I’m in my 50s and I still love boy bands – women like me are filling arenas for the idols we grew up with

I’m in my 50s and I still love boy bands – women like me are filling arenas for the idols we grew up with Backstreet Boys, Take That, Westlife and other boy bands of old are still selling out arenas as the women who grew up with them find joy, nostalgia and community in seeing their teenage idols live. Balvinder Sandhu reflects on why these gigs have become a comforting escape in midlife. The first concert I ever went to was New Kids On The Block in 1992, when I was a teenager. The most recent one? I saw the 90s British boy band Five in May. These gigs may be 34 years apart but my love for boy bands has never waned. They have taken me from my teenage years to menopause – apart from my family, not many people have been in my life for that long. When I was younger, I spent hours – and money – buying and reading magazines, as well as recording and rewatching music videos and performances (fangirling was tough work in the pre-YouTube days). These days, I follow them on social media and love seeing them gush over their partners or children. I feel invested in their life stories and am genuinely happy to know most of them survived the horrors of being part of the sometimes-exploitative music industry. Judging from concert ticket sales, I’m not the only middle-aged woman who feels this way about 1990s and 2000s boy bands – more like man bands now – as they’re selling out arenas and stadiums all over the world. VEGAS RESIDENCIES, SOLD-OUT SHOWS AND REUNIONS Backstreet Boys did a two-month residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas in 2025. They reportedly earned US$4 million (S$5.16 million) per night. They’re back at the same venue in July and August 2026. New Kids On The Block – now known as NKOTB and the only 80s boy band in this list – had a residency at the Park MGM hotel in Las Vegas in June and July 2025 and this year, have been booked for June, July and October. Both Backstreet Boys and NKOTB perform with the line-ups that made them famous. In Europe, Take That are considered the kings of British boy bands. They’ve been around since 1992, with a 10-year break in between, starting out with five members but have been a three-piece since 2014. They’ve been lauded for their elaborate tours and recently wrapped up their circus-themed spectacle, The Circus Live - Summer 2026 tour, in July. They sold 736,000 tickets at 17 stadiums in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Two boy bands that performed on stage together for the first time in years recently are Irish boy band Boyzone and English band Five. Singapore is not immune to the charm of boy bands. In 2019, Irish boy band Westlife played to a sold-out crowd of 20,000 at the National Stadium. In 2023, they became the first Western group to sell out three shows at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, according to promoter Unusual Entertainment. Unusual Entertainment is bringing Westlife to Singapore again in January 2027, at the same venue. The first date sold out in six hours and a second show was added, with only a handful of tickets still available. Other boy bands who have performed in Singapore recently include A1 and Blue, both from England. A1’s concert was at The Star Theatre in March 2026 and previously, at The Theatre at Mediacorp in October 2023. The latter venue also hosted Blue in November 2025. SPENDING ON TEENAGE MEMORIES James Kang, founder and CEO of Mode Entertainment, who brought A1 and Blue to Singapore, said that boy band concert audiences generally skew about 70 per cent women and 30 per cent men, aged between 35 and 45. According to Kang, VIP tickets and meet-and-greet experiences are a big draw. Female fans are keen to meet their idols from their teenage years and are willing to pay more for these unique experiences. These are usually an additional S$100 to S$200 on top of the seat price. For their Sphere residency, Backstreet Boys paid a one-time fee of around US$8 million for the venue’s graphics. It was reported that this sum was easily recouped thanks to VIP packages and platinum tickets that longtime fans were eager to fork out for. Koh San Chin, assistant marketing director at Unusual Entertainment, said boy band concert attendees are mostly women in their late 20s to 40s. And it’s the allure of nostalgia and familiarity that attracts them to these shows – to “relive their younger days, when these boy bands were a huge part of their life”. Unlike their teenage years, these women also have the spending power to keep their favourite boy bands in business. Being a middle-aged female boy band fan is akin to being a middle-aged man who has been loyal to a sports team since he was a kid. These men buy merchandise, make banners for matches and get emotional when they see their idols in person. Men call following a bunch of men from a sports team being passionate about sport so I see nothing wrong with women showing the same fierce love and allegiance to a bunch of men on stage. NOT A MONEY GRAB One thing these shows have in common is it’s not a group of middle-aged men standing on stage belting out old tunes as a money grab. There are extensive sets, elaborate dance moves and a large cast of performers. Take That even has a 30-foot tall, mechanical elephant at their Circus shows. These boy band members, in their 40s and 50s, are still busting some impressive moves. In fact, dancing is one of the highlights. At a Take That gig, once the intro to Pray comes on, there are no words to describe the simple joy of watching them do the dance every fan loves. The fact that they can fall to their knees and get back up so easily at that age is a bonus. Personally, I enjoy such gigs as it takes me back to simpler times. I know every lyric to every song and have memories attached to a lot of their music. It’s not just music – it’s part dance, part theatre and even part comedy because longtime fans get the inside jokes when they’re bantering on stage. It’s different than seeing other acts from the past. In the last two years, I’ve seen Oasis, Go West, Nik Kershaw and Bryan Adams – all brilliant artistes but they basically just stand on stage and sing. Boy band gigs are not just about good music and nostalgia, they are about celebrating longtime friendships, memories of choosing your favourite member, poring over magazines to find interviews and recording TV performances on your parents’ video cassette recorder. Mode Entertainment’s Kang said boy bands have a unique appeal. “Unlike rock bands, where the spotlight is usually just on the lead singer, every single member of a boy band is adored,” he said. “Fans know all their names and distinct personalities by heart. Plus, boy bands bring this amazing ‘forever young’ energy,” Kang added. “Seeing them pull off the exact same choreography and serenades decades later lets the audience step back in time and feel like teenagers again.” These bands are the template for many K-pop groups today. The fact they’re still able to tour successfully is a testament to their longevity. Some of them are still releasing new music today, with varying levels of success. A COMFORTING ESCAPE Mention concerts by boy bands of old and one may conjure up images of lonely middle-aged women lusting after pop stars. This is so far from the truth. Sure, we admire how these men have stayed in shape and still look good – but we’re not fantasising about marrying them like when we were younger. Ruby Chow, 50, went to Las Vegas in December 2025 with her husband to watch Backstreet Boys, spending around US$850 for two tickets. She’s been a fan since the 90s and has seen them a few times in Singapore. She’s also going to Westlife’s Singapore concert in January. “The energy, the vibes, listening to all your favourite songs performed live,” she told CNA Women. “Getting to sing with thousands of fans like it’s one big reunion and being in the moment, even just for two hours, as you get transported back to those teenage years.” Chow has even taken her kids to such concerts and joked that “they ‘lost’ their mummy to a lady who screamed like a banshee”. Boy band gigs are a comforting escape. And such music is genuinely an escape because boy band songs are mainly about love, heartbreak, friendship and fun. There’s no mention of politics or wars, for example, so it’s truly a reprieve from real life. For me, there are definitely mental health benefits to singing at the top of your lungs alongside thousands of others who share this pure joy. These boy bands are men with decades-long friendships, who have had ups and downs but are still being professional and putting on amazing, energetic shows. How can anyone see a downside to that? CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg. [Image text:] WELCOME TO FIVE GATE3