Aaron Carter

Aaron Charles Carter (born December 7, 1987) is an American pop singer. The brother of singer Nick Carter, he came to fame as a pop singer in the late 1990s, establishing himself as a "heartthrob" among teenage audiences during the early 2000s. Carter, who has also launched an acting career, is known for media reports regarding his personal life, including his relationships with actresses Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan, and his legal problems, some involving his mother.

Biography

Early life

Carter was born and raised in Tampa, Florida, where his parents ran a home for senior citizens; the family was originally from New York, where his brother, Nick, was born. His father, Robert Gene Carter, has Jewish ancestry and his mother, Jane Elizabeth Spaulding, is a Mayflower descendant of Welsh, Irish, German, English and 1/4 Blackfoot ancestry.

Aside fron his older brother, Nick (best known as a member of the Backstreet Boys), he also has three sisters: twin sister Angel Carter (a model), Bobbie Jean Carter, and Leslie Carter. He also has an older half-sister named Ginger from his father's first marriage. In June 2005, he welcomed the birth of his half-brother, Kanden (from his father's new marriage). He also has a younger step-sister, Taelyn, by his father's new wife.

Music career

Carter's music consists of hip-hop and romantic ballads. He plays several instruments, including drums, piano, guitar, and saxophone; however, he normally does not perform as a member of his band during concerts. Carter is a dancer who has done some of his own choreography.

Carter began performing career at the age of seven, spending two years as the lead singer of a local band, "Dead End", and making his first solo appearance, singing "Crush On You", when opening for the Backstreet Boys in Berlin in March 1997. The performance was followed by a record contract, and in the fall of 1997, he released his first single, "Crush On You". His first full-length album was released on December 1, 1997. The eponymous debut album achieved gold status in Norway, Spain, Denmark, Canada, and Germany, and was released in the United States on June 16, 1998. On May 18, 1998, Carter released the EP "Let The Music Heal Your Soul". The record was a fund-raising project that featured vocals by Carter, the Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync, the Moffatts, and other artists (collectively referred to as the "Bravo All-Stars" after the German youth magazine Bravo).

Carter's parents later filed a suit against his former manager, Lou Pearlman, for failure to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in royalties on Carter's 1998 album, which was released through Pearlman's label and production company, Trans Continental. On March 13, 2003, Pearlman was declared in contempt of court for ignoring a court order to produce documents relating to royalty payments.

Carter's vocals have been included on several soundtracks, including a collaboration with musician Patrick Kilcoyne on The First Movie (1999), Rugrats In Paris: The Movie (2000), Boy Genius and The Princess Diaries (both 2001). His next album, Aaron's Party (Come Get It) was released in the United States on September 26, 2000 under the JIVE Label. The album achieved triple-platinum certification, selling more than 1.5 million copies in the United States. The album was followed by a compilation of music videos (October 10, 2000) and a concert DVD (July 31, 2001). At the age of thirteen, Carter recorded the album Oh, Aaron, which was released on August 7, 2001 and featured his first duet recording with his brother, Nick. Oh, Aaron was accompanied by a video/DVD of the same name, which was released on March 26, 2002 and included footage of his 2001 concert in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, as well as music videos and interviews. Play Along Toys also created an Aaron Carter action figure in conjuction with the album's release.

Carter's next album, Another Earthquake, was released on September 3, 2002, during the "Rock, Rap, and Retro" tour. The album featured the patriotic-themed "America A. O." and the ballad "Do You Remember". Carter's Most Requested Hits, a collection including tracks from his last three albums as well as a new single, "One Better", was released on November 3, 2003. Carter's most recent CD single was "Saturday Night", which was released on March 22, 2005 and promoted by Carter during his summer 2005 "Remix Tour". The song was released by Trans Continental label, with Lou Pearlman as executive producer. The single was also featured in the soundtrack of the film Popstar, in which Carter starred.

On March 21, 2006, Trans Continental filed a lawsuit against Carter within the Los Angeles Superior Court, citing that Carter allegedly reneged on a recording deal. Carter had signed the contract on December 7, 2004, when he was seventeen and underage. A year later, his attorney notified the record company that Carter had the right to "cancel or void various agreements" that were signed when he was a minor.

Acting career

Carter has become active as an actor, making guest appearances on several television series, including Grand Strand (television show), Lizzie McGuire, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and 7th Heaven. In April of 2001, he made his Broadway debut, playing JoJo the Who in Seussical the Musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty.

Carter made his feature film debut in a cameo in the 2004 comedy, Fat Albert. His first lead role in a feature was in Popstar (2005), a direct-to-video film that was based heavily on his own life as a performer. A real-life motocross racer, Carter also appeared in 2005's Supercross.

Carter and his siblings will star in a reality show, House Of Carters, which is scheduled to premiere in October 2006 on E!. The series will feature all five Carter siblings reuniting to live in the same house.

Hobbies

Carter is active in sports, including water sports (surfing, swimming, scuba diving, kayaking), soccer, golf, baseball, football and motocross bike racing. He is also an avid basketball player; he plays basketball with his tour mates, and has been known to shoot baskets on stage during his concerts. He partnered with athlete Shaquille O'Neal for the music video to "That's How I Beat Shaq". In January 2005, he joined brother Nick in Whittier, California and played a game with the Hollywood Knights celebrity basketball team, raising money for local Los Angeles schools.

In addition to sports, Carter enjoys working out. At the age of fourteen, he took up weightlifting and boosted his body weight from 120 lb to 140 lb. Carter, who often performs bare-armed, is also a gymnast, and frequently performs back flips, handstands, and one-arm cartwheels in his concert appearances.

Carter is also a passionate advocate for the protection of the Everglades habitat in his native Florida. At the age of fifteen, he appeared in a U.S. Coast Guard video promoting the use of life jackets among boaters and anglers.

Personal life

Carter has dated actresses Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan, resulting in a high profile feud between the two. Carter was thrown out of the house of wrestler Hulk Hogan, while there trying to date Hogan's daughter, Brooke. Hogan has said that Carter was "arrogant" and "disrespectful".

Carter's parents separated in March 2003 and later filed for divorce. In December 2003, Carter filed for legal emancipation from his mother, alleging she had taken more than $100,000 from his bank account without his permission. Carter mentioned in a 20/20 interview that he was missing sums amounting to $6,400,000. Carter and his mother resolved their differences the following January, and the filing was withdrawn.

Since his parents' divorce, Carter has lived with his father in Marathon, Florida.

Carter has several known tattoos, including a skull inside a sun (a large tattoo centered on his upper back), a nautical star with a "7" in the center of it on his right inner forearm, an "A" on his right wrist and a "C" on his left wrist and a Sagittarius sign on his inner left forearm. His most recent tattoo, portraying an angel, was added to his tattoo collection in January 2006 and is on his left lower arm.

Carter had his left ear pierced when he was younger, but let it grow over because of an infection. He subsequently had both ears pierced, and often wears large diamond studs in each ear.

Carter also has had some medical things happen, he had bone spurs in his hip (he had surgery and was ok soon after), and also had almost lost his life sinking in quicksand, he was saved by family members...

Alleged Drug Use

In March 2005, the National Enquirer published photos showing what appeared to be a shirtless Carter smoking marijuana from a small bong. The photos accompany an article headlined "Aaron Carter Drug Binge", and featured an interview claiming Carter spends as much as $1,500 to $2,000 on drugs every month.

Carter's mother has also spoken out regarding his alleged drug abuse, citing an incident in 2005 in which Carter, then seventeen, tested positive for marijuana, opiates, and possibly ecstasy.

Awards

Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards 2001 - Favorite Breakout Star
Teen Choice Awards 2001 - Choice Male Artist of the Year, winner
Guiness World Records - Youngest recording artist to have four consecutive Top 10 hits (as of 2006)

Discography

Albums

1997 - Aaron Carter - #12 UK (1998 release)
1998 - Let The Music Heal Your Soul (single)
2000 - Aaron's Party (Come Get It...)
2001 - Oh Aaron
2002 - Another Earthquake
2003 - Aaron Carter - Most Requested Hits
2006 - Come Get It: The Very Best of Aaron Carter
2006 - 2 Good 2 B True

Singles

1997 - "Crush On You" - #9 UK
1998 - "Crazy Little Party Girl" - #7 UK
1998 - "I'm Gonna Miss You Forever" - #24 UK
1998 - "Surfin' USA" - #18 UK
2000 - "I Want Candy" - #31 UK
2000 - "Aaron's Party (Come Get It...)" - #51 UK
2000 - "That's How I Beat Shaq" - #96 US (2001 release)
2000 - "The Clapping Song"
2001 - "Oh, Aaron"
2001 - "Leave It Up To Me" - #22 UK
2001 - "Not Too Young, Not Too Old"
2001 - "I'm All About You"
2002 - "Another Earthquake"
2002 - "Summertime"
2002 - "To All the Girls"
2003 - "Do You Remember"
2003 - "She Wants Me" (with Nick Carter)
2004 - "One Better"
2005 - "Saturday Night"

Soundtracks

Pokemon: The First Movie (1999) - "(Have Some) Fun With The Funk"
The Little Vampire (2000) - "Iko Iko"
Rugrats In Paris: The Movie (2000) - "Life Is A Party"
Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius (2001) - "Leave It Up To Me," "AC's Alien Nation," "Go Jimmy Jimmy"
The Princess Diaries (2001) - "Little Bitty Pretty One"
Popstar (2005) - "Saturday Night" (live), "Enough Of Me," "I Want Candy" (live), "One Better" (live), "Do You Remember" (live)

Filmography

I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With (2005)
Supercross (2005)
Popstar (2005)
Fat Albert (2004)
Liberty's Kids (2002) (TV) (voice)

References

Footnotes

External links

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