Brian Littrell

Some Lesser Known Facts About Brian Littrell

• Brian Littrell spent his childhood in Lexington, Kentucky, USA.

• As a kid, Brian had a great passion for sports. He played in the Little League, organised by a non-profit organisation, and the Babe Ruth League, an international youth baseball and softball league.

• Brian sang his first solo at the Porter Memorial Baptist Church in Lexington at the age of 7. A year later, he was elected as the President of the Youth Chorus.

• Brian actively participated in various school plays, including ‘Grease.’

• At 14, Littrell started performing at weddings and other social events. It was his choir teacher, Barry Turner, who had encouraged him to use his talent to make money.

•  He later began working at Long John Silver’s, a fast food chain.

• Littrell dreamed of becoming a basketball player, but at 5 feet 7 inches, he was rarely chosen for high school tournaments. He also had ambitions of becoming a music minister.

  

• In April 1993, Brian was in history class when his cousin Kevin Richardson told him about an audition for the Backstreet Boys, a rising pop group. The opportunity came after Burk Parsons left the group to pursue a career as a Christian minister; Brian went to Orlando for the audition the next day and got selected.

  

• Brian and writer Samantha Stonebraker began dating in April 1993, shortly after he moved to Orlando. They met through bandmate A. J. McLean, who introduced them at Samantha’s high school in Florida.

  

• While dating Samantha, Brian lived with her family for about two years. However, the duo broke up in April 1997.

• Brian completed high school through correspondence and graduated in 1994.

• Brian, as part of the Backstreet Boys, toured for decades. Their major tours included ‘We Wanna Be with You Tour’ (1995-1996), ‘Backstreet’s Back Tour’ (1997-1998), ‘Never Gone Tour’ (2005-2006), and ‘DNA World Tour’ (2019-2024).

  

• In 1997, Brian sued music manager Lou Pearlman and Trans Continental Records for hiding the group’s earnings. Bandmates Richardson, AJ McLean, and Howie Dorough joined the case in 1998, which led to multiple settlements.

• In 1998, Brian and the other group members appeared in the fantasy sitcom series ‘Sabrina The Teenage Witch,’ which aired on ABC.

  

• The Backstreet Boys made appearances on various television reality shows including NBC’s ‘Saturday Night Live’ (1998), Syndication’s ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ (2005), NBC’s ‘Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’ (2012), and Antena 3’s ‘El Hormiguero’ (2013).

  

• In 1999, Samantha wrote a book titled ‘What You Wanna Know: Backstreet Boys Secrets Only a Girlfriend Can Tell’ in which she shared her experiences with Brian and insights about the band.

  

• In 2000, he appeared as a horse-drawn carriage driver in the film ‘Olive Juice,’ which also featured his wife Leighanne and bandmate A. J. McLean.

  

• While the Backstreet Boys were on a break in the early 2000s, Brian worked on various show business projects, most of which were mainly for charity. He participated in NBA tours and also took part in charity baseball, softball, and golf games.

• Brian participated in a celebrity basketball game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to raise money for the Tampa Children’s Hospital at St. Joseph’s and St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital. The game, held at the USF Sun Dome in March 2000, raised over $30,000.

• During the charity basketball game, Brian’s autographed jersey was sold for $4,300 in a silent auction.

• In 2004, the Backstreet Boys settled with Pearlman for $29.5 million but later claimed that he misled them into the deal.

• Brian had a strong passion for Christian music, which he often described as ‘pop positive.’ In 2004, he signed a solo contract with Reunion Records to pursue his interest in Christian music.

• In 2005, he released his first solo album, Welcome Home. He co-wrote six songs for the album, which sold over 100,000 copies in the US and reached No. 74 on the Billboard 200 and No. 3 on the Christian album charts.

• The ‘Welcome Home’ album featured four singles, ‘In Christ Alone,’ ‘Wish,’ ‘Over My Head,’ and ‘Welcome Home (You).’ The title tracked peaked at No. 2 on the US Christian AC Charts and held the top spot on both Reach FM’s Top 40 and the US R&R Christian Inspirational charts for three weeks.

  

• In 2005, the Backstreet Boys sued Lou and Trans Continental Records again, demanding repayment for legal settlements they had paid to former member Sam “Phoenix Stone” Licata and ex-managers Sybil Hall and Jeanne Tanzy Williams.

• On 6 December 2010, Brian released an album titled ‘Brian Littrell’s Family Christmas,’ featuring his wife Leighanne and son Baylee. On 6 December 2011, he released ‘Christmas with the Littrells,’ which also featured his family.

  

• In 2025, his son, Baylee, auditioned for ABC’s reality show ‘American Idol 23’ with an original song. Brian joined him for a surprise duet, which impressed the judges.

  

• Brian is a fitness enthusiast and often hits the gym.

  

• He loves animals and has two pet dogs named Willard Littrell and Ellie Sue.

  

• He is an avid traveller and often shares his travel experiences on social media.

  

• He consumes alcohol occasionally.