Dream Street

Dream Street was an American pop boy band[1] that was formed in 1999 by Louis Baldonieri and Brian Lukow. The band disbanded in 2002 following a legal dispute between parents of the band members and the band's managers.

This article is about the teen pop group. For other uses, see Dream Street (disambiguation).
Dream Street
OriginNew York, US
Genres
Years active1999 (1999)–2002 (2002), 2020
LabelsAtlantic
Past members

History

The group was initially put together by music producers Louis Baldonieri and Brian Lukow. Originally named 'Boy Wonder' (a name borrowed from the nickname of comic book character Robin from the Batman comics and films). The band featured several boys aged 11–14 from the New York Broadway/Acting scene.[2] Baldonieri and Lukow hoped to make an impact on the pop music industry by introducing a group of teenagers to the scene, all of whom had prior stage-singing experience. Among these original members were former The Broadway Kids members Gregory Raposo and the late Chris Trousdale, who would continue on into the remade group from 1999 until 2002. The lineup was changed not long after they debuted the show in front of several talent agents and record label reps. Their debut included a tap dance number and a jazzy theme song, both of which were sacked quickly after. It also included a cover of the popular song from the musical Rent "Seasons of Love."

Matt Ballinger, Frankie J. Galasso, Jesse McCartney, Raposo and Trousdale would become the new faces of the group and were given the name "Dream Street," which was the name of Lukow and Baldonieri's recording studio in New York City. The only original song they kept was titled "Jennifer Goodbye", which was initially written for Brian Lukow's fiance, then was changed into its modern incarnation months later. Their eponymous debut album was released in 2000 It was certified Gold in the US by the RIAA peaking No. 1 on Billboard's Independent Albums chart and at No. 37 on the Billboard 200. The songs, "It Happens Every Time" and "I Say Yeah" were frequently played on Radio Disney. The boys soon made appearances on various talk shows and television events. In late 2000, Dream Street made an appearance on a show that fellow member McCartney had a recurring role on, ABC's All My Children. The final Dream Street release was the soundtrack album to the released 2002 film The Biggest Fan, which starred Trousdale.

Breakup and Reunion

In mid-2002, parents of the band members filed a lawsuit against Baldonieri and Lukow, alleging that the underage band members were "exposed to booze, women, and pornography".[3] In August 2002 the producers were ruled against, releasing the five band members from their contracts.[4]

On June 11, 2020, McCartney, Galasso, Ballinger, and Raposo reunited for a virtual performance of "It Happens Every Time" to pay tribute to Trousdale following his death on June 2, 2020 after contracting COVID-19.

Post-break-up careers
McCartney at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival premiere of Beware the Gonzo.
  • McCartney has enjoyed a successful solo career releasing four albums, and spawning three top ten singles. He's appeared on many television shows, including Disney's Hannah Montana and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, as well as a 2008 episode of Law & Order: SVU. Jesse had a starring role on The WB's show Summerland, alongside future stars like Zac Efron, and was set to star in Locke and Key; however, the pilot was not picked up for an entire season. In 2008, Jesse was cast as the lead role in the independent film Keith. Jesse had a recurring role in Season 4 of the ABC Family series, Greek, and appeared as a lead in the 2012 movie Chernobyl Diaries, which was a moderate box office success. In June 2011, Jesse released a fragrance for women, "Wanted". Jesse has also forayed into voice acting, performing as Dick Grayson/Robin on the show Young Justice, Terence in the Tinker Bell films, Theodore in the Alvin and the Chipmunks films, and voicing Roxas and Ventus in the popular (English versions) of Kingdom Hearts series of video games. He starred on the hit series Young & Hungry as Cooper. In 2020, he was named the runner-up on the third season of The Masked Singer as the "Turtle".
Raposo in Concert
  • Raposo has been continuing his music career, performing in bands called "Raposo" and "Dead Celebrities". He is also a real estate investor and developer. Raposo is currently playing solo, mostly on the east coast but has toured as far as Japan and Costa Rica. Following the Dream Street breakup, Raposo released a self-titled album in 2003 that charted on the Billboard Independent Albums Chart at No. 40 during its opening week. His second solo album, LossLoveLife was fully funded by his fans through Kickstarter and released in May 2012. Fans also funded Greg's first official music video for the first single off his new album, That Day, which he wrote for a fan with cancer. Raposo has produced for many young artists and most recently signed a licensing deal for his original material.
  • Galasso is also a solo singer. In 2009, Frankie auditioned to be on Glee, but did not make it. So far, Frankie has released one album to Amazon on iTunes, containing three songs. Following the breakup of the band, Frankie was in a 2003 movie called "A Tale of Two Pizzas". Frankie has also performed with the First National Tour of Jersey Boys.
  • Trousdale since the breakup had started on his solo career, even being in a second movie with Kaila Amariah called "Seducing Spirits". He took a short break from the limelight to be with his family. Towards the end of 2010, Chris popped up again to the public eye, when he appeared on Disney's Shake It Up as a parody of Justin Bieber on an episode called "Age It Up". Trousdale also appeared on the show Days of Our Lives, and auditioned for The Voice in 2012, but did not make it past the blind auditions. He died on June 2, 2020, following complications of the Coronavirus.[5][6] Following Chris Trousdale's death his former bandmates had a mini reunion on what would have been his 35th birthday to perform their hit song "It Happens Every Time".[7]
  • Ballinger did not go solo, he went on to be the lead singer for a band called The Juice, which broke up in 2008. He is currently the lead singer in a band named Open Till Midnight. He has also acted in television and films, including small roles in episodes of Law & Order, Bored to Death, and 30 Rock, & began acting on stage in productions of The Sound of Music & The King & I.[8][9] He married Danielle Manning, who had interviewed Dream Street when she was 14, on August 24, 2013.[10]

Discography

Albums

Singles
  • "It Happens Every Time" (2000) - (#48, U.S. Sales-Chart only)[11]
  • "I Say Yeah" (2001)
  • "Sugar Rush" (Valentine's Day Limited Edition - 2001)
  • "With All My Heart" (2002)

Compilations

Videos
  • Dream Street LIVE [Video/DVD] (2001)
  • Dream Street Live at Criterion Theatre [Video/DVD] (1999)

Movies

References
  1. "Into the Mouths of Babes". Phoenix New Times, Jimmy Magahern, July 18, 2002
  2. MacKenzie Wilson. "Dream Street | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 2020-04-10.
  3. "Parents of Dream Street Members Sue". Billboard. Associated Press. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
  4. "Dream Street To Resurface With New Members". Billboard. Associated Press. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
  5. Gonzalez, Sandra (June 3, 2020). "Chris Trousdale, former member of Dream Street, dead at 34". CNN. United States: WarnerMedia. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  6. Murphy, Chris (June 4, 2020). "Dream Street Band Member Chris Trousdale Dead at 34". Vulture. United States: Vox Media. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  7. Dream Street Reunites to Perform Song in Memory of Late Bandmate Chris Trousdale's Birthday
  8. {{cite web|url=https://youtube.com/gQrOqWBEvfU
  9. "Matt Ballinger". IMDb. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  10. "Danielle Manning, Matthew Ballinger". The New York Times. 2013-08-25. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-01-29.
  11. [Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002]
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