Backstreet's A.J. Expands Rehab Time

By Stephen M. Silverman

Wednesday August 01, 2001 04:14 PM EDT

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Backstreet Boys have put the brakes on their current North America tour for a second time as group member A.J. McLean, 23, extends his time in rehabilitation for another two weeks, the band announced Tuesday. McLean is in a 30-day treatment program at an undisclosed rehab facility that handles alcoholism, depression and other problems, his bandmates first announced on MTV on July 9. The Boys had been set to reconvene on the road next Tuesday but will now resume on Aug. 24 in Milwaukee, according to a new announcement from the band. "A.J.'s initial treatment is going very well," Backstreeter Kevin Richardson said in a statement. "His doctors have suggested it would be in A.J.'s best interest to take an additional two weeks in transitional care." The Backstreet Boys's tour is part of the promotion for their new album, "Black & Blue," which has sold 5.2 million copies in the U.S. in the 35 weeks since its release. That sales figure is far short of their previous CD, "Millennium," which had sold 9.6 million copies in the same amount of time, reports Reuters.