Ringo Starr Once Called Out Boy Bands and Totally Missed the Mark

Ringo Starr has spent decades working in the music business. His first notable band shared German stages with The Beatles, and then he sat in with the band and nailed a drum part that let Paul McCartney know he was the perfect drummer for the group. Ringo and The Beatles developed their skills and sound by playing live, so manufactured boy bands don’t make sense to him. Still, Ringo’s disparaging comments about boy bands totally missed the mark.

Ringo Starr once called out boy bands: ‘I don’t understand it’

While promoting his Ringorama solo album, Ringo chatted with Conan O’Brien about The Beatles and the state of music. O’Brien asked Ringo his opinion about boy bands that come together at casting calls, and the drummer said forming a group that way doesn’t square with him. 

“I come from, first of all, get your instrument, then [start] playing with friends, playing in clubs, playing in theaters, and playing, in our case, stadiums,” Ringo told O’Brien (via YouTube). “I play for the joy of playing.”

Ringo didn’t stop there, though. 

“The ones they put together, I don’t understand it, really,” Ringo said. “You put five strangers in a room, you tell them what to sing, some producer will take a line from that one and a line from this one, they’ll go on stage pretending they had something to do with this, and the minute it’s not working, they just get dumped.”

Ringo is entitled to have a strong boy band opinion, but his hypocritical comments missed the mark.

Ringo forgot The Beatles were basically a boy band

The Beatles came together organically, as Ringo told O’Brien. John Lennon had a band, Paul joined, Paul recruited George Harrison, and Ringo came on board to complete the Fab Four. But The Beatles were technically a boy band.

Boy bands have their professional lives carefully controlled by their managers. The Beatles were no different.

Brian Epstein took things a step further. He booked venues and accommodations during The Beatles’ touring days. He was heavily involved in the Fab Four’s personal lives, too. He split up the band on vacations to avoid clashes, keeping friction to a minimum so the music continues to flow. 

People dubbed producer George Martin the fifth Beatle, but Epstein was just as much a part of their lives. George asked him for permission to marry Patty Boyd. She once said Epstein’ influence on the band helped the four lads from Liverpool become more cultured. John, never one to mince words (good or bad), once said going anywhere without Epstein was like leaving the house without pants.

Ringo misfired with his boy band comments. 

When music fans think of boy bands, groups such as *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, and One Direction spring to mind. Older generations might think of New Kids on the Block or 98 Degrees. Those groups don’t compare to The Beatles musically, but they all had their images and lives controlled by their managers, just like those boy bands. It’s no surprise that when Epstein died, John saw the end of The Beatles looming.

The Beatles did one thing boy bands typically don’t

With their matching suits, carefully-controlled image, and strong-willed manager, The Beatles were technically a boy band. Still, Ringo was right that the Fab Four separated themselves from what we now think of as boy bands.

First, The Beatles didn’t come together during an audition process. They played with Liverpool musicians in various groups and came together naturally. And like his bandmate, Ringo had impressive musical talent.

But more importantly, the Fab Four eventually wrote their own music, and it changed the world. Guitar-driven pop music would look drastically different if not for albums such as Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road. *NSYNC and One Direction achieved massive popularity, and stars such as Justin Timberlake and Harry Styles helped write some of the music, but their songs didn’t enter the zeitgeist.

Ringo missed the mark with his boy band opinion. The Beatles started as something of a boy band, but they developed into something completely different by the time they broke up.

For more on the entertainment world and exclusive interviews, subscribe to Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s YouTube channel.