New Kids on the Block comes to the Nassau Coliseum

It's a year of milestones for New Kids on the Block.

They just released their 10th studio album, fittingly called "10" (The Block/Universal), and they are coming up on the 25th anniversary of the tour where they became arena headliners, when "Hangin' Tough" came out. It's a time they immortalized in their 2008 comeback hit "Summertime," when Joey McIntyre yells "Jones Beach! 1988!"

However, things are very different these days for NKOTB. For starters, they are very much in control of their own destinies now. "We grew up in the business," says Donnie Wahlberg, calling from the band's rehearsal space in Connecticut. "We've learned from the best and now all the guys are applying themselves today."

Wahlberg, who splits his time between music and acting, currently part of the cast of CBS' "Blue Bloods," says he has become the unofficial creative director for "The Package Tour," which stops at Nassau Coliseum Saturday. "I know what needs to go into a tour," he says, adding that all the other New Kids -- McIntyre, Jonathan Knight, Jordan Knight and Danny Wood -- have input in the show. "I look at it like a movie. You have to open up strong. You have a surprise. Somewhere along the line it takes a turn, and you get to your next surprise. Then, you have to finish strong."

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