Kevin Richardson

Kevin Richardson Biography

Kevin Scott Richardson (born October 3, 1971) is an American singer, model, actor, composer, best known as a founding member of the Backstreet Boys.

Early years

Kevin Richardson was born in Lexington, Kentucky. He is the youngest of three brothers. He has been singing in church choir since he was a child and he started acting in high school.

As a youth, he was a chess club member and acted in school plays such as "Bye, Bye Birdie" at his school in Kentucky, Estill County High School. He was also a football captain.

In Florida, he worked as a cast member in Walt Disney World. He was a backstage tour guide and costume characters, most notably as Aladdin and one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. There he also met his future wife Kristin Willits, who was playing the character of Belle from "Beauty and the Beast." He worked at Walt Disney World until he joined the Backstreet Boys in 1993.

Career

Backstreet Boys

See Backstreet Boys for more information

In 1993, Richardson joined a new group called Backstreet Boys. After he joined, the group was still looking for one more member so Richardson called Brian Littrell, who was Richardson's maternal first cousin, to ask him to audition for the group. Littrell was immediately accepted, and the very next day he officially joined the group. After Littrell joined, the quintet officially took shape.

Richardson was part of the group until 2006, when he announced his departure to pursue other interests and "move on with the next chapter of [his] life." He recorded a total of five albums with the group in the span of 13 years. On June 23, 2006 he issued the following statement on the band's website:

"After 13 years of what can only be described as a dream come true, I have decided that it is time to leave the Backstreet Boys. It was a very tough decision for me but one that was necessary in order to move on with the next chapter of my life. Howard, Brian, Alex and Nick will always be my little brothers and have my utmost love and support. I would like to thank the Backstreet fans for all the beautiful memories we have shared together and look forward to including you in the next phase of my life. I wish my brothers continued success and look forward to their new album."

On November 23, 2008, for the first time after he left, Richardson rejoined his former bandmates on stage in Hollywood Palladium, LA. He performed the encore, "Shape of My Heart" with the group.

The Backstreet Boys, including Richardson, appeared on the November 4, 2010 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show. Richardson first appeared in a pre-taped segment in which they surprised a fan who thought she was merely being flown in to participate in a "Backstreet Boys' Biggest Fan" contest. Moments later, Richardson joined the group in the show's studio and performed "I Want It That Way" live with them.

On July 1, 2011, Richardson once again rejoined the Backstreet Boys on stage at Staples Center, LA as part of the NKOTBSB Tour. He sang "I Want It That Way" with the group and the mash up at the end of the show along with NKOTB members.

Richardson made an announcement on Ryan Seacrest on October 25, 2011 that he was going to be at a Backstreet Boys beach party in Nassau, Bahamas on December 3, 2011. The party is part of the group's second annual cruise. In addition to being in the party, Richardson also performed several songs with the group on the boat in the evening. In the announcement, he also stated that he would love to perform with the group again on a more regular basis.

On April 29, 2012, during a live show in London, Backstreet Boys confirmed that Richardson was back permanently with the group and would be recording a new album with them in July 2012. Richardson also appeared along with the group on Good Morning America on July 17, 2012 announcing his return, their new album, and their first performance as a five-piece group since 2006 at the morning show's Summer Concert Series on August 31, 2012. It was also his first TV appearance with the group since he returned. Regarding his return, Richardson gave the following statement: "Being back with my brothers again feels great. I love these guys. We have gone through so much together. We just have a chemistry... a bond that will always be."

In an interview with On Air with Ryan Seacrest on July 24, 2012, Richardson explained that the reason he came back to the group was because he realized how much joy singing and music gives him. He mentioned that the Christmas concert he did in December 2011 helped him rediscover his love of music and how much he missed it.

Solo career

In 2003, Richardson composed the soundtrack of an animated movie, The Spirit Bear, which was due out in 2010.

On December 18, 2011, he headlined a Christmas concert titled "Home for the Holidays" with Rob Gonzalez. The concert was hosted by Montage Beverly Hills luxury hotel and it benefited The Angeles Clinic Foundation of Los Angeles.

In 2012, Richardson began working on his first solo album. The album will include songs that have influenced him over the years, and it will be released later in 2012.

Modeling career

He has been a model for Versace. He also modeled for Vogue and is a brand ambassador for TAG Heuer.

Acting career

Along with the rest of the Backstreet Boys, Richardson had made appearances on Arthur, Sesame Street, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and This Is the End.

In 2003, during Backstreet Boys' hiatus, Richardson played the role of Billy Flynn in the Broadway production of Chicago. and in 2003, he made an appearance on Punk'd where he got punked by Ashton Kutcher.

On November 14, 2006, several months after he left the Backstreet Boys, he returned to New York City with many Chicago alumni for the 10th anniversary of the show. From late November to December 3, 2006 Richardson played the role of Billy Flynn in Toronto, and from February 4 to March 4, 2007 he played the role in Japan. He also returned to Japan to play the role in late September 2009 until early October.

Richardson starred in his first TV movie in the 2009 Christian drama Love Takes Wing, based on a book by Janette Oke. He played the role of Cyrus.

In 2010, Richardson starred in "The Bloody Indulgent", a vampire themed musical film. In the same year he also starred opposite Susan Traylor, Daniela Sea, Pleasant Gehman, Garrett Swann and Michael Maize in Steve Balderson's feature film drama "The Casserole Club". Richardson received an Independent Vision Award for Best Actor for his performance in "The Casserole Club" at Vision Fest in New York City in 2011.

Also in 2011, he starred in a short film "Unwound". It's an entry for Producers Guild of America premiere Weekend Shorts Event contest to benefit the Debra Hill Foundation. The film only took 51 hours from script to final cut.

Personal life

Richardson's engagement to Kristin Kay Willits, along with band mate and cousin Brian Littrell's to Leighanne Wallace, was announced on MTV in February 2000. The couple married on June 17, 2000 at Lee County's Cathedral Domain in Kentucky. They welcomed their first child together, son Mason Frey Richardson, on July 3, 2007 at 4:56 am. On July 10, 2013 at 3:05 am, the couple welcomed their second son, Maxwell Haze Richardson.