Date: August 10, 2001
He raps the songs that make the tween world sing.
Meet 13-year-old Aaron Carter, younger brother of Backstreet Boys' member Nick Carter and a budding pop phenomenon in his own right. Carter's last album, "Aaron's Party," has sold more than two million copies in the United States. And his follow-up, "Oh Aaron," which hits stores this week, is also expected to be a hit.
"He's still pretty hot," said Jason Deuro, music manger at the Amherst Media Play. "His new album should sell pretty consistently with his last release."
Carter, who performs Friday at Six Flags Darien Lake, has achieved his considerable success by targeting 9- to 14-year-olds, who are too old for Raffi but not yet ready for Jay-Z.
"Some kids' parents don't let them listen to rap music like Eminem and Tupac and stuff like that," said the spunky towhead Carter by phone from his tour bus. "I bet you they were kinda upset that their parents wouldn't let them listen to that kind of music. But I came out supporting it and giving them a good time."
Carter's mischievous G-rated raps make him less "the prince of pop," as he's billed by his record company, than the Dennis the Menace of pop. In his most-popular rhymes, which evoke the early tunes of another clean-cut hip hopper Will "Fresh Prince" Smith, Carter talks about throwing a shindig while his parents are away ("Aaron's Party"), dreaming of besting a sports legend at his own game ("How I Beat Shaq") and promising friends too many tickets to one of his big brother's concerts (the current single "Oh Aaron").
But what makes the Carter phenomenon so interesting isn't the music, which is sonic equivalent of a Happy Meal, but the fact that he's been able to sell so much of it without the support of the usual promotional channels like MTV and Top 40 radio. Indeed, Carter has been a trailblazer in tapping into alternative media outlets, like the Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, which are specifically targeted to his young audience.
He's had a concert on the Disney Channel, after which his album soared to No. 4 on the charts, and also appeared on the channel's popular series "Lizzie McGuire." Just last Sunday, Nickelodeon, the sponsor of his tour, helped spread the word about Carter's new album by airing a half-hour special on him and premiering the video for his new single.
"Radio doesn't do it all anymore," said Deuro. "Kids have so much access to so many other types of media these days. And word of mouth, even for very young kids, spreads pretty quickly. If somebody likes something, they'll all e-mail each other and get on messages boards on the Internet."
While all of these different means no doubt helped Carter achieve his left-field success, he also had the family connection that helped him get attention that another pre-teen rhyming prankster may not have gotten. "My brother Nick had a lot to do with it," said Carter of his success. "He's always been there for me. He's always helped me out and supported me. And talked about me. And that's pretty cool. That's truly an honor."
Nick and Aaron aren't the only singing siblings in the Carter bunch, either. Joining Aaron on tour is his 14-year-old sister Leslie, whose debut single, "Like Wow," is featured on the soundtrack to the animated hit "Shrek." But, unlike her little brother, she's not quite as enthusiastic about discussing her more successful family members.
"I don't really talk about Aaron too much," she said by phone. "He's got his own thing to do. I don't really know much about it. I'm really busy myself. So I don't really pay attention to it."
Leslie is in the process of working on her debut album, which has been delayed several times by her record label, Dreamworks. Although she was initially reticent to talk about it, she later admitted that she's been struggling with the company over her image.
"People are trying to make me be something I'm not," said the young vocalist who admires Jewel, Mariah Carey, Faith Hill and Christina Aguilera. "I'm trying to be something different. I'm not trying to be anything like anyone else. That's sort of why things are getting stalled with the record. I'm not trying to be some cute little pop singer."
Aaron, on the other hand, is more than happy with his role as pop icon to the elementary school/middle school set. It wins him desired attention from the opposite sex.
"It's crazy, man," he said. "Girls are always like "Are you gonna marry me?' It's like I'm engaged to a thousand people."
And it also allows him to connect with members of his own age group. "I'm here to help my fans out in situations," he said. "I had a girl come up to me the other day and say, "I'm having troubles and you're helping me out.' That was a really good feeling."
