sister Angel is getting involved with On Our Sleeves. This foundation works to help children facing mental and emotional health struggles. In conjunction with On Our Sleeves, Nick held an event honoring Aaron at a benefit concert in January.
So far, in 2 years, Carter has released two new singles, Made for Us, dedicated to the fans, and Never Broke My Heart (Never Again).on June 7, carter shared the title of his new solo album called Who i am.
Emmy win[]
In August 2023, Carter offered his vocal talent for the rendition of Happy Xmas, a song that featured Cure 4 The Kids Foundation patients, celebrities, and well-known recording artists such as Kyle Khou. This was part of the Christmas 4 The Kids digital album, released in November or December 2023 for the holiday season. All proceeds from sales and streaming of the 22 songs continue to benefit the foundation. Surprisingly, the song Happy Xmas (Cancer's Over) earned Carter and Mitch Koulouris their first-ever Pacific Southwest Emmy Award win in June 2024. The song was recognized with the 2024 Emmy Award for "Outstanding Musical Composition & Arrangement" by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences’ Pacific Southwest Chapter, a moment of immense pride and excitement for both artists and their supporters.
Acting career[]
Carter also acted on various TV shows, including the NBC show American Dreams in 2002 and ABC’s 8 Simple Rules in 2003. In October 2004, he starred as a High School football player, Brody, in the ABC Family Halloween special, The Hollow, opposite Kevin Zegers. The film premiered on ABC Family during their 13 Nights of Halloween in October 2004. The film was edited for TV and younger audiences. It was initially a rated R film. The rated-R movie was later released on DVD. But it would be a few years before Nick did any acting again as the Backstreet Boys worked on their return to music in 2004.
In 2006, Carter and his siblings starred in their reality television show, House of Carters, which premiered on October 2, 2006, on E!. The series features all five Carter siblings reuniting to live in the same house together in Los Angeles, CA, to try to reconnect as a family and get their lives together, as well as in-depth moments of their ups and downs. Their father, Robert Carter, and stepmother, Ginger, appeared on the show. The series only lasted one season, and eight episodes were aired.
In 2007, Carter filmed the independent movie Kill Speed with Brandon Quinn, Andrew Keegan, Natalia Cigliuti, Greg Grunberg, and Reno Wilson, where he played Foreman. The film was initially scheduled for release in 2008, but due to issues with the release (some say with distribution), it would take years before it was eventually released on DVD. In the US, its release was on June 12, 2012. While in the UK, its release was in 2010, along with some other countries. On May 8, 2012, he made a guest appearance on CW’s 90210 and played himself. He’s currently trying to do more acting. Carter made his motion picture debut in 2013, appearing in the comedy This Is the End along with the rest of the Backstreet Boys.
Nick has gotten into writing screenplays and filming/directing movies. The first film he directed was a movie he had written called “The Pendant” in 2010. It was a short 15-minute film and can be purchased on his official website. The only public viewing of the film was at the Royal Theater in Toronto on August 13, 2010. Fans could see the film by buying tickets through his official site. He has also directed another movie in 2012, but there is no word when that will be released.
In 2014, Carter returned to reality TV, and he and his wife (then fiancée at the time), Lauren Kitt, starred in their own VH1 reality show, I Heart Nick Carter, which centered around the planning of their April 2014 wedding and premiered on September 10, 2014, on VH1. The show only had eight episodes and documented Carter's life as he prepared to get married. This included Carter trying to set the wedding date between the Backstreet Boys touring and footage of Carter working. Recording a new album with New Kids on the Block member Jordan Knight, various events such as a book signing, charity event, touring with Backstreet Boys in Europe (other group members also appeared on the show), his bachelor party, and much more. The wedding aired in a one-hour season finale. Carter announced on Twitter that VH1 did not renew the show for a second season.
In July 2013, Nick launched a campaign on the website Indiegogo.com, a crowdfunding site, to raise money for his movie “Evil Blessings.” The goal was to raise $85,000; instead, the campaign raised $156,214. Nick has said he'll use his money and the money raised to fund the movie. In return for the donations, multiple perks depended on how much you donated. They included chats with Nick on Skype, your name in the movie credits and/or website, movie merchandise (t-shirt, poster, DVD, etc.), acting roles, premiere tickets, BSB concerts, an online concert, and more. Nick wrote the screenplay himself for the film. Due to a few setbacks, the film was delayed and put on hold. In July 2013, the director of the film had died. The film was said to start filming in June 2014, but the success of the Backstreet Boys' “In a World Like This” tour delayed filming and was pushed back to January 2015. That gave Nick some more time to rework the screenplay. In October 2014, Nick announced that this film would be put on hold due to the director's death. Instead, he'll film a new movie called “Dead West” in January 2015. The money donated for “Evil Blessings” will be used for this film. Nick hired the production company The Asylum (the company that produced Sharknado) to help. In July 2015, Nick announced that the movie was renamed “Dead 7” to give it a more global appeal. “Dead 7” includes various members of different boy bands.
At Comic-Con 2015 in San Diego, Carter revealed his plans to film a movie he had written and would be directing and starring in. Entitled Dead 7, the film focuses on a ragtag band of gunslingers operating during a post-apocalyptic zombie plague. The film also stars Carter's wife, Lauren, and his bandmates Howie D. and AJ McLean. Besides NSYNC's Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick, O-Town's Erik-Michael Estrada, Jacob Underwood, Trevor Penick, and 98 Degrees' Jeff Timmons will also star in the movie. The film also includes Jon Secada, Gerrado (who you may remember for the song Rico Suave), Art Alexakis (Everclear), and Debra Wilson (MadTV cast member), plus many more. The movie was filmed in Butte, Montana, in August 2015 and finished in early September. The movie aired on the SyFy network on April 1, 2016.
On August 26, 2015, it was revealed that Carter would be participating in the 21st season of Dancing with the Stars, which began on September 14, 2015. He was paired with professional dancer Sharna Burgess. Carter and Burgess made the show's finals and came in second place behind Bindi Irwin and Derek Hough. He performed "I Will Wait" off his All American album live at the finale.
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carrie Ann Inaba|Inaba | Julianne Hough|Hough | Bruno Tonioli|Tonioli | ||||
| 1 | Cha-cha-cha/"I Don't Like It, I Love It" | 8 | 8 | 8 | No Elimination | |
| 2 | Jive/"Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" Foxtrot/"Coming Home" |
7 8 |
7 8 |
7 8 |
Safe | |
| 3 | Viennese Waltz / "Did I Make the Most of Loving You?" | 9 | 91/9 | 9 | Safe | |
| 4 | Jazz/"Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe | |
| 52 | Paso Doble/"Don't Look Down" | 9 | 9/83 | 9 | No Elimination | |
| 6 | Samba/"You Should Be Dancing" | 9 | 10/104 | 10 | Safe | |
| 7 | Argentine Tango/"Bring Me to Life" Team Freestyle/"This Is Halloween" |
8 10 |
8 10 |
8 10 |
Safe | |
| 8 | Contemporary/"Can't Help Falling in Love" | 10 | 10 | 10 | Safe(Immunity) | |
| 9 | Quickstep/"A Cool Cat in Town" Team-Up Dance (Rumba)/"Hey Jude" |
9 9 |
9 9 |
10 9 |
Safe | |
| 10 Semi-finals |
Tango/"Scars" Samba Dance-off/"Lean On" Trio Salsa/"No Doubt About It" |
8 No 10 |
8 Extra 10 |
8 Points 10 |
Last to be called Safe | |
| 11 Finals |
Jive/"Runaway Baby" Freestyle/"Larger Than Life" Salsa & Tango Fusion/"Turn Up the Music" |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
Runnerup | |
| 1 Score given by guest judge Alfonso Ribeiro. 2 For this week only, as part of "Partner Switch-Up" week, Carter did not dance with Burgess and instead danced with Witney Carson. Burgess danced with Andy Grammer. 3 Score given by guest judge Maksim Chmerkovskiy. 4 Score given by guest judge Olivia Newton-John. | ||||||
In June 2017, Carter appeared alongside Emma Bunton and Timbaland as a judge on a new singing competition show called Boy Band.
In 2020, Carter competed as the "Crocodile" in the fourth season of The Masked Singer, finishing in third place.
| Week # | Song | Judges' guesses | Result | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robin Thicke | Jenny McCarthy | Ken Jeong | Nicole Scherzinger | |||
| 1 | It's My Life | Jordan Knight | Bradley Cooper | Nick Lachey | Safe | |
| 7 | Toxic | Safe | ||||
| 8 | Bleeding Love | Safe (Immunity) | ||||
| 9Semi-finals | Take On Me/I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing | Nick Carter | Win | |||
| 10 Holiday Singalong |
Silent Night | No elimination | ||||
| 11 Finals |
Open Arms | Howie Dorough | Nick Carter(First Impression) | Nick Lachey | Jordan Knight | 3rd Place |
While the group was touring in Canada, Carter appeared on Chanteurs Masques, the Canadian version of the Masked Singer, this time as a Sphynx cat for one episode. He also performed a stellar rendition of Heart’s “Alone” and ended the show with a performance of “I Want It That Way.” Nick’s appearance on the show broke viewership records, drawing in over 2 million viewers.
Power Boat Racing[]
In 2002, Carter got into powerboat racing and started his own team, Nick Carter Racing, which won the National Championship in its first year. Nick sold his boat and purchased a bigger one for the next year, El Diablo, but he hasn’t done any racing since 2003.
Charity work[]
Carter started Nick Carter’s Oceans Campaign in 2001 to help raise awareness about the ocean. It was a part of the Just Within Reach foundation that fellow group member Kevin Richardson founded. He was announced as the new United Nations Special Ambassador for the Year of the Dolphin (YoD) on May 17, 2007, representing the United Nations Environment Program, the Convention on Migratory Species, and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. The Year of the Dolphin campaign aimed to raise awareness of dolphins in the wild, the threats they face to their survival, and actions that could help their wild conservation. He was to record a new song and video with all proceeds to this project, make a public service announcement, and appear at local schools. Carter has stated that he is passionate about the environment and its oceans. He has worked with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN). He also has lobbied for these causes at Capitol Hill. In 2016, Nick sold two paintings on eBay, and some proceeds went to St. Jude Children’s Hospital. Nick has also auctioned various items for charities over the years.
Since moving to Vegas for the Backstreet Boys Las Vegas Residency, Nick Carter has continued to dedicate his work to philanthropy. He hosted a sing-along holiday dinner for Home for the Holidays in 2021, and has been a vocal supporter of the Cure 4 the Kids Foundation, Southern Nevada’s only pediatric cancer and rare disease treatment center., since 2020. He has also raised money for the On Our Sleeves organization with his sister Angel, following their brother Aaron's death in 2022.
Personal life[]
When Carter's sister, Leslie Carter, died from an accidental drug overdose in 2012, and Carter's family claims that Leslie suffered from depression and became addicted to prescribed medications before her death, Nick offered to help her get into rehab, but Leslie refused and turned him away. Leslie's death caused the family to blame Nick, leading to a family outburst, and Nick did not attend his sister's funeral because of an ongoing feud with his parents and the family's complicated dynamic. Since then, he disowned his parents due to the mess until his father died in 2017. However, he still cut ties with his mother in 2003, except for his brother Aaron and three sisters, Bobbie Jean, Leslie, and Angel. However, a family friend, known as Jen, and a cousin of Carter shared on fallen idols that another source for the outburst was Jane telling Aaron a lie about Carter, which caused a rift between both brothers and "divided" them!
Nick's older half-sister, Ginger Lee Carter, died unexpectedly on May 29, 2023. She was 51. (From the obituary:) Ginger was the daughter of Pamela Freeman Wolfe and the late Robert Gene Carter. She is survived by her life companion, George Stroebel IV; her mother, two daughters, Carly Rae Stroebel and Tayler Treadway, three stepchildren, George Stroebel VI, Marah Stroebel, and Lexi Stroebel; six grandchildren: Gavin Thomas Bush, George Stroebel VI, Addison Grace Stroebel, Ethan Jay Rojo-Zavala, Madilynn Kay Stroebel, and Ophelia Quinn Stroebel, sister, Amanda Mecca, a brother, Andy Mecca, a half-brother, Nick Carter, two half-sisters; Angel Carter and Bobbie Jo Carter, several aunts and uncles and many cousins. In addition to her father, she was preceded in death by a half-brother, Aaron Carter, and a half-sister, Leslie Carter.
According to Extra, Carter stated how hard it was since Aaron's death on November 5 for him to go on stage while on tour with the band in London. Even with the dedicated tribute during "No Place," Carter got so emotional, especially during "Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely" and "Incomplete," he broke down in tears before being comforted by his bandmates and sang "Breathe." Carter honored his little brother with a new single, "Hurts to Love You," and the music video featured images of Aaron via photos and home movies. On August 18, Carter shared how hard Aaron's death was for his family and how his sister Angel is getting involved with On Our Sleeves. This foundation works to help children facing mental and emotional health struggles. In conjunction with On Our Sleeves, Nick held an event honoring Aaron at a benefit concert in January.
Nick's sister, Bobbie Jean Carter, died unexpectedly on December 23, 2023, in Florida of a currently unknown cause. She had recently begun serving a two-year sentence of house arrest after being arrested for shoplifting and possession of Fentanyl.
Relationships[]
Carter has been reported to have dated Debra Lafave, Willa Ford, Kaya Jones, and Paris Hilton. Once before Backstreet Boys, he even dated one of his fellow bandmates, Howie D's nieces, for a while.
After moving from Tennessee since his recovery, Carter met Lauren Michelle Kitt—a fitness expert/trainer YouTuber, WBFF fitness competitor, and actress appearing on One Life to Live, through his sister —on October 20, 2008, at a gathering at his house in California. Like Carter, she’s had a rough past with her family as her mother was in and out of jail. On February 20, 2013, Carter, along with Kitt, some friends, and family members, was in Florida on an island in the Keys, where he proposed to his girlfriend of over five years. On April 12, 2014, they were married in Santa Barbara, California. Many guests, including members of the Backstreet Boys, have said it was a very emotional and beautiful wedding. The wedding was featured in In Touch Weekly Magazine's May 5, 2014, issue and was filmed for Carter's reality show "I Heart Nick Carter." Before their first child, the couple also revealed that they were expecting a child earlier in the year but had recently lost the baby from a miscarriage. On October 27, 2015, it was announced by multiple sources that Nick and his wife Lauren were expecting their first child together. On November 2, the couple found out live on Dancing with the Stars that they were expecting a baby boy. On April 19, 2016, after a successful all-natural water home birth, the two welcomed their son, Odin Reign Carter, after 30 hours of labor. In September 2018, Carter revealed that Lauren miscarried. On May 24, 2019, Carter announced they were expecting their second child in October. On October 2, 2019, their daughter Saoirse Reign Carter was born. On January 13th, 2021, Carter announced on his Instagram that he and his wife were expecting their third child, who is set to arrive in April. On April 22, 2021, their daughter Pearl Carter was born after experiencing minor complications. Carter told People magazine that even though he loves performing on tour, he had to miss his daughter's 3rd birthday to go to Europe.
Legal issues[]
On January 2, 2002, Carter was arrested at Pop City nightclub in Tampa, Florida, and charged with a misdemeanor count of resisting/opposing a law enforcement officer without violence. Charges were later dismissed upon completion of community service.
In 2003 or 2004, Carter got his first DUI after refusing to comply with the police.
On March 5, 2005, Carter was arrested in Huntington Beach, California, and charged with one count of driving under the influence and one count of driving with a blood alcohol level above 0.08, the legal limit. Carter pled guilty to the charges, was ordered to pay $1,200 in fines, was placed on three years of informal probation, had his driving privileges restricted for 90 days, and was required to complete a three-month alcohol education program.
On January 13, 2016, Carter was arrested in Key West, Florida, and booked on misdemeanor battery after being denied entry to a bar due to "high levels of intoxication."
In September 2019, Carter was granted a temporary restraining order against his younger brother Aaron after alleging he threatened to kill his then-pregnant wife. On November 20, the judge decided the day after Carter's sister Angel was granted a domestic violence restraining order against her twin until November 2020. In a live-stream interview, Carter's sister BJ revealed that their estranged mother and brother are narcissistic towards him and the rest of the family.
Rape and sexual assault allegations[]
Shannon Ruth[]
On December 8, 2022, Shannon Ruth filed a lawsuit against Carter, alleging that he raped her in 2001 on board the Backstreet Boys' tour bus when she was a 17-year-old fan. In a statement by his attorney Michael Holtz, Carter denied the allegation. He claimed that Ruth's lawyer had allegedly taken advantage of the situation by manipulating Ruth into making her sexual misconduct allegations about Carter. He called the lawsuit a "press stunt" by Ruth's lawyers.
Ruth's complaint includes allegations from three other Jane Does, including a victim who was 15 years old who said that Carter sexually assaulted and infected them with HPV and provided them with alcohol before the assaults.
Following the release of the lawsuit, ABC, Hulu, and Disney+ canceled A Very Backstreet Holiday, a television holiday special featuring the Backstreet Boys scheduled to air the following week on December 14, 2022. Their holiday promotion for MeUndies, endorsement deals such as Tonies, that he was signed with, Expedia and Roblox drop, their jingleball performance on CW, appearances on GMA, the Kelly Clarkson Show, and La Semaine des 4 Julie, and the album signing at the Edge NYC with a special sky-high “Christmas in New York” meet and greet, was canceled, which led to fans boycotting ABC and the Kelly Clarkson Show for what they called "cancel culture."
Melissa Schuman[]
In November 2017, during the #MeToo movement, Melissa Schuman, a former member of the girl group Dream, publicly claimed Carter forced her to have sex against her will. The alleged incident occurred in 2003 when he was 22 and she was 18, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office paperwork. Schuman stated that Carter provided alcohol and put Flunitrazepam or a similar drug in her drink and that he took her virginity by force. Schuman noted that she was encouraged to disclose the incident after observing the similarities to a 2006 rape accusation. Carter denied Schuman's allegation. In February 2018, it was reported that the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office would not pursue charges against Carter in the case because the statute of limitations had expired in 2013. Schuman later sued Carter over the allegation in April 2023.
2006 incident[]
In October 2017, Radar Online reported on a March 2006 incident involving a 20-year-old fan at a house party, with information obtained from an incident report from the police department in West Allis, Wisconsin. The alleged victim, whose name was not disclosed, stated that after drinking with Carter and his friend Rob Kalouch, Carter digitally penetrated her, and the two men forced her to perform oral sex. She said she refused them, telling them she had a boyfriend and was "saving herself for marriage." The alleged victim stated that the two attempted to have sex with her later as she pretended to be asleep. The report indicated that afterward, she was brought to the hospital by her sister, where police interviewed her. The victim did not press charges, and Carter refused to speak with investigators regarding the incident.
Melissa Schuman later said in her rape accusation that reading about this alleged incident encouraged her to speak about her own experience.
August 2023 lawsuit[]
On August 28, 2023, a lawsuit was filed by a plaintiff who accused Carter of drugging and raping her on multiple occasions in 2003. The alleged victim was 15 years old at the time. Carter is alleged to have raped the victim on a bus and his yacht. Carter allegedly provided the minor with drugs and alcohol and infected her with HPV. The minor reported these incidents to her mother, who reported them to the police, but no charges were filed against Nick Carter at the time. The lawsuit states he “instructed A.R. to keep his sexual abuse of her a secret.”
Because of the allegations, Carter has since filed a defamation counter-lawsuit against all three accusers. Ruth responded by attempting to have the suit dismissed. In March 2023, Las Vegas judge Nancy Allf ruled Carter was allowed to countersue Ruth for libel. Allf told Ruth's legal team that she denied their anti-SLAPP motion because Ruth hadn't met her burden and Carter had met his to show sufficient evidence supporting his counterclaims. In August 2023, a Las Vegas judge decided Carter presented enough evidence to countersue Schuman for defamation.
Since the last court appearance, Carter has posted on Twitter that he filed a motion, stating he has requested a hearing and asked the court to grant him a summary judgment on a sexual accuser's claims, claiming it was "factually impossible" for him to have assaulted a sexual battery accuser since he provides evidence disputing the accuser's allegations and "perjurious" testimony especially because ruth was 'Desperate for Her 2 Minutes of Fame'.
However, the situation takes a contentious turn as Carter, backed by a collection of evidence and several witnesses, countersues all three accusers for a staggering $2350000. The lawsuit encompasses terminated endorsement deals, mental anguish, legal fees, and damages, sparking a debate on the boundaries of sportsmanship and ethics.
new June 2024 accusation[]
about one month after the Fallen Idols docuseries premiere, another woman had contacted Schuman privately about being sexually assaulted by Carter as well, even giving her identity and enough “specific details” to appear “credible” and warrant mention to the court according to the new recent filing in the los angeles county superior court. Schuman's lawyer told Rolling Stone The new accuser, who alleges the assault after 2003, had offered to give testimony in support of Schuman’s litigation eventually and mentioned to show the court that accusers “continue to come forward.” This new filing has the potential to complicate the legal landscape. It might allow Carter to add the new accuser to the countersuit he has filed against Schuman, Ruth, and Repp, adding a layer of uncertainty to the ongoing legal proceedings.
Fallen Idols[]
Carter and his late brother Aaron are the subject of a docuseries on ID and Max called Fallen Idols, which premiered over two nights on May 27 and 28, 2024. The series dives into the sexual assault allegations against the Backstreet Boys singer, as well as his brother's mental health struggles and substance abuse issues that led to his death. The docuseries included interviews with family members, close friends, industry professionals, and Nick's accusers — Melissa Schuman, Ashley Repp, and Shannon Ruth — as well as a member of the Carter family, Aaron's former fiancée Melanie Martin, and entertainer Kaya Jones (who claimed to be Nick's ex-girlfriend in 2004-2005) to paint a picture of how the brothers' tumultuous upbringing contributed to their ups and downs. A note at the end of the special stated that Carter has "denied the allegations and questions his accusers' credibility." He also declined to be interviewed for the documentary.
In a statement to Us Weekly, Carter's attorney, Dale Hayes, Jr., addressed the claims made in Fallen Idols, saying, "These are exactly the same outrageous claims that led us to sue this gang of conspirators. Those cases are working their way through the legal system now, and based on both the initial court rulings and the overwhelming evidence, we have every belief that we will prevail and hold them accountable for spreading these falsehoods.
Substance abuse[]
Carter has acknowledged ongoing struggles with drug and alcohol abuse. He revealed that he started drinking at just two years old and again at nine. He says that he became sober after being diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and realized he could die if he did not make significant lifestyle changes. The singer credits fellow Backstreet Boys member Kevin Richardson for helping him turn his life around by giving him Norman Vincent Peale's book Why Some Positive Thinkers Get Powerful Results. After reading that book, he started a healthier lifestyle, saying, "Working out definitely helped my self-esteem, and it helped to kind of push it all aside. I just started replacing drinking and the parties... with healthier things like sports, video games."
Carter also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on February 19, 2009, to discuss his past with drug and alcohol addictions.
In December 2011, Carter again appeared on TV to talk about his struggle with drugs and alcohol, this time on The Dr. Phil Show’s Second Changes special. This segment led to his first book deal with Bird Street Books. In 2013, he published the memoir titled Facing the Music and Living to Talk About It.
Discography[]
- Main article: Nick Carter discography
- Solo albums
- Now or Never (2002)
- I'm Taking Off (2011)
- All American (2015)
- Who i am (coming soon)
- Collaborative albums
- Nick & Knight (2014) (with Jordan Knight)
Awards and nominations[]
Filmography[]
| TV series & Movies | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1998 | Sabrina The Teenage Witch | Himself | Episode: "Battle of the bands" |
| 1998–1999 | Saturday Night Live | Himself and Musical guest | "Julianne Moore/Backstreet Boys" (Season 23: episode 16) "Sarah Michelle Gellar/Backstreet Boys" (Season 24: episode 19) |
| 2002 | American Dreams | Jay Black | Episode: "Soldier Boy" |
| 2002 | Arthur | Himself | Episode: "Arthur, It's Only Rock and Roll" Guest Voice |
| 2002 | All That | Himself | Sketch Performance |
| 2002 | Sesame Street | Himself | appeared with Aaron Carter |
| 2002 | Sesame Street | Himself | Appeared with the Backstreet Boys |
| 2003 | 8 Simple Rules | Ben Hatcher | Season 1: Episodes 17 and 18 |
| 2003 | Punk'd | Himself | Season 2 |
| 2004 | The Hollow | Brody | ABC TV Movie |
| 2005 | The Ellen DeGeneres Show | Himself | Musical Guest With The Backstreet Boys |
| 2006 | House of Carters | Himself | Reality show |
| 2010 | Kill Speed | Foreman | direct-to-video |
| 2010 | The Pendant | Barrett | Actor and director |
| 2011 | Dr. Phil | Himself | Interview and a performance of "Burning Up" |
| 2012 | 90210 | Himself | Special guest |
| 2012 | Late Night with Jimmy Fallon | Himself | Musical Guest with Backstreet Boys |
| 2013 | This Is the End | Nick Carter | With the Backstreet Boys, performing "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" |
| 2014 | I (Heart) Nick Carter | Himself | Main cast |
| 2015 2017 |
Dancing with the Stars | Himself | Contestant on Season 21 Guest judge for week 6 on Season 24 |
| 2016 | Dead 7 | Jack | [Feature Film] Executive Producer/ Actor |
| 2017 | Boy band | Himself | judge |
| 2020 | The Masked Singer | The Crocodile | Contestant on season 4 |
| 2022 | Chanteurs Masques | Sphynx cat | the Canadian version of the Masked Singer, surprise performance |
Gallery[]
