A new Netflix documentary tells the story of the man who shamelessly ripped off some of the biggest boy bands in pop.
“Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam” tells the story of Lou Pearlman.
Pearlman was a businessman who mercilessly enriched himself at the expense of the likes of the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC.
The three-part series takes an in-depth look at Pearlman’s dual role as an industry pioneer and ruthless criminal.
It features never-before-seen home videos of boy bands in their early days .
It exposes the glitz, glamour, and deceit behind Pearlman’s unstable empire.
Pearlman, initially a blimp rental executive, transitioned to talent management and created the Backstreet Boys following a nationwide talent search.
The group went on to become one of the best-selling boy bands of all time.
Pearlman also managed NSYNC, Aaron Carter, Take 5, O-Town, Brooke Hogan, Natural, LFO, and Innosense.
The documentary makers spoke to several of the band members.
These include AJ McLean and Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys, Chris Kirkpatrick of *NSYNC, Michael Johnson and Patrick King of Natural, and Erik-Michael Estrada of O-Town.
Lou Pearlman was jailed for 25 years for a massive Ponzi scheme
As the bands became more successful, they became aware of the fact Pearlman was enriching himself off the back of their popularity.
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They launched multiple lawsuits against him, accusing him of exploiting them and unfairly taking most of their earnings.
The criminal investigation found Pearlman was running an enormous Ponzi Scheme.
He owed $200 million to various banks.
Pearlman had convinced thousands of private investors to invest around $300 million in a non-existent FDIC-insured savings program.
In 2007, he was charged with conspiracy, money laundering, and making false claims in bankruptcy.
This led to a 25-year federal prison sentence.
He died in prison in 2016 at the age of 62.
More than $400 million from his Ponzi scheme is still unrecovered.
The show can now be found on Netflix.
