Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC and 98 Degrees dominated the summer of 1999. The three pop music groups were so popular, readers probably missed out on another star-studded boy band: Thr33way.
James Corden, Jordan Peele and Nick Kroll formed the little-known crew back then — the first “honest boy band,” as they called it. And the trio took an interesting approach to the bubble-gum stuff.
“We took existing boy band songs, cut through all the innuendo, and just got to the heart of what those songs were really about — hardcore sex,” Kroll said Thursday during a “Late Late Show” sketch.
Their big hit? “Quit Playin’ Games With My Penis,” was one. “Tearin’ Up My Butt,” “End of the Chode” and “Bye, Bye, Bisexual” were others.
Then, of course, there was their rip-off of Hanson’s “MMMbop,” which they changed to be all about boobs. Lawsuits followed, the three recalled.
It all truly crashed and burned, however, when “Extra” host Mario Lopez revealed to the world that the Thr33way singers were actually virgins and knew nothing about sex. Who could have seen that coming?
“‘Quit Playin’ Games With My Penis’? That’s like the exact opposite of what you want,” Kroll explained with the benefit of present-day hindsight. “Now, I’m like please, please play games with my penis.”
Corden has “no regrets” about that period in their lives, he said. The other two wish they could take back pretty much all of it.
Watch the video above.