Lance Bass is doing better now than ever before, financially. The former *NSYNC boy-bander recently reflected on the time when he was a member — and things weren’t as glamorous as they seemed.

In a recent interview, Bass, 43, was asked to recall the best part about “being rich and famous really young.” With a chuckle, he cleared that misconception. “Well, the worst thing is people thinking that we were rich because we were not,” Bass said. “We were famous, but we were not rich. I made way more money after *NSYNC than I did during *NSYNC.”

RELATED: Justin Timberlake Responds To Lance Bass’ Claims Of Not Texting Back

*NSYNC creator and manager Lou Pearlman famously mishandled the group’s finances and was sued by several members of different boy bands for cheating them out of their earnings. “He really took a majority of all of our stuff… [made] horrible, horrible deals,” Bass said of Pearlman.

Pearlman died in 2016 at the age of 62 while serving time in federal prison. He was convicted on numerous fraud charges. For example, in 2006, investigators discovered Pearlman had perpetrated the longest-running Ponzi scheme in American history and had defrauded investors out of more than $1 billion, out of which $300 million is still missing.

Family Matters

Bass remembers how fellow bandmates Justin Timberlake, Chris Kirkpatrick, JC Chasez and Joey Fatone were the family that kept things grounded and sane. “To do that, with those guys, it was incredible. And you had some of the best experiences ever,” Bass shared. “Obviously, it changed my life, led me to so many things I wanted to do in life… they’re incredible, incredible guys.”

They also formed a “great support system.” The singer said he was glad his brothers kept him “down to earth” and called him out “if you said anything off the wall.” Compared to being a solo artist, Bass said, “You kind of get this Michael Jackson syndrome of not knowing what reality is. But with a group, we had a great family unit around us, we were held down to earth.”

Justin Timberlake’s 14 Greatest Music Videos Ranked

• I Want You Back

  NSYNC’s debut single, “I Want You Back” (1996) shows the boy band dancing in front of futuristic backgrounds as they try to get the girl back using some kind of transporter.

• Señorita

  Though “Señorita” is a great song off of JT’s debut solo album, Justified (2002), Justin is just dancing on this one girl in a desert bar. The plus is that Pharrell, who co-wrote the song is featured on the video.

• Tearin' Up My Heart

  This photoshoot themed music video is one of NSYNC’s less elaborate conceptual videos, but the song still hits to this day.

• Pop

  The sped-up visual effects in “Pop” add to the funkiness of this music video, as well as the spinning dance floor.

• What Goes Around...Comes Around

  Scarlett Johansson stars alongside JT in this 9-minute long video, which feels like a mini movie. The music video left Justin with a broken finger due to a fight scene with the actor Shawn Hatosy, who starred alongside him in the 2006 crime/drama Alpha Dog; Johansson was also bruised up in the scene.

• Suit & Tie

  This black-and-white 1920s throwback video was directed by Fight Club‘s David Fincher, and even though the song isn’t that great, Fincher’s touch on the music video is aesthetically pleasing.

• SexyBack

  This provocative song had radio in a choke-hold in 2006 (no pun intended). The video was shot in Barcelona over four days, with Elena Anaya starring opposite Timberlake as a rival spy who becomes his love interest.

• Cry Me A River

  Justin wrote this song about Britney Spears in 2002. In the song, the relationship goes bad because the girl cheated, and to get even, JT makes sure the girl finds out he’s moved on with his life. In the video, Justin uses a video camera to tape him getting hot and heavy with another girl. When his girlfriend (who is played by an actress that looks very much like Britney Spears) comes in, he sets it up so she will see the tape.

• Mirrors

  This eight-minute music video opens with a dedication to Timberlake’s late grandparents Sadie Bomar and William Bomar, who were together for 62 years. The video shows an elderly couple throughout different stages of their lifetime as they “reflect” on their time together over the years.

• LoveStoned / I Think She Knows Interlude

  Justin’s visuals for “LoveStoned / I Think She Knows Interlude” was an interesting take using the audio waves to create an image of himself.

• This I Promise You

  NSYNC wearing turtlenecks in Redwood National Park while different shots of love relationships are shown in bubbles floating around them in the forest make this music video so memorable.

• Rock Your Body

  Justin Timberlake is joined by several backup dancers within a multi-color lighted cube in this stand-out track from Justified. The song was originally intended to be featured on Michael Jackson’s Invincible.

• Bye Bye Bye

  The iconic puppet string music video came out in 2000 and is arguably NSYNC’s most iconic video. The video starts with evil puppet master, Kim Smith (Friday Night Lights), manipulating the NSYNC members as they are tied to strings.

• It's Gonna Be Me

  The clever visual concept of “It’s Gonna Be Me” had the boy banders turn into dolls who come to life and break free from their display boxes and fight other toys in a toy store.

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