Early years

In the early 1980s, Maurice Starr discovered R&B/Pop quintet New Edition, and guided their early success. After breaking ties with them, Starr and his business partner, Mary Alford, sought to create a white counterpart act. Auditions were held around Boston, at which some 500 teen-aged boys auditioned. Among them was 15-year-old Donnie Wahlberg, who immediately impressed Starr and Alford, and would become the first member.

Donnie assisted in helping to recruit other members. Among them were his younger brother Mark and his best friend Danny Wood. Wahlberg later coaxed former classmates Jonathan Knight and Jordan Knight, both of whom had exceptional singing voices, into joining. As the group began to take shape, Mark became disillusioned with its direction and opted to quit. Another of Mark's neighborhood friends, Jaime Kelley, took his place. Kelley, though, would eventually be dismissed for lack of concentration and discipline. Starr replaced him with 12-year-old Joey McIntyre, whom the other guys initially resented for being the one to replace their friend. With the final line-up in place, Starr rehearsed the boys diligently and scored the group (which was being called Nynuk) a record deal at Columbia Records. The label, however, demanded Starr change the name of the group. Subsequently they settled on New Kids on the Block, after a rap song that Donnie had written for the album.