98 Degrees' Nick Lachey likes to be well-briefed. The Motown group's inaugural single, "Invisible Man", is blowing-up in a place called Adelaide. And he wants to know all about the city. Hmmm, let's see, it's kinda small . . . but progressive. 'Well, that's great to hear,' Nick responds. 98 Degrees have come a long way.

The group (Nick and his brother Drew, Jeff Timmons and Justin Jeffre) hail from a relatively small city themselves: Cincinnati, Ohio. 'Cincinnati is a good place,' Nick says fondly. 'When you've lived in New York and Los Angeles, and you've been in the fast lane for so long, it's nice to go home to Cincinnati where it's more relaxed and you can just unwind. It's a very cool city.'

At Jeff's instigation, the group formed in Los Angeles in the latter half of 1995. He was put in touch with the Ohio-based Nick through a friend. In turn, Nick brought in Justin, an old pal from his days at Cincinnati's School of the Creative and Performing Arts. The older three (all are 24, except Drew, 21) pulled out of college with a view to focussing on their music (Nick was studying sports medicine, Jeff psychology and Justin history). Drew, an EMT in Brooklyn, was the last to join the ensemble. 'Justin and I had sung together for something like ten years,' Nick remembers. 'We always planned on getting a group together, but we were going to graduate from college first.'

98 Degrees secured a deal only four months after coming together. By that
time they had performed at talent quests, showcases and even an LA Dodgers game. But 98 Degrees' big break came when, following a concert by their idols Boyz II Men, they convinced the hosts of a private radio party to let them sing live on air. The foursome caught the ear of Paris D'Jon, the co-manager of Montell Jordan, who was also on the bill that fateful evening. Inevitably, D'Jon assumed management of 98 Degrees. And, naturally enough, he invited Jordan to contribute some material to their demo. D'Jon then pitched his latest proteges to the majors.

98 Degrees received multiple offers but decided to accept Motown's. 'It came as a complete surprise to us,' concedes Nick. 'I mean, that was always the label that we wanted to be on, but we didn't think that they would be interested in a group of four white guys.' Motown CEO/president Andre Harrell invited 98 Degrees to audition after he was handed their demo. The group signed the same day and in the space of two months relocated to Motown's new home in the Big Apple. 'It all happened so fast, we were amazed.'

For all its prestige, Motown has fared poorly over the past couple of decades. In 1995, Harrell, the man behind MCA's successful Uptown Entertainment (which boasted Jodeci and Mary J Blige on its roster until lately), was brought in to turn around the company's dwindling fortunes. Despite a flurry of hype, Motown lost even more ground under Harrell's patronage, and he was pressured into resigning last August. Ironically, 98 Degrees is one of the label's -- and Harrell's -- few recent successes.

Nick admits that the growing uncertainty leading up to Harrell's departure affected the group's morale. 'It was kinda inevitable,' he says resignedly. 'I think most of the acts and a lot of the staff at Motown saw it coming, because people had been unhappy with what he was doing at the label, and that his leaving was just a matter of time. Actually, the whole thing was a relief, because we felt that we could finally get on, that they would name
somebody new, and then business would get back to where it should be.' Nick emphasises that 98 Degrees warmed to Harrell, and were above all grateful for his belief in the group, but they felt unsure about some of his
corporate manoeuvres.

98 Degrees' self-titled album -- a ballad-weighted collection not dissimilar to Boyz II Men's first two sets -- sees Ohio's latest players hook-up with some familiar names in the R&B scene: Jordan, Tricky & Sean (The Braxtons), Rashad Smith (LSG) and labelmate Mario Winans (R. Kelly).
So what was it like to work with these bigwigs? 'At first it was intimidating, because we were kinda new to the whole experience,' Nick replies. 'What we really tried to do was just learn as much as we could from everybody.' In spite of such impressive input, Motown chose to launch 98 Degrees with their groove-ballad "Invisible Man", overseen by two little-known Canadians: Dane DeViller and Sean Hosein. The gamble paid off. "Invisible Man" has been certified gold in the USA. Plus, Canada just happens to be one of 98 Degrees' most successful territories so far outside
of the States.

As Nick himself points out, 98 Degrees are in the unlikely position of being a white act on a Black label (although it's certainly not unprecedented -- think back to Teena Marie). At any rate, 98 Degrees have actually been welcomed as an R&B/pop group in the segregated US market (Nick does admit, however, that 98 Degrees still get more spins on pop radio). As a credible crossover male harmony group, 98 Degrees tacitly acknowledge as their 90s forerunners All-4-One, Color Me Badd and even, at a pinch, Az Yet. 'I think the music speaks for itself -- you either like the music or you don't, and people get past the skin colour issue,' Nick says candidly. 'I'm sure there are some people who would like to see Motown remain strictly a Black label, but people on the whole have been very receptive. They haven't paid as much attention to it as I thought they would.'

"Invisible Man" and the album "98 Degrees" are out through Polygram.