Jeff Timmons [Of 98 Degrees]: Still Staying True

Please introduce for me the members of 98 Degrees… 

The 98 Degrees members are brothers Nick and Drew Lachey, Justin Jeffre and Jeff Timmons.

Let’s hop right into this latest single / video, “Where Do You Wanna Go” — Tell me about this particular track; how did it come to fruition?

We were working with some amazing young producers on some remixes of our old stuff; Brandon Mashburn and Aaron Ellsworth, and they played this song for us. We knew we wanted to cut the record immediately!

You all also semi-recently kicked off the 98 Days Of Summer campaign — What all does this entail?

It celebrates our career with the fans by sharing moments of our 24-year journey with them on social media. They’re sharing their memories as well, which is really fun. On the 98th day we’re releasing something new.

Now besides the holiday LP, Let It Snow, in 2017, the masses haven’t heard from you all collectively since ‘13’s 2.0 — Why is that?

We’ve just been busy touring and having fun with that. I think the pandemic put things into perspective for us that this isn’t going to last forever, and we missed recording music together, so we hopped to it.

What had / have you all been up to, both personally and professionally speaking, during this musical hiatus?

We’ve all been doing different things. Nick (who earlier this year took home the coveted mirror ball in season five of The Masked Singer) experienced enormous success in television, Drew won Dancing with the Stars and created an amazing non-profit performing arts school in Cincinnati with his lovely wife, Lea, and Justin explored politics. I’ve been working on producing music, live shows and television.

So what exactly was it about now – in 2021 – that prompted you all to come together again musically speaking?

We simply just missed making music in the studio together.

So I’m assuming here, but “Where Do You Wanna Go” is the lead single from your next / sixth studio album?

We’re not sure if we’re going to release a new album, EP or just singles. We’re dropping a whole bunch of remixes of our old stuff soon and are continuing to record. The landscape has changed so much that there are no rules on how to do everything now, which we love.

That said, what all specifically can you all reveal / divulge about this forthcoming body of work?

We wanted to stay true to our 98 Degrees’ sound, while implementing some fresh production, and we feel we’ve been able to do that.

How then does the new material(s) either differ and / or compare to previous 98 Degrees’ efforts?

The new stuff has some nice tempo to it, and the production is very current with what’s hot today.

Reflecting, tell me your whole inception into music — When did you all first become interested in it? And, how did it all begin for 98 Degrees?

I’ve been into music my whole life. Love everything from Michael Jackson to Metallica and everything in between. I started the group with some other guys, went to California to pursue the dream, they quit, and I was introduced to Nick through a mutual friend. Nick sent me his tape, I fell in love with his voice and the rest is history.

Now you all are native to Ohio, correct? So growing up in ‘The Buckeye State,’ who all did / do you all consider to be your strongest musical influences?

We’re influenced by a whole host of artists and genres. All of the old Motown acts, classic rock, doo-wop, Boyz II Men, etcetera.
That said, how do you all classify your overall sound and / or style?

I’d say it’s Pop / R&B. True quartet. Tenor, Tenor, Baritone, Bass.

Where does your moniker originally derive from?

We thought the name was hot, so our management team designed a cool logo that stuck throughout the years. We got lucky!

What particular string of events actually led to your initial linking up with the powers-that-be at Motown Records?

Montell Jordan did our demo and one of his dancers, Hi-Hat, passed it along to DJ Clark Kent. He liked it, got a meeting with the late great Andre Harrell, we met with him and performed live, and he signed us on the spot.

Switching gears here,.. Longevity, what do you all feel the key to yours has been?

Hard work, treating others with respect and good songs.

On a more serious note, are you all happy with the current state of “Pop(ular)” music? And, even more specifically, why do you all feel that we don’t see more of a resurgence of “boy bands?” Of course BTS being the exception…

I’m a fan of all pop music, so I love all of it. I’m happy to see anybody experience success in such a tough business. I’m a fan of the current state of music, contrary to what many think.

To date, what has been your greatest career achievement(s), at least thus far anyway?

We’ve sold nearly 15 million records, but I think still being around nearly 25 years later is the best thing possible.

One track of yours that you all think defines you all and why? 

“True to Your Heart,” our duet with Steve Wonder that we did for Disney. It’s with a Motown legend, and the title say it all. We stayed true to ourselves, and that’s made all the difference.