The DNA World Tour will kick off in Las Vegas on April 8

Photo: Dennis Leupold

For the past 27 years, the Backstreet Boys have traveled the world performing their top hits for millions. Now, pop’s most influential performers are giving fans an inside look at what it takes to pull off the perfect tour.

In the first episode of their new docuseries Making of the DNA Tour — which launched on Tuesday and will feature AJ McLean, Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, and Kevin Richardson, McLean sat down with creative director Rich Taluega to break down some of his favorite moments of the tour — and reveal the secrets behind the iconic band’s continued success throughout the years.

When asked how the boys make the choreography so seamless, McLean said it all comes down to their passion to perform.

“It goes back to us being performers,” said McLean, 44. “We’ve always said there’s going to come a point when we stop dancing. If we go for 20 more years, we’re not going to be dancing anymore. We’ve always talked about that Eagles moment or that Rat Pack, where it’s just, you look classy, you’re singing the songs, there’s cool props or dancers or whatever, but we are limited as to what we’re doing. But that’s down the road, because we’re still killing it!”

“There’s a formula that works,” he added. “If you look at the boy bands today, they’re more vocal-based or they’re musicians. That’s the boybands of 2017 and on. We’ve always been showmen. I think that combination of being able to sing live, not lip-syncing, and dance at the same time, that’s a huge upswing for us.”

“At the end of the day … we’re a vocal harmony group,” he concluded. “The dancing is a little sprinkled sweet sauce. It’s that Cholula on top of the taco. It just fits. It just makes sense. We could just stand up there and sing and we may have half the success that we have, but I think it’s a true, intricate cog in the machine that is Backstreet Boys is to be able to do both.”

In February, the iconic boy band announced their return to Las Vegas for four shows, officially kicking off their DNA World Tour.

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The shows, produced by Live Nation, will take place at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on April 8, 9, 15, and 16 — which follows their last appearance in Las Vegas — their 2017-2018 residency at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino.

On Tuesday, the band announced additional tour stops in major US cities including Nashville, Portland and Memphis, as well as the addition of a European leg of the tour kicking off in Portugal on October 3rd.

For McLean, the additional shows just means more time with the fans — which he can’t get enough of while on stage.

“When it’s a big number or it’s after a number and we’re still on stage, I pull an ear [monitor] out just to feel that moment, to hear the crowd,” he said. “You can see them singing and screaming but if you can’t hear it and you can’t feel it right here [points to heart], then what’s the f—ing point? To be able to still get that level of love and screams 27 years later, it’s pretty freaking unremarkable.”

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“We have the most amazing fans in the world,” he concluded. “They are loyal to the core. They’re loving, forgiving, passionate, and compassionate. They are truly the rock that has solidified us in this business … we were able to last almost 30 years so far. That’s a huge testament to the fans, the music and to each other. All of us — family, man.”

Subscribe to the Backstreet Boy’s YouTube channel to catch the next four episodes of the series. New episodes will premiere weekly.

Tickets for the DNA World Tour are available now, and the newly added North American dates go on sale this Friday, April 8th at 10 a.m. local time.