JC Chasez Says *NSYNC Fans 'Were Not Excited to See' Britney Spears on Tour in 1998, But That Changed Fast

Mar. 15, 2025

Britney Spears and *NSYNC in 1998.Photo:Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic; Vinnie Zuffante/Getty

Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic; Vinnie Zuffante/Getty

It’s hard to imagine any crowd not going absolutely bonkers forBritney Spears. But according toJC Chasez,*NSYNC’s fans were initially chilly toward the pop star when she opened for the band on tour in 1998.

On the latest episode ofGleerewatch podcastAnd That’s What You Really Missed, Chasez called the dates on *NSYNC’s 1998 to 1999 tour when Spears opened for the band “the stuff of legends.”

“It was our first, like, big tour in America and she was just starting out, and it was crazy,” he said.

Chasez noted that he andJustin Timberlakehad starred alongside Spears inThe All-New Mickey Mouse Clubin the early ’90s, and they were rooting for her. “We wanted her to win so bad,” he said.

Britney Spears with *NSYNC in 1998.Kevin Mazur Archive/WireImage/Getty

Kevin Mazur Archive/WireImage/Getty

“It was, like, the very first show we went out there, and they were not excited to see her because it was a girl who’s around all the guys that they liked,” Chasez, 48, recalled to hosts Jenna Ushkowitz and Kevin McHale. “We weren’t even on the stage together, but they just associated it that way, the fans in the audience. So, for like, the first couple numbers, they’d be like quiet or there’d be some, like, hissing and a little bit of, like, negativity. A little booing.”

“We felt so bad. Like, our hearts broke,” Chasez added. “She was going out there, like, giving it. And it’s just like, the audience, they were just kinda mad at her just for being there at first.”

*NSYNC in 1998.Margaret Norton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

Margaret Norton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

*NSYNC could relate, having just opened forJanet Jacksonduring the U.S. leg of her Velvet Rope tour in October 1998. “We would have to win the audience over,” Chasez recalled. “Because they’re not there to see us. They’re there for an R&B show and here we are, a pop show.”

“Winning a crowd when they’re not there for you is one of the best things you can do, is one of the best skills you can learn as a performer,” he added.

“A week into playing shows, it was like a total flip,” Chasez recalled. “It was incredible to see.”

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Britney Spears in 1999.Brenda Chase/Online USA/Getty

Brenda Chase/Online USA/Getty

As *NSYNC fans’ enthusiasm for Spears grew, Chasez remembered thinking, “Oh, so we’re the main act, and yet, oh, they really like [Spears’s] song. Oh, they really like her. Okay. She’s not gonna stay as the opening act much longer. We’re gonna have to find somebody else to help us out.”

source: people.com