So this is one of “the other interests” Kevin Richardson was talking about pursuing when he quit the Backstreet Boys last year. The erstwhile boy-bander and wife Kristin welcomed their first child on Tuesday, according to a post on his MySpace page.
“We are officially parents,” the 35-year-old singer wrote. “At 4:56 a.m. Tuesday morning (7/3/07), our son Mason made his entrance into the world.”
The Richardson spawn weighed in at 8 pounds, 2 ounces and measured 20.5 inches, according to his dad, and “has a full head of dark hair.”
“He and Kristin are perfect and I am a new man. Thank you for your positive vibes and prayers.”
Richardson met the former Kristin Willets, 36, while both were performers at Orlando theme parks (he was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, she starred in Beauty and the Beast). They married in 2000.
Richard left the Backstreet Boys a year ago to “pursue other interests.”
“After 13 years of what can only be described as a dream come true, I have decided that it is time to leave the Backstreet Boys,” Richardson said. “It was a very tough decision for me but one that was necessary in order to move on with the next chapter of my life.”
Aside from his role in the pioneering boy band, Richardson has worked in musical theater, starring in Chicago on Broadway, London, Toronto and Japan.
Richardson is also composing the soundtrack for the CGI animated film The Spirit Bear, due out in 2008.
