How a haunted mansion music video became a pop culture phenomenon
In short: The Backstreet Boys were told their hit song was a bad idea for the American market. They defied their label, funded a million-dollar music video themselves, and transformed into horror movie icons. The result was a global smash that redefined their career and the pop landscape of the late nineties.
Released in July 1997, Everybody (Backstreet's Back) was written and produced by the duo Denniz Pop and Max Martin. Despite its eventual status as a platinum-certified success in the United States, the single faced significant internal opposition. Barry Weiss, the president of Jive Records, initially argued that the title was confusing for a debut US album. The band countered that the phrase simply signaled their return home, and they eventually convinced the label to include the track after Canadian radio stations began generating momentum.
The song’s iconic music video, directed by Joseph Kahn, was a gamble that required the band to front the $1 million production cost themselves after Jive Records refused to back the concept. Kahn, who had previously focused on hip-hop, drew inspiration from Michael Jackson’s Thriller and a treatment he had originally envisioned for Ice Cube. Filmed over 36 hours in Los Angeles in June 1997, the video features the band members as classic monsters, including a werewolf, Dracula, and a mummy. The production even secured actor Antonio Fargas, known for his work on Starsky & Hutch, to play the bus driver.
The release strategy involved two distinct versions of both the song and the video. The international market received the standard edit, while the US version featured an extended breakdown in place of the bridge. These variations extended to the visual edits, with different sequences of the band’s dance routines and monster vignettes. The project proved to be a pivotal moment for Kahn, who noted that the video’s success significantly expanded his perspective on pop culture. Ultimately, the song reached the fourth position on the Billboard Hot 100 and the third spot on the UK Singles Chart, cementing its place as one of the group's most enduring hits.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Everybody (Backstreet's Back)
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