*NSYNC is celebrating 20 years of their sophomore and most popular album, “No Strings Attached” on March 21st, 2020.
“No Strings Attached” debuted on the top of the Billboard 200 Chart and was the best-selling album of 2000. It set the record for first-week sales in the US, selling 2.4 million copies. That record lasted 15 years until Adele beat it with her album, “25,” in 2015.
This album was a game changer for their career. The band was in a legal battle with their manager, Lou Pearlman. They were fighting for their name and their career. Eventually, *NSYNC won the legal battle, separated from Pearlman, Transcontinental, and RCA Records. They joined Jive Records and went on to record two more albums before breaking up in 2002.
Many fans would give their first child (because that’s how old fans are now) for a reunion tour, but the guys have not confirmed anything yet.
Although the entire album is a collective masterpiece, here are the top 5 *NSYNC songs from “No Strings Attached.”
NSYNC Songs From No Strings Attached – “Bye, Bye, Bye”
The lead single from the album may just be *NSYNC’s most popular song. The beginning of the video represents cutting the strings with Transcontinental Recordings. The dance combination is still known by fans today. It is still one of the most iconic music videos ever, even though the rest of the video didn’t really make sense. “Bye, Bye, Bye” earned *NSYNC their first Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Pop Performance by a Duo or Group.
NSYNC Songs From No Strings Attached – “I Thought She Knew”
Many people don’t know that *NSYNC started out as an acapella group, that was Chris Kirkpatrick’s intention for the band, along with the fact that they couldn’t afford music. “I Thought She Knew” was the first acapella song the guys put on an album of theirs. Many of the bandmates say this is their favorite song they’ve ever done. It is a beautiful song talking about how they thought a girl knew that she was his once in a lifetime.
“It’s Gonna Be Me”
“It’s Gonna Be Me” was the second single off their album and became their first and only number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. It charted for twelve consecutive weeks. The music video depicted the guys as marionette guys in a toy store. *NSYNC fans have made many memes making fun of Justin Timberlake’s accent, dubbing the words as “It’s Gonna Be May,” making April 30th, ‘It’s Gonna Be May Day,’ in the fandom. This song is just another testament to the greatness that is Max Martin.
“This I Promise You”
The third single from the album, “This I Promise You” is one of *NSYNC’s best ballads. It has become a lot of fans wedding songs. The song was the group’s fifth top-ten single in the US, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. It spent thirteen weeks at number one on the Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart, their first and only song to do so. The video depicted the band singing in the woods and telling other people’s love stories.
“No Strings Attached”
This album started to have a lot of songs written by the members. The title track was written by JC Chasez, who wrote numerous songs on the LP. Although the lyrics sing, “If you want it, here’s my heart, no strings attached” the deeper meaning was about their departure with Pearlman. This song should have been a single. It shows Chasez’s songwriting skills and may be one of their most popular deep cuts.
Which song from that album is your favorite?