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Jelly Roll Teams Up With AJ McLean For Run Through Backstreet Boys’ ‘I Want It That Way’ During Toronto Show

Wednesday night's (July 10) gig was part of Jelly's first-ever international swing of shows.

AJ McLean and Jelly Roll attend the 2024 BMG Pre-Grammy Party at Bar Lis on Jan. 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

AJ McLean and Jelly Roll attend the 2024 BMG Pre-Grammy Party at Bar Lis on Jan. 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

AJ McLean and Jelly Roll attend the 2024 BMG Pre-Grammy Party at Bar Lis on Jan. 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

Jelly Roll continues to provide proof that dreams do come true. On Wednesday night (July 10) during his first-ever solo international date, the “Save Me” singer brought out a very special guest to help him celebrate. Performing at the 2,500-capacity venue History in Toronto, the country superstar surprised the sold-out house by inviting the Backstreet Boys’ AJ McLean out to help him on a run through the boy band’s iconic 1999 single “I Want It That Way.”

“Get on out here AJ, let’s sing some music for these motherf–kers in Toronto, baby!,” Jelly shouted as McLean waltzed on stage to screams from the crowd. The two men were in perfect harmony on their duet, with the audience enthusiastically helping out on the “tell me whyyyy” chorus as if the whole thing had been rehearsed beforehand.


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During the show, Jelly took a moment to savor his first trip up North while shouting out some classic Canadian cuisine, telling the crowd, “technically, this week is officially my international debut. It’s the first time I’ve… let me tell you something. Everything’s been great. Cover the kids’ ears, but the weed has been incredible, the people have been great. And I mean, I never had poutine until yesterday… I’m sorry I was late to the party, but I will take it home and make a tradition of throwing gravy on my fries.”

In June, Jelly Roll announced that he’d booked his first non-U.S. dates, which included a July 8 show at the Meridian Center in St. Catharines in Ontario at a benefit for the Heather Winterstein Foundation, which was followed by a July 9 gig at Ottawa’s Bluesfest.

“I can’t tell ya’ll how unreal this was man. I kind of gave up hope that they were ever going to let me into Canada,” he told the crowd. Man, I couldn’t have asked for a better reception.”

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The 39-year-old singer who has scored three No. 1 hits at Canadian radio to date, has never booked any shows in Canada — or anywhere else overseas to date — due to visa restrictions tied to a number of arrests and convictions earlier in his life. Jelly has been candid about his past legal issues and jail time, including dozens of stints behind bars on drug charges dating back to when he was 14, as well as an arrest at 16 for aggravated robbery that sent him to prison for a year when he was tried as an adult; he faced a potential 20-year sentence in that case, though he served just over a year and was put on probation for seven years.

Check out a clip of the duet below.

This article was first published by Billboard U.S.

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No, Tyler, The Creator Isn’t Making a Hebrew Jazz Funk Album With Lil Yachty
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Tyler, the Creator performs at the Coachella Stage during the 2024 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at Empire Polo Club on April 20, 2024 in Indio, California.

Rb Hip Hop

No, Tyler, The Creator Isn’t Making a Hebrew Jazz Funk Album With Lil Yachty

Yachty was clearly joking around, but Tyler still felt it was necessary to clear things up.

Tyler, The Creator and Lil Yachty are not working on Hebrew jazz funk album.

Lil Yachty went on his Instagram over the weekend and posted a series of pics of him and Tyler in matching yellow outfits to thank him for taking him along on the Chromakopia tour, and joked that the West Coast rapper was secretly working on a high-concept project. “Tour is done, love you brother,” Yachty wrote in the caption. “Blessed to be apart. Let y’all in on a secret… dat boi Tyler workin’ on a Hebrew jazz funk album, sh– gone be tough.. 2026.”

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