Fame & Fortune: Jordan Knight

At age 35, former New Kids on the Block member Jordan Knight certainly has been around the block.

With New Kids on the Block, Jordan enjoyed incredible success at a very young age. He was barely 16 when the boy band debuted in 1986, and during the following 10 years the New Kids garnered 10 top-20 singles and several No. 1 albums -- at one point even having five albums on the Billboard Top 200 at one time. In 1990, the band earned an astounding $850 million. And Knight's success wasn't limited to the New Kids. He wrote the song "I'll Be Your Everything" that artist Tommy Page took to No. 1.

When the band broke up, Knight embarked on a solo career that went through ups and downs. His self-titled debut album in 1999 produced a platinum single, but the album failed to reach that mark.

Then, last fall, Knight found himself in the spotlight once again on VH1's celebrity reality show, "The Surreal Life." The show was a ratings triumph for VH1, and Knight's participation opened him up to a new generation of fans. Since the show, Knight has been working on his follow-up album -- expected to be released this year.

Bankrate spoke with Knight about how he followed the success of New Kids on the Block with a solo career.

Bankrate: Considering the enormity of the New Kids, were the ultimate sales figures of your record disappointing?

Jordan Knight: No, it was very exciting. We had a top-10 hit that went platinum. The record was gold, but not only here in the U.S., but around the world. In Southeast Asia alone we had three top-10 hits. And in the UK and South America, I had a great tour -- went out with *NSYNC that year. For me, it was another goal accomplished. And it certainly helped me now with the second solo record. And as for the reason it took so long -- the first solo record came out end of '99 -- I already had a second record ready to come out on Interscope, and then we couldn't come to terms with money. So we had to part ways. Problem was, Interscope held on to the masters, so I had to go back to the studio again and do all new material. So that's why it took so long to get the second record out.

Bankrate: So Interscope held it hostage?

Jordan Knight: Yeah, we couldn't come to terms. It's too bad because we had a great relationship, I liked everybody over there. It just couldn't work. We had the first single picked, the album was done. As I'm sure you know how the music business is, as per the contract, they held the masters, so I had to go back in, do a new deal, and record all over again.

Bankrate: It's amazing that they'll take a work and throw it in the garbage rather than find a way to make it work.

Jordan Knight: It was very disappointing, because the record was something I put a lot of my heart into. I collaborated with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and I was proud that I was writing more, sweating out in the studio -- and then for the politics to get in the way again, but you can't dwell on it. I had to move on, I had to move forward, otherwise I could just sit and do nothing, sit on my couch, but I didn't want to do that. I mean, I'm in a position where I wouldn't have to do music ever again and I would be fine, but the music's inside me, I have to do it. I'm not the type of guy who can just sit on the couch and watch TV all day. I had a great run in the music industry. Music's what I do. It's my life. I enjoy performing, and I enjoy recording, and I'm going to do it as long as the public will let me.

Bankrate: When you look back, what were some of the best lessons you learned from the New Kids days?

Jordan Knight: Probably not to take anything for granted. A ride like that comes along once in a lifetime. I'll never achieve the success again that I did with the New Kids. A fraction of that, I'll be thankful for. It's nice to know that I'm one of the rare few that got to experience a phenomenon like that. It's nice to know now in my 30s that, wow, I really did that. So I guess, not taking anything for granted in life. We were fortunate too. We don't have any horror stories. You see these on "E! True Hollywood Story," how people lost their money, big drug scandals, none of us had that. We had good business managers, strong families and good heads on our shoulders. None of us spent extravagantly. So I think we were blessed that way, too. I think another lesson we learned was to find good management, good business managers, and not get caught up in the Hollywood scene.

Bankrate: New Kids earned almost a billion dollars in 1990. Did you have the presence of mind at the time or the people around you to make sure you were saving or investing wisely?

Jordan Knight: You know what, I'm so glad you brought that up. Absolutely. We had great business managers. And not only that, but we were really involved. We had weekly meetings; we knew exactly where the money was being spent, where the money was being invested. These guys made sure that we were being set up for the rest of our lives. Plus, none of us took these checks and went crazy. We all came from the suburbs of Boston, and we were used to spending money before we were in (the group). We weren't going to go crazy when we got it. And I think that's a good lesson for the new kids coming in to this industry, They have to remember that your career can be short-lived, so what you do with your money now, it's either going to last you for the rest of your life, or it can make it hard for you for the rest of your life. It can go either way.