18 Facts Nobody Knows About Aaron And Nick Carter's Family
Nick Carter was the first of his family to make it big in the music scene. The youngest member of iconic boy band Backstreet Boys, he was only 13 when he started performing alongside his four bandmates. His musical career would bring him mass popularity and eventually lead to a successful solo career.
Despite being the most recognizable member of his family, Nick hailed from a large group of siblings, and many of them were also trying their hand at music and entertainment careers. Little brother Aaron became a tween pop and hip-hop star in the late 90's, very much aided by his older brother's powerful presence in the scene.
Though the Carter children were very obviously talented, details about their troubled childhood and personal demons started to surface over time. Three out of the five Carter children have had major struggles with substance dependency, and one sister, Leslie, tragically succumbed to her addiction in 2012. Nick and Aaron have both publicly discussed their rocky childhood, which included a very dominant father and a devout Christian mother.
Sadly, most of the family members are now estranged, with no sign of reconciliation. Here are 18 Dark Things Nobody Knows About The Carter Family
18 Their Sister, Leslie, Passed Away in 2012
Leslie Carter was the third of five children born to Bob and Jane Carter. An aspiring pop singer herself, Leslie appeared on the reality TV show revolving around her family, aptly called House of Carters, which aired for a sole season in 2006. She formed a pop band, called The Other Half, in 2006, where she met her future husband. In 2008, she married Mike Ashton, her bandmate, who also worked as an actor and sound engineer.
The pair moved to Toronto, Canada to settle down, and welcomed a daughter named Alyssa in April 2011. Sadly, around this time, Leslie was having some personal issues
with substances, which she was seeking help for. Her brother, Aaron, was trying to help her get into a private detoxification program
when she tragically passed away in 2012.
17 Nick Has Been Accused Of Misconduct
Nick Carter certainly had a squeaky clean reputation when he first emerged on the scene as the only blonde member of the Backstreet Boys, in the late 1990's. The angelic looking crooner was quite a favorite with female fans; he seemed to be capable of doing no harm. But that all changed when pop singer Melissa Schuman accused him of forcing himself on her, when she was just 18, and Nick was 22. Nick responded to the allegations with shock and sadness, issuing a statement that he wasn't aware that their activities had been non-consensual. In the age of #metoo, many women are coming forward to share their traumatic stories of abuse and misconduct. Her coming forward has further tainted Nick's reputation, which has taken a hit in the past few years.
16 Several Of The Carters Have Struggled With Dependency Issues
Leslie Carter died in 2012 after battling with addiction for years, but she is not the only Carter sibling to have struggled with dependency issues. Nick and Aaron have both openly discussed their issues with alcohol, prescription medication and narcotics. Nick touched on this sensitive subject in his autobiography, Facing The Music And Living To Talk About It, which was published in 2013.
He's famously been on the Ellen DeGeneres Show and Dr. Phil to discuss his newfound sobriety, and what led to his downward spiral.
Brother Aaron also had a very rough time with his addictions, leading him to be arrested on several occasions. He has been to rehab several times, most recently this January, and is working hard on staying sober, for good.
15 Aaron Has Been Arrested Several Times
Of all the Carter kids, Aaron has been the center stage for many years, due to his many run-ins with the law. He was pulled over by police officers for the first time in 2008, at the tender age of 21 for a speeding offense. Sadly, the charges would only get more serious as the years went on. In 2017, his most notable brush with the law transpired in Georgia, when he was pulled over and arrested for a DUI. He was later charged with possession as well, and his bail was set at just under $5,000. His then-girlfriend, Madison Parker, was in the car at the time, and also arrested. Her bail was set at a similar amount, but she was not immediately released, for reasons unknown. This incident led Aaron to face the music and start to consider rehab as a very necessary next step.
14 Nick Was Estranged From His Parents
Nick Carter famously had ups and downs with his parents over the years, including a long-standing feud that erupted in the aftermath of his sister, Leslie's, death. According to Nick,
when he called his parents to get the details surrounding her death, they lashed out at him and blamed him for being a bad influence.
Feeling attacked and vulnerable, Nick opted out of attending his sister's funeral, and subsequently became estranged from his parents for several years. Money has been the center of many of their feuds as well; Nick publicly tweeted about his belief that his mother and father were using him for money. The relationship was further strained when Nick's mother didn't show support for his wife, Lauren. Nick, feeling used and unloved, sided with his wife and took a big break from his parents.
13 The Family Couldn't Keep It Together And Always Faught About Finances
After hitting rock bottom and getting arrested for a DUI in 2017, Aaron Carter knew that he had to make some big changes in his life. He has always been fairly candid about his struggles with addiction, which included alcohol dependency, prescription medication addiction and reliance on narcotics.
Although he has maintained short-term sobriety at various times in his life, he seems to have fallen off the wagon several times.
In the fall of 2017, he had several stints in rehab, and also suffered through a few relapses. Clearly needing some serious therapy and assistance, Aaron is now committed to getting the help he needs to finally overcome this hurdle. He just recently came out of his most recent rehab facility, and is working on maintaining his sobriety.
11 Jane Carter Has Been In Trouble With The Law
Proving that not only the Carter kids get into trouble, Jane Carter has been arrested on more than one occasion. In 2004, she was arrested for a very serious charge. She was accused of breaking in and attacking her ex-husband's new wife, Ginger Elrod, while the couple were sleeping in bed. Bob Carter married Ginger Elrod just months after divorcing Jane, causing some major complications between Jane, him and his new wife.
Then, in 2008, Jane's ex-husband, John Holcomb claimed that she caused major damages to the home that they shared while they were married. She skipped out on a mandated court appearance and was subsequently arrested.
Seemingly, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree in this family, as several Carter's have criminal records and histories of arrests.
10 Aaron Carter Made Wildly Inappropriate Comments
The Carter's can't seem to catch a break when it comes to their public behavior. Accusations, arrests, and public embarrassments are just the norm for this strange family.
Last February, Aaron was at the center of the heat, when Aaron uttered a racial slur to a fellow musician at a performance in Illinois.
The person in question was a member of the opening act, and apparently, Aaron didn't appreciate that he was taking photos with fans and making noise while Aaron was beginning his performance. After getting security to remove him, things took a turn for the worse. The musician made his way back into the club, where he attacked Aaron. Apparently, the attacker damaged Aaron's speakers and laptop, and left Aaron bloodied and bruised, causing him to seek medical help at a local hospital.
9 Their Parents Never Accepted Nick's Wife, Lauren Kitt
Although Nick briefly dated model and socialite Paris Hilton back in 2003, he has maintained a long-term relationship with his wife, Lauren Kitt. Lauren, who is a personal trainer, married Nick in 2014 in a ceremony that few of Nick's family members attended. In fact, Nick's mother never approved of Lauren, and although she has stated that she wants to support her son, she hasn't done a very good job of showing appreciation for his romantic relationship! The pair welcomed their first son into the world in 2016, a boy named Odin who was delivered via a successful home birth. Lauren was featured in the 2014 reality TV show I Heart Nick Carter, which followed the couple's day-to-day leading up to their wedding.
8 Aaron Was Very Close To Michael Jackson
Aaron Carter met the king of pop, Michael Jackson when he was just a teenager, but the pair developed a long and deep friendship.
Despite making some pretty controversial statements about Michael in the past, alleging that he might've behaved inappropriately towards Aaron, he continues to speak of the friendship with fondness.
In fact, he likened the pain he felt when he lost his father to that of losing his longtime pal. He also made statements that Michael provided alcohol and certain narcotics to young friends that went to his home to spend time with him, but later tried to take back those words. Many have questioned the true essence of their unlikely friendship over the years, but Aaron has maintained his support.
7 The Younger Siblings Blame Nick For Abandoning Them
When Nick made it big with the successful Backstreet Boys, he was constantly touring the world and appearing at events that took him far from home. His siblings have, in the past, accused him of leaving them to fend for themselves when things were rough at home between the Carter parents, opting instead to live his life in the spotlight. Clearly, there were many obligations that Nick could not get out of, due to his commitments with the group, but some of his sibs have purported that even when he had to take time off, he chose not to go home and visit. Things seem to have gotten better over the years, and the siblings have gotten closer in the aftermath of the deaths of their sister Leslie, and their father, Bob.
6 Aaron Has A Twin Sister
Five kids is a lot, but it was only four pregnancies for Jane Carter, who had one set of twins in her lot of children. Aaron's twin sister, Angel, has not been in the spotlight the way he has, but she is an aspiring actress who is working on establishing her career. She also appeared in the House Of Carters reality series, which shed light on the relationships between the siblings and their parents. Of all of the Carter siblings, these two seem to be the closest, which is understandable, due to the fact that they're twins! Angel got married in 2014, and was walked down the aisle by Aaron, as the rest of the Carter gang opted out of attending her special day. Thank goodness for that twin bond!
5 Hillary Duff Was Put Off By Aaron's Tweets
Many, many moons ago, you might recall that Aaron Carter dated Lizzie Mcguire starlet, Hillary Duff. Well, the two were tweens at the time, but Aaron seems to carry a torch for his ex-girlfriend that makes her quite uncomfortable. In 2014, Aaron took to Twitter to profess that he loved Hillary and would do anything to get her back. Hillary, who is 30 now and hasn't seen Aaron in close to a decade, was admittedly turned off by the public confession.
She admitted that he was sweet and lovely when they were 13, but she hasn't really given much thought to him other than that over the years. Aaron professing that he would do anything to get her back seems to have crossed a few lines…
… and he definitely invaded Hillary's comfort zone!
4 Nick Ditched His Sister On Her Wedding Day
When Angel got hitched in 2014, the only Carter member to attend her wedding was her twin, Aaron. Nick skipped out, as he chose to celebrate his own co-ed party in Vegas the same weekend, which took him away from walking his little sister down the aisle, a task that Aaron stepped in for. As the Carter parents were publicly feuding with pretty much all of their kids in 2014, they didn't attend either. Despite the obvious family drama going on, it didn't get in the way of Angel and her husband Corey enjoying their wedding date fully. They celebrated in a beautiful and elegant ceremony and reception in Los Angeles, and everyone in attendance had a wonderful time.
3 Nick Opened Up To Dr.Phil
In true celebrity style, Nick took to the Dr. Phil show to open up about many aspects of his personal life, back in 2013. He discussed how he hit rock bottom with his substance abuse issues, and went into detail about his unconventional family and their up and down relationship over the years. Particularly, he discussed how hard it was in the aftermath of his sister Leslie's death, and how he carried the burden of guilt afterward, especially after his family held him responsible for her bad choices. The interview wasn't all dark, however. Nick spoke about how he had finally achieved sobriety and talked about the freedom that came with writing out his story, which has since been published as his autobiography.
2 The Carter Parents Divorced In 2003
Robert Gene Carter and Jane Elizabeth Carter were married for several years, and had a total of 5 children together. Nick, Aaron, Angel, Leslie and Bobbie Jean. Bob Carter was a complicated man, according to his children (a total of seven, including two from separate marriages). He and Jane, his second wife, officially divorced in 2003, and he went on to marry his third wife, Ginger Elrod. Before the family moved to Florida, they were situated in New York, where Bob and Jane owned and operated a Yankee Rebel western restaurant. When they moved to Florida, Bob took on the management of the Garden Villa Retirement Home. Despite being estranged from his family for several years, Nick and Aaron were both crushed when he passed away at age 65 in 2017.
1 Robert Carter Had A Total of Seven Children
Bob Carter had three wives and a total of seven children during his 65 years. Although he had some very rough patches, particularly involving his relationship with his children, Bob seemed to have reconciled with most of his family members before his untimely death in 2017. The Carter family have seen their fair share of grief in the past decade. Bob's daughter, Leslie, passed away tragically at the young age of 25, in 2012. Her death shocked the family, and resulted in a falling out between Nick and his parents, who allegedly blamed Nick for being a bad influence on his little sister, possibly leading her down paths that got her into trouble. Nick is the oldest of 5 children born to Bob and Jane, and the children have a half-sister, Ginger, and half-brother Kanden from Bob's first and third marriages.
