98 Degrees of R&B

Silky smooth sounds of boy band net them motown deal

It takes most successful vocal groups years of hard work and dedication to be able to play in front of thousands of people. >It took 98 Degrees about four days.

"Nick (Laghey) and I had been in the same group for a few months," explains Jeff Timmons, who was the first Degree to move to Los Angeles from Ohio.

"The day we got together with Justin (Jeffre) and this guy John (later replaced by Laghey's brother Drew), we recorded a demo of us singing The Star Spangled Banner and sent a copy to Dodgers Stadium.

"We insisted we sing for the woman who picks the singers for the baseball games. But she wouldn't see us."

Being the persistent guys they are, 98 Degrees didn't leave until they serenaded the entire Dodgers Stadium office building staff, eventually winning over the surprised woman.

Later that week, they were singing in front of 50,000 Dodgers fans.

"We were extremely nervous," he says.

"I don't think I've ever been that nervous ... I'm kind of a shy person, but as things went on, I sort of came out of my shell."

Just a little more than six months after their stadium debut, 98 Degrees -- who play Barrymore's tonight -- became one of the very few white acts to be signed to the legendary Motown label.

"Being a white group, Motown was very cautious with us. I don't think they really knew what to expect ... They were very involved with our image. They wanted to make sure that we were up to their standards. We're from Ohio, so I think they were expecting us to be farmers or something.

"We signed with Motown because of its history. To be in the same company as Marvin Gaye, The Temptations and Stevie Wonder is quite an honor for us. In fact, when we formed, it was our goal to get signed to Motown."

The band's self-titled debut has done very well in the U.S. and especially Canada, where they have garnered a large following of swooning girls with their smooth R&B ballads.

Which, of course, leads to the unavoidable Backstreet Boys comparisons. "We don't really mind being compared to other boy bands, but we're different," says Timmons.

"I know everyone says that, but we're more R&B-sounding than the rest of them. And we do live vocals, while most boy bands lip-synch.

"It's frustrating, because we get accused of lipsynching. But maybe that's a good thing."

The members of 98 Degrees will sign autographs and meet their fans at the South Keys Wal-Mart between 4 and 6 p.m. today.