# Chris Kirkpatrick
**Chris Kirkpatrick** (Christopher Alan Kirkpatrick, born 1971 in Clarion, Pennsylvania) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and occasional actor best known as the founding member of the pop group *NSYNC, in which he sang countertenor.[1](https://winterfestparade.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Grand-Marshal-announcement-2022-TS-RL.pdf) • [2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) He conceived the group, recruited its members in Orlando, and was its oldest member throughout the band's run.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1971, Clarion, Pennsylvania[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) |
| Role in *NSYNC | Founding member and oldest member; sang countertenor[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) • [1](https://winterfestparade.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Grand-Marshal-announcement-2022-TS-RL.pdf) |
| Band sales | Nearly 30 million records in the U.S. and 42 million worldwide[3](https://cityclerk.lacity.org/onlinedocs/2018/18-0007-s5_misc_1_03-06-2018.pdf) |
| Signature voice role | Chip Skylark on *The Fairly OddParents* (from 2001)[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) |
| Business venture | Founded FuMan Skeeto, a creative arts company focused on clothing design[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) |
| Reunion honor | *NSYNC received the 2,636th Hollywood Walk of Fame star in the Recording category on April 30, 2018, with all five members present[4](https://time.com/4753087/its-gonna-be-may-justin-timberlake/) |
| Education | Attended Valencia College, originally intending to pursue a theater acting career[1](https://winterfestparade.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Grand-Marshal-announcement-2022-TS-RL.pdf) |
## Founding *NSYNC
Kirkpatrick's path to the band ran through Orlando's theme parks. In 1995, manager [Lou Pearlman](https://www.edgepedia.org/lou-pearlman) spotted him singing in a doo-wop group at [Universal Studios Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-studios-florida), in a city where publicity executive Jim Reyes later noted "you have all this great talent working at Disney, working at Universal."[5](https://www.thehistorycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Fall-2022_Reflections-lr.pdf) Encouraged to form a vocal group that would fuse singing and dancing, Kirkpatrick called on the singer and dancer [Joey Fatone](https://www.edgepedia.org/joey-fatone), a Brooklyn-born performer working at Universal Studios, and then brought in J.C. Chasez and Justin Timberlake, both veterans of the Disney Channel series *The Mickey Mouse Club*. The four-piece found its sound once Lance Bass, a basso profundo, completed the five-part harmony.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/)
The lineup shifted once before it settled. Jason Galasso, an original member alongside Fatone, Timberlake, Kirkpatrick, and Chasez, left the group just before it took off; Bass took his place, and in 1995 *NSYNC signed with Pearlman, the manager behind the [Backstreet Boys](https://www.edgepedia.org/backstreet-boys).[6](https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/original-nsync-member-jason-galasso-speaks-out-about-leaving-band-too-soon/)
The band's name is an acronym built from the last letter of each member's first name: Justi**N** Timberlake, Chri**S** Kirkpatrick, Joe**Y** Fatone, Lanste**N** ([Lance Bass](https://www.edgepedia.org/lance-bass)'s nickname), and J**C** (Joshua Chasez).[7](https://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/apr/16/n-synchronized/)
## The *NSYNC years
Repped by Pearlman, the quintet went to Europe to hone its act and became hits overseas before breaking in the United States.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) The self-titled U.S. debut album arrived in 1998 with "I Want You Back" and "God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You," and the group went on to sell nearly 30 million records in the U.S. and 42 million worldwide.[3](https://cityclerk.lacity.org/onlinedocs/2018/18-0007-s5_misc_1_03-06-2018.pdf) By April 1999 the band was on its sold-out "Ain't No Stopping Us Now" stadium tour, which ran from March to September.[7](https://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/apr/16/n-synchronized/)
**Commercial peak.** After internal management problems and a lengthy legal dispute over an early contract delayed the group's third album, *NSYNC signed to [Jive Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/jive-records). *[No Strings Attached](https://www.edgepedia.org/no-strings-attached-nsync-album)*, released in March 2000, set a sales record of 2.4 million units, more than doubling the previous record set by the Backstreet Boys' *[Millennium](https://www.edgepedia.org/millennium-backstreet-boys-album)* (1999). Singles "Bye Bye Bye," "It's Gonna Be Me," and "This I Promise You" kept the album on the charts until 2001's *Celebrity*.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/)
Timberlake went solo in 2002, effectively ending the group.[4](https://time.com/4753087/its-gonna-be-may-justin-timberlake/) The five members reunited publicly at the 2013 [MTV Video Music Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/mtv-video-music-awards) and again in 2018, when all five received the 2,636th star in the Recording category on the [Hollywood Walk of Fame](https://www.edgepedia.org/hollywood-walk-of-fame), and at the 2023 MTV VMAs.[4](https://time.com/4753087/its-gonna-be-may-justin-timberlake/) • [8](https://los40.com/2023/09/12/nsync-regresara-con-toda-su-formacion-en-los-mtv-vmas-2023-segun-billboard/)
## Beyond the band
Kirkpatrick built a parallel career in voice acting and television. He guest-starred as the singing teen idol Chip Skylark on *The Fairly OddParents* from 2001, a role he has said generates more autograph requests than his *NSYNC fame.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) His screen credits also include guest roles with his bandmates on *Clueless* and *Touched by an Angel*, the concert film *NSYNC: Bigger Than Live* (2001), *Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!* (2015), *Dead 7* (2016), *Trolls Band Together* (2023), and the Netflix docuseries *[Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam](https://www.edgepedia.org/dirty-pop-the-boy-band-scam)* (2024).[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/)
As an entrepreneur, he founded FuMan Skeeto, a creative arts company with a focus on clothing design, aimed at promoting behind-the-scenes artists such as music producers, graphic designers, and other visual artists.[2](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/) In 2022 he appeared as a houseguest on season 3 of *[Celebrity Big Brother](https://www.edgepedia.org/celebrity-big-brother-american-tv-series)*, where he shared the band's origin story on camera.[9](https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/video/B_Ogns8qxvZfkZ2E9W_sWW3MDLlHvY6g/)
**Later performing.** Kirkpatrick has continued to tour as a solo act on nostalgia package bills, including the Pop 2000 Tour, and performs with the boy band Sureshot; Concert Archives lists 49 Chris Kirkpatrick concerts in 2026 alone.[10](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/chris-kirkpatrick?year=2026) In interviews he has described the *NSYNC experience as a roller coaster of ups, downs, and twists, and has said the four other members remain like brothers to him.[11](https://baltimoremediablog.com/2017/06/summer-spotlight-qa-chris-kirkpatrick/)
## References
1. [Winterfest 2022 Grand Marshal announcement, Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino](https://winterfestparade.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Grand-Marshal-announcement-2022-TS-RL.pdf)
2. [Chris Kirkpatrick, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/chris-kirkpatrick/)
3. [Los Angeles City Clerk document, 18-0007-S5 (2018)](https://cityclerk.lacity.org/onlinedocs/2018/18-0007-s5_misc_1_03-06-2018.pdf)
4. [A Critical History of That 'It's Gonna Be May' Meme, Time](https://time.com/4753087/its-gonna-be-may-justin-timberlake/)
5. [Reflections, The History Center (Fall 2022)](https://www.thehistorycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Fall-2022_Reflections-lr.pdf)
6. [Original NSYNC Member Speaks Out About Leaving Band Too Soon, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/original-nsync-member-jason-galasso-speaks-out-about-leaving-band-too-soon/)
7. ['N Synchronized, Las Vegas Sun (April 16, 1999)](https://lasvegassun.com/news/1999/apr/16/n-synchronized/)
8. [NSYNC regresó con toda su formación en los MTV VMAs 2023, LOS40](https://los40.com/2023/09/12/nsync-regresara-con-toda-su-formacion-en-los-mtv-vmas-2023-segun-billboard/)
9. [Chris Kirkpatrick of NSYNC Shares the Band's Backstory, Paramount+](https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/video/B_Ogns8qxvZfkZ2E9W_sWW3MDLlHvY6g/)
10. [Chris Kirkpatrick's 2026 Concert History, Concert Archives](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/chris-kirkpatrick?year=2026)
11. [Summer Spotlight Q&A: Chris Kirkpatrick, Baltimore Media Blog (2017)](https://baltimoremediablog.com/2017/06/summer-spotlight-qa-chris-kirkpatrick/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Pop singers, 1980s and 1990s › Dance-pop and teen pop singers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license