User:Krystaleen/sandbox/Backstreet Boys' eighth studio album

The upcoming eighth studio album by the Backstreet Boys is planned to be released in 2013 to coincide with their 20th anniversary. It's a follow-up to 2009's This Is Us. It will be the first album featuring all five original members in six years since Kevin Richardson left the group in 2006 to focus on his family and pursue other interests. Richardson has permanently rejoined the group in 2012. It will also be their first album without their old label Jive Records. In July 2012, the group moved into a house together in London to work on the album.

Background
In May 2010, the Backstreet Boys left their long-time label, Jive. The group then was looking to sign with Interscope Records, but the members couldn't agree on whether to take a one-album deal or a three-album deal. In June 2010, Nick Carter revealed that they had started working on new material for the next album, and Brian Littrell said in a separate interview that they were planning to release the album in early 2011.

However, in late 2010 they teamed up with New Kids on the Block for a joint tour called NKOTBSB planned for 2011 and they had to push back the release of the album as they had to find time to work on the album in between tour dates. In March 2011, during a press conference in Vietnam, the group stated that for the first time ever they have full creative control because they were no longer with Jive.

In November 2011, after the US leg of NKOTBSB tour ended, Carter said in an interview that they were hoping to get a single out in spring 2012 and the album in summer 2012. However, Carter's sister Leslie's unexpected death at the end of January 2012 made the group once again postpone the recording until the end of February 2012 to give him time to cope with his loss. Howie Dorough stated later that month that they would not rush the album and that they would try to release the album in 2012 or 2013 at the latest.

In April 2012, a week before the European leg of NKOTBSB tour started, the group, along with original member Kevin Richardson, went to London to meet with producer Martin Terefe and to write some songs. On April 29, 2012, the group announced that Richardson had rejoined them permanently and they would go back to London in July to continue working on the album.

Production
On July 9, 2012, the group revealed via Twitter that they were in London and that they had started recording, and on July 17, 2012, they appeared on Good Morning America live via satellite from London to publicly announce that they were recording a new album. In an interview with On Air with Ryan Seacrest on July 24, 2012, McLean mentioned that they've written about 20 songs so far. Besides Terefe, they also had written songs with Sacha Skarbek and Craig David.

The group held a lottery for fans to win a chance to hear rough mixes of their new album at the studio on July 27, 2012. There were 10 fans in total who were brought into the studio. They were told that they were going to get to listen to some new tracks in the studio where the group were recording, but that the group themselves were unable to attend. However, one minute into the first song, the group walked in and surprised all of the fans. They listened to five new tracks together, and the group also answered some questions and took pictures with the fans.

In July 2012, Richardson stated in an interview that the album will be authentic and personal, and that they were hoping Terefe would produce the entire record. They also will write a lot on it and a lot of songs will be based on their own life experiences. In an interview with Clizbeats, Carter talked about reinvention and drastic changes and he said that he didn't feel that they were at that point anymore. "It's more about going forward for future albums whatever we do. I think it's gonna be more about staying true to what we do, keeping it pop music and keeping it so that we are not trying to do something out of this world and alienate our fans. But I think it's all about having fun and expressing yourself and saying something, because we have to sing the songs and I'd rather sing something that I can feel and say instead of just songs that are like 'Hey it sounds good, let's record it.'"

On August 1, 2012, Dorough stated that they have "finished 15 potential songs for album consideration and plan to get back into the studio in the near future to finish the record." Later that month, Littrell confirmed via Twitter that they're planning to release the album sometime around the group's 20th anniversary, which is on April 20, 2013. Two days later, American/Finnish production/songwriting team GoodWill & MGI, who had been working on McLean's solo project, posted on their website that they were working on some songs for the Backstreet Boys' upcoming album. In late August, Carter revealed via Twitter that the group was recording Everybody (Backstreet's Back) in Spanish, and the song might be featured in the new record for Latin markets. On August 31, 2012, Richardson stated on Good Morning America that they hoped to get the album ready in early 2013.

On September 14, 2012, during a Twitter Q&A session in an Old Navy fashion show event in New York, they revealed that they were planning to have the first single along with the album ready at the top of 2013 and not in April 2013 as Littrell previously suggested. Richardson also revealed that he wrote a song about his son, although they weren't sure if it's going to make the album as they were still in a creative phase where they're writing and experimenting. "We want it to be a personal album about what’s happening in our lives now. A.J. is getting ready to be a father. Howie, Brian and myself are fathers already. So we’re just trying to make it a personal record." Carter also worked with Lucas Hilbert, Geo Slam, and Porcelain Black in September for the new Backstreet Boys album.

On September 29, 2012, during a video chat with fans, Carter and Dorough revealed two potential song titles, "Light On" and "Madeline". They also mentioned that they will cut 50-60 songs by the time they are done recording.

On the red carpet of American Music Awards on November 18, 2012, the Backstreet Boys stated that they were more than halfway done with the new album and they're working with "up and coming guys who have a sound that hasn't been heard yet" such as Morgan Taylor Reid and The Fliptones.

On April 20, 2013, during their 20th anniversary celebration event, the group previewed eight new songs, "Soldier, "In Your Arms", "Show 'Em What You're Made Of", "Trust Me", "Permanent Stain", "Try", and "Breathe". The following day, they posted a video containing the previews of six of the new songs on their YouTube channel.