TORONTO -- "The Backstreet Boys RULE!!!" is the chant being spread up and down John and Queen Streets in front of the MuchMusic building today.



Howie, Kevin, Brian, A.J. and Nick will make a special live appearance on the music channel tonight at 8 p.m. ET to the delight of their many fans.

MuchMusic personnel estimated there were about 300 people (mostly girls) waiting in line for a chance to glimpse the Backstreet Boys in the flesh. Some fans have been here since yesterday afternoon.

Kerri Jones and her group of friends, ages 14 to 17, have seen the boys in concert five times and are going to their show in Toronto tomorrow night.

"Just to shake their hands and congratulate them for doing such a great job ..." daydreams Kerri Wilson about meeting the group, "cause they've been such an influence on my life."



When asked about the latest Backstreet album, "Black & Blue", which sold well but didn't beat boy band rival *Nsync's sales record, Kerri Jones isn't shy about voicing her opinion.

"It's the most amazing album ever, I don't know why *Nsync beat them. *Nsync sucks!" she screams with her friends.

"I would have some respect for *Nsync if they didn't copy the Backstreet Boys in every single way, but I think they do, personally," Kerri adds.

"A lot of other bands copy the Backstreet Boys, in a way all boy bands do," says Amanda Ford.

When asked which boy is their favourite, each girl has a different answer, screaming the names of the boys at the top of their lungs.

Nine-year-old Sarah Cunningham is waiting in line with her big sister and her friends. She's got B-R-I-A-N written across her forehead in black marker and says she only likes Backstreet's Brian and Nick.



Sarah says her mom said it was okay for her to miss school today and she's been in line for about five hours and that her favourite Backstreet tune is "As Long As You Love Me".

Danielle, Alyssa, Jenny and Nadia have been standing in the cold since six o'clock this morning, even though they know they won't make it inside the MuchMusic building to see the boys tonight. Only a few lucky fans managed to get wristbands and will be allowed inside for the Much event. The wristbands mean the owners can skip the line-up and just arrive at least a half-hour before the boys go on air.

"We're too big fans to get wrist bands," says Nadia. "It's always the people who don't really like them that get in. It's just that the ones who like them the most aren't lucky enough to get anything."

Nadia and her friends think Much will be full of "clients and stuff" tonight, but they still plan to wait until the Boys arrive.

Leslie Bloom and her two friends, Colleen and Ashley, have been in line since 12 o'clock yesterday afternoon. They don't have wristbands either but they've been guaranteed a good viewing spot in front of the window.

The girls are 17 and 18. They say they're still in the "poster stage" of their Backstreet fandom and have loved the group since they were 12.

The Backstreet Boys will perform in Toronto tomorrow (Wednesday) night, Feb. 7, 2001, at the SkyDome.



-- AllPop