AJ McLean's oldest daughter 'hates with a passion' Backstreet Boys' iconic hit

Backstreet Boys founding member AJ McLean revealed that his oldest daughter “hates” one of the band’s classic hits.

Conversing with PEOPLE at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 17, the 47-year-old acclaimed singer shared that his 12-year-old daughter Eliott “hates” the band's 1999 song I Want It That Way “with a passion."

McLean quipped, “My oldest daughter hates that song, hates it with a passion. Because she gets teased at school when she walks into school.”

“When I drop her off, the boys [sing the lyrics], ‘Tell me why,’ and she's like, ‘Stop doing that.’ And then I start doing it to embarrass her because that's what dads do,” the Larger than Life crooner explained.

McLean went on to note that Eliott, who changed her name from Ava in 2022, still “secretly” likes her father's music and has favourite Backstreet Boys songs.

Referring to I Want It That Way, he admitted that, as for the band, “We love that record. We love showing the meaning.”

Notably, this revelation came following the announcement of the Back Street Boys return to Las Vegas for a residency called Into the Millennium at the Sphere in July and August this year.

In July, the band will also drop Millennium 2.0, a new version of their 1999 album Millennium, which will have six new demos and remastered versions of the original songs. They will perform the album over nine concerts.

For the unversed, AJ McLean shares his two children, Eliott and Lyric, 7, with his ex-wife Rochelle DeAnna McLean.

It is pertinent to mention that the couple separated in January 2024 after 12 years of marriage.