JC Chasez

JC Chasez
Chasez at Bryant Park in September 2007
Background information
Birth name	Joshua Scott Chasez (adopted name)
Born	(1976-08-08) August 8, 1976 Washington, D.C.
Genres	Pop, dance-pop
Occupation(s)	Singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, actor
Years active	1988–present
Labels	Jive/Zomba (1999–2007)

Joshua Scott "JC" Chasez (born August 8, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, entertainer, record producer, and occasional actor. He started out his career as a cast member on the The Mickey Mouse Club. Then he rose to superstardom as one of the two lead vocalists of the boy band NSYNC. After the band's split-up, Chasez released his solo album, Schizophrenic, and has gone on to write and produce for music acts such as Girls Aloud, Basement Jaxx, David Archuleta, Matthew Morrison, and the Backstreet Boys. He also served as a judge for America's Best Dance Crew.

Early life and education

Chasez was born in Washington, DC, on August 8, 1976. His biological mother entrusted his care to her former foster parents, Roy and Karen Chasez, hoping that they would be able to provide him with an education and a stable family life. At age five, he was adopted by Roy and Karen. Chasez has said that he does not know who his biological father is, and has no plans to search for him.

After being adopted, Chasez grew up in Bowie, Maryland, raised as a Mennonite. He has a younger brother, Tyler, and a younger sister, Heather. Chasez attended the former Robert Goddard Middle School and then Bowie High School. He always danced when he was a child.

Career

Early career

As a child, Chasez was extremely shy, but when a friend bet him $20 to enter a talent show, he won the contest and soon realized he had a knack for performing and that he really enjoyed singing. In 1989, his mother Karen Chasez noticed a small ad in the Washington Post announcing auditions for Disney's The Mickey Mouse Club, and encouraged Chasez to try out. He chose to audition, selecting the song "Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx. Chasez was soon cast as a performer in the fourth season and stayed until the show's cancellation in 1995. Since there was another Mouseketeer named Joshua, Chasez went by his first and last initials, "JC", to avoid confusion. It was during his time as a Mouseketeer that Chasez befriended future bandmate Justin Timberlake, along with other future entertainers including Britney Spears, Ryan Gosling, Tony Lucca, Keri Russell, and Christina Aguilera.

He wrote the song "Give In To Me" (a.k.a. "Give Me The Love I Need") when he was 18 in 1994 and he sings the lead on it on Euge Groove's debut CD.

'N Sync

Main article: 'N Sync

JC Chasez and Justin Timberlake were the two lead singers of what would become the popular boy band NSYNC. The group officially formed in 1995, and became popular in Europe in 1996. In 1998, the band released its debut album *NSYNC which sold 11 million copies, and became very popular in the United States. After the band had its series of legal struggles with manager Lou Pearlman, they signed with Jive Records. They released their second studio album No Strings Attached in 2000, which became the fastest selling album of all time selling 2.4 million copies in the first week alone, making it the most albums sold in one week, and had the #1 hit single "It's Gonna Be Me". Other singles from the No Strings Attached Album included Bye Bye Bye, This I Promise You, and It Makes Me Ill. The band went on to produce their third studio album, Celebrity in 2001, which sold 1.8 million copies in the first week.

After the group's Celebrity Tour in 2002, the band decided to take a hiatus. During this time, Chasez produced his own album, Schizophrenic. They never officially disbanded, but since 2004, they have never reunited for any musical purposes, and there have been mixed reactions as far as whether the reunion would happen. In August 2013, JC rejoined with Justin and the rest of NSYNC for a one time performance at the MTV Awards.

Solo career

JC giving an autograph

During 'NSYNC's scheduled hiatus, Chasez pursued work as a songwriter and producer. His first solo single, "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)", co-produced by Dallas Austin, was released on the 2002 Drumline soundtrack.

In 2004, Chasez's debut album Schizophrenic was released on Jive Records. The album was produced by Chasez, Dallas Austin, and contributing artists Basement Jaxx, BT and rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard, under the pseudonym Dirt McGirt.

Promotion for the album was affected by former band mate Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson's Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy, after which Chasez was unceremoniously dropped from his halftime-show performance at the 2004 Pro Bowl. The NFL feared lyrics of the album's first single, "Some Girls Dance with Women", expressed too much sexuality.

In 2007, Chasez parted ways with Jive Records, indefinitely stalling the release of his second album, The Story of Kate. Two singles from the album, "Until Yesterday" and "You Ruined Me" have been released online. Chasez continues to work as a song-writer and producer, with songs written for David Archuleta and Backstreet Boys. Chasez was a judge on Randy Jackson's America's Best Dance Crew on MTV. He stayed on the panel for all seven seasons from 2008 to 2012, until its cancellation.

In November 2010, the song "If U C Kate" written by Dallas Austin, Taio Cruz, Alan Nglish, and Chasez was featured on the British band McFly's album, Above the Noise.

Longtime friend and co-worker, Justin Timberlake helped produce a few songs on Chasez's album, said "In my opinion, he had the best voice out of all of us ... Out of all the boy bands, call 'em what you will, he was the one that could out-sing all of us. And I've known him since I was 10, so it was fun to sit behind the board and push him."

In February 2012, Chasez announced via his website that he is holding auditions, together with the producer and songwriter Jimmy Harry, to form an all-girl group with ages between 18 and 24. Most of the band members have been selected as of November 2012, and the group has been dubbed Girl Radical.

In 2014 Chasez was selected to join the North American tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber's rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar as Pontius Pilate. Other cast members included Superstar winner Ben Forster and other well known artists, including Incubus' Brandon Boyd, Destiny's Child Michelle Williams, and Public Image Ltd's John Lydon. However, on May 30, 2014 the entire North American tour was abruptly canceled, with poor projected ticket sales cited as the reason.

Discography

See also: NSYNC discography

See also: JC Chasez discography

Studio albums

• Schizophrenic (2004)

Filmography

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2008	Killer Movie	Ted Buckley
2009	21 and a Wake-Up	Dr. Tom Drury
2014	Red Sky	Alex Cruise

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1991–1996	The All-New Mickey Mouse Club (TANMMC)	Himself	Seasons 4-7
2000	Saturday Night Live	Himself/Musical Guest	(along with NSYNC)
2001	The Simpsons	Himself	Episode: "New Kids on the Blecch"
2002	What I Like About You	Himself	"Spa Day" (Season 1, episode 2)
2003	Greetings from Tucson	Jay Dugray	"Home Sweet Home" (Season 1, episode 18)
2005	What's New, Scooby-Doo?	Himself	A Scooby-Doo Valentine
2006	Ghost Whisperer	Samson	"The Curse of the Ninth" (Season 2, episode 9)
2008–2012	America's Best Dance Crew	Himself	Judge

External links

• JC Chasez at AllMusic
• JC Chasez at IMDb