AJ McLean has been one of the most distinctive voices of the Backstreet Boys for over thirty years. Alexander James McLean was born in West Palm Beach, Florida, in 1978, was on stage as a child and was one of the founding members of the band in Orlando in 1993, which became the most successful boy band of its time.
With the Backstreet Boys, he sang world hits such as “Quit Playing Games (with My Heart)” (1996), “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)” and “As Long as You Love Me” (both 1997), “I Want It That Way” and “Larger than Life” (both 1999) as well as “Shape of My Heart” (2000). The band is still active today and fills the big halls worldwide.
At the same time, AJ McLean is going his own way. In 2010, his first solo album “Have It All” was released with the single “Teenage Wildlife”, followed by “Night Visions” (2018), the country ballad “Boy and a Man” (2019) and “Love Song Love”. Under his full name Alexander James, he released the album “my name is Alexander James” after the EP “hi, my name is Alex” in January 2026, followed by “Can’t Love You Anymore”, written with Teddy Swims. With “The Better Man Tour” he is on the road solo.
Live, AJ McLean combines the energy of a pop star with the closeness of a narrator: personal new songs, a lot of soul in his voice and the story of a singer who shaped an entire generation with the Backstreet Boys.
