5 Scientific Reasons You'll Never Get Over Your Boy Band Crush

My friend is a cool mom and is always taking her daughters to go see boy bands. She says it's because her daughter loves Big Time Rush. My friend may not admit it, but she's just as big a fan of BTR as her daughter is. The truth is a lot of grown-ass women grew up listening to their favorite boy bands, and still like them.

By definition, a boy band is a vocal group consisting of young male singers (usually in their teens or early twenties at the time of formation) who sing love songs marketed towards tween girls. Since these bands mostly don't play any instruments, it's ironic that they're called a band, not a vocal group. What they lack in amazing musical ability they more than makeup for in amazing choreography, so there's that.

The golden era of the boy bands was in the 1990s and 2000s with iconic groups like The Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, and 98 Degrees. Before you go hating on the boy bands of years gone by, remember that you have NSYNC to thank for the hotness of Justin Timberlake and the presence of Joey Fatone on every celebrity cooking show. 

While the 2010s have had their share of boy bands, the greatest of these is One Direction, though they're splitting up (hopefully just temporarily). This news hasn't only broken the hearts of girls everywhere; there are quite a few adult women also mourning the end of their favorite group.

But these are the solid reasons why grown women still go crazy over boy bands.

1. They're created to appeal to everyone.

"Boy bands are the dream package," says Brad Taylor, owner of Big Machine Agency. "They're put together so that every woman, no matter her age, is attracted to something in the group."

You might enjoy the dance moves or the personality of one of the members, or even how one of the guys styles his hair. Those boy bands work to make you love them, which makes them that much more difficult to resist.

2. They bring on hormonal flares.

Once you've become infatuated with one group (thanks in part to out-of-control estrogen when you're a teen), it's highly likely that you'll have another boy-band-breakout in the future. Boy bands are a lot like herpes: you think your obsession with them is over, but it's just lying dormant, ready to come to the surface again when you least expect it. 

Relationship expert and therapist Paul Hokemeyer says, "[Our recurring boy band love] has to do with neuroplasticity and the way our brains crave the pleasures of the past... If your brain was imprinted with a pleasurable cause and effect, it will desperately hold onto that memory recall. We stick to what works." As adults, we want to recreate the hormonal highs that we felt when we first were into boy bands. 

3. They're personified testosterone.

Having sexual fantasies is healthy, and who better to dream about than one or more members of a boy band? If their dance moves are any indication, they're probably amazing at sex, too.

"They've been hand-picked and cultivated to represent the ideal mate," says Hokemeyer. Haven't you felt a little hot and bothered when Harry Styles smiles?

4. They're nice to their fans.

The worst thing is when celebrities are jerks to their fans, but boy bands have a tendency to be nice to their admirers, and keep in close contact with them via social media. Boy band members will even tweet you back sometimes. I have friends who don't even do that.

5. They're enjoyable to watch. 

In the dark ages, you used to have to count on shows like TRL to see music videos, but now you can get lost for hours going down a YouTube wormhole. Boy bands are entertaining, especially when they play practical jokes like One Direction.

Once you're a boy band fan, you'll probably always be a boy band fan. But if you want to pretend you're only going to a boy band show because of your kids, then that's fine. Your secret is safe. As NSYNC says, "Might sound crazy, but it ain't no lie. Bye, bye, bye."