Aly & AJ Discuss Former Disney Stars & The Disney Channel Star Label 

I could be wrong but I think Hilary actually said in an interview that radio stations refused to play her music because she was on the Disney Channel. I think it was around Miley’s time that radio stations understood the power these teens stars have. I remember hearing See You Again and Start All Over on radio. That being said Aly & AJ deserve so much more than they get. Especially since their 2nd album Insomniatic is SO GOOD!

Aly looks amazing as a brunette

Hilary Duff was ABSOLUTELY all over the radio but that’s because she wasn’t signed to Disney exclusively. She released her first album between Lizzie McGuire and The Lizzie McGuire Movie

Honestly their version of "Do You Believe in Magic" is like one of my favorite songs ever to this day 😍🥰

I think it's because they "disappeared" for a while, so the only way some journalists feel like they can introduce them by is their Disney background. Because that's frankly how most people remember them

aly & aj make suuuuch good music! and back in the day they did too, they’ve always been iconic

I feel bad they don’t want to be defined by Disney, but Potentially Break Up song is so iconic. I think that album ties them to Disney.

Their first album is so nostalgic to me as a young girl I would listen to it all the time. They actually had mature themes in their songs with actual meaning and they helped me through a lot! Love you Aly and AJ!

I had the hugest crush on AJ growing up and I loved all their music.

I do find it weird that they were also put in that “Disney” box. Like yeah Aly did Phil of the Future for a while and they both did Cow Belles but even after that I wouldn’t consider them “Disney” if that makes sense. And they’re so right about pushing them but then not getting airplay. Swear the only time I would hear either them or Miley or Selena when they were at Disney on the radio was specifically on Radio Disney and it’s kinda sad but I’m really glad they’re getting the recognition they deserve as musicians

Miley, Selena, Demi, Jonas Brothers have all transcended far past Disney at this point, but Aly & AJ hadn’t. They were icons at the time but when they left they hadn’t gone past their time there. That’s why people still recall their Disney days even though they weren’t on the label for that long. still LOVEEE them though!!

I’m kind of glad they got out a little earlier. The Sprouse Twins saw the writing on the wall and left The Mouse TM and did what they wanted. These two just need to stay consistent and they’ll be around for a while. ☺️

They really had the best songs and covers to songs. Such talent, no autotune (that I know of) and real personalities. Disney should of done more for their talent. But I’m glad they’re still making music to this day. You know you have talent when their songs are still listened to years later.

I always thought they were incredible musicians! and had a mature sound for their age. 'No one' was a great song and they were so young. it sounded more mature so i really respected their skills as musicians and re-played their albums far beyond the years of many other young disney pop stars.

wow and see you again is SUCH A GOOD SONG, in my country played a lot on some radio stations and everytime I listen to it takes me to that time

that really was the golden age of disney. i literally still listen to the music lol idec.

Jonas brothers had “Burnin Up” as a radio hit, but not much else.

they deserve so much credit their music now is so fucking good I love it

Aly and aj have the best fashion sence and make up so natural it’s so refreshing

I think hilary and others from that age definitely paved the way but Miley really broke the mold, she was really the first to go global and become crazy successful while being on disney. Her music, movie and tv shows all went no.1 and had global success. I think finally with her were "Disney" stars seen as a mega threat to the industry. She was competing with pop stars in general and not limited to just teen stars. I remember all the articles about just how great her impact was. They always had miley with taylor or katy and she would be invited to perform with other mega stars like Beyonce and rihanna. Her brand was immense.

Ally & Aj deserve more success.

It always sucks being put in a box but I think they’re beginning to climb out of it in the public’s eye. You have to remember, the more prominent the Disney star, the more intense their transition out of Disney will be. Aly & AJ were not in deep as much and therefore their transition was more subtle. Miley | Hannah Montana -> did Can’t be tamed & Wrecking Ball and all sorts of stuff to make it clear that “Hannah is dead” Selena | Wizards of Waverly Place -> Released more adult music while ALSO doing Spring Breakers which changed how the audience viewed her. Demi | Camp Rock/ Sonny with a Chance -> Songs like “ Cool for the Summer” and other hits made it clear that she wasn’t Sonny anymore. Overall, if you aren’t in the public’s face in mainstream media on a regular basis (meaning no indie movies and such). The kids, now adults, that grew up watching you are going to associate you with the projects you did when they were young

i never tied their music or them as artists to disney bc their music was just on a different level than the other disney artists

Personally, I still do tie them to the Disney name, mostly because they didn't have this on-screen persona on Disney that they had to break (unlike Miley and Selena, per se), and so their personality that I knew back then (at Disney) and now (as independent artists) are not too different. But, yeah, I agree, it's not necessarily bad, because it feels almost like they're my friends to a certain point, that I've known for years, since my childhood, so that's how I will most likely always remember them. I'd say the same thing about Brenda Song too, tbh.

_am i the only one who still listens to their old stuff from the disney days? and not jusy potential breakup song_

I love their new album! It’s so great, I’m so happy they’re back.

See You Again by Miley was an accidental hit. They just started playing it on the radio and it went top 10 without a music video. Even as the song exploded in popularity, Disney never gave it the due justice it deserved. Party in the USA was originally made to promote Mileys clothing line at Walmart and it got played on the radio and became another accidental hit. I remember checking iTunes and it was #1 for all of Summer 2009 and even now is still in the top 100 of iTunes as I type this. To this day (2021) radio still doesn't really play miley, all her success is purely sales driven, she's only lately become a streaming presence with plastic hearts

Aly&AJ were the first Disney act where people didn’t actually know they were with Disney at all, from my experience.

While I’ll always love Aly & AJ from Disney Channel, they’ve definitely surpassed Disney and grew into their own as artists and actors 🙂

That’s why Ashley Tisdale decided to sign with Warner Bros Records to release her music, but it was still pretty much controlled by Disney, she even had to do a “clean version” for He Said She Said for Disney to play it. That without saying Disney made her scrap the original video for the song because it was “too sexy for Disney” because she was releasing her debut album during the height of the HSM fame.

cowbelles is my fav Disney movie still to this day. I remember when it first aired on Disney and my sister and I rearranged our schedule to watch it :,)

I loved Aly and AJ since I was a kid! I loved all of their songs and every show and movie I’ve seen them in! Noe just Disney, but the mature stuff too. Phill of the Future, Now Your See Me, Cowbelles, Hellcats, iZombie, Secretariat, and Schooled! Yes they were on Disney, but they grew up and did great things on the CW and in movies. I’m so glad they’re making music again! They haven’t aged! Aly looks great as a brunette. Hilary was dismissed as an artist by radios stations even though she had some GREAT music after she left Disney Channel! The radio stations should have given her a chance. Adrienne Bailon, a very talented and beautiful singer from The Cheetah Girls was dismissed for being on Disney when she tried to start a music career outside of Disney (even though she is extremely talented) and they made her think she couldn’t sing. She thought she couldn’t sing because people were assholes to her for being on Disney. Now she has confidence again and had an album.

I always thought Lili Reinhart looks so much like Aly.

I’m just glad they’re still doing their thing :]

2:40- 3:45 Great points! couldnt agree more!

I mean no shade to them but they're probably packaged as the former disney o.g. girls because that was their most successful time in their career XD and that's not to say they aren't doing cool things now, but disney is a massive platform and it certainly doesn't discredit them to add that if they want to maintain relevancy... I mean otherwise lt's be real they're too obscure

They make the best music out of all the ex-Disney acts and they're the less famous

I mean- Selena Gomez with Naturally and Love you like a love song was ALL OVER the radio. And she was like 16 and 17.

I’ve always listened to all of their albums. They rock! Love aly & aj forever! 🖤

i'm a little too young to remember them on Disney channel but I loved aly in izombie and aj in the goldbergs both great actresses! and ofc potential breakup song is a bop

they're still tied to the disney label because they haven't been working publicly full time since that era and haven't transitioned their name and image yet... keep working girls. LOVE your new music and style

love them lol

Hilary Duff or Raven Symone, Bridgit Mendler, and Meghan Martin!! i'm so mad they can have their big break

I forgot the brunette was even on Disney when she played on izombie.

Aaron Carter didn’t get mainstream radio play either, but back during that time he didn’t need to bc Disney & Nickelodeon promoted him so much and he got air play on radio Disney which promoted his tours & shows.

Yass

The best times of aly and aj was when they was in the disney channel

Britney Spears was a Disney star & she became a mainstream singer

Hey I love cow bells iconic

greatest time of year? a christmas classic fr

I never thought they weren’t mainstream. I do believe that the songs from Disney artists 9/10 sound like “Disney songs,” but outside of that, Disney artists were just as much celebrities as anybody else. The only thing that was different was the struggle to break from being a child/Disney star without looking cheap, desperate, or unfortunately turning to substance abuse/harming yourself as you struggle to break free. That said, while Aly & AJ were there for less time, they ducked out and kind of disappeared from their main audience. So they were stunted as Disney musicians/actors. Although, I still never really saw them as squeaky clean Disney stars and nothing else. I saw them as more edgy, like The Veronicas. So I think if they could’ve stuck around with Disney longer to help boost their music career, they should’ve. Unless they had a bad contract going for them or something.

I dont think a journalist or writer is not doing their due diligence if they mention disney channel because their fame came from disney channel. Even when they did other stuff, the notoriety wasn't nearly as large as Disney. I think they should appreciate the fame that comes with starting on Disney Channel. 6 years is still a long time.

idk what anyone says - Into the Rush is one of the best albums

I’ve always heard these stars outside of Disney as well, in the UK we don’t have Disney radio (unless you went on RU-vid) but I remember “Potential break up song” “See you again” “la la land” they were all on the radio on coaches and in shops. But I do think it sucks that they were all shoved in a Disney bubble because even though I’m younger that Miley, Selena ect. You got called “babyish” for liking their music, they’re music was never babyish and I still enjoy them today. But yeah whenever they’re always referred to as “Disney stars” it is lazy journalism, in fact most Hollywood article writers are very lazy and biased

Aly is so gorgeous

You are most known for Disney! You aren’t known on the mainstream for anything else. That’s why they bring it up.

I agree with Aly’s very first point. I love Hilary and think she has some bops, but for the most part- until Hollywood Records started giving girls like Miley and Selena, later Demi a budget to do stuff, the content was pretty horrible. Aly & AJ were the outlier until the second wave of 3rd wave of DC stars came and really got the mainstream rub. They really did get the shit end from the industry because unfortunately it didn’t really matter how good the music was, they were Disney.

I had the biggest crush on Aly growing up lol

I think media is still associating them with Disney and not with Selena Miley and Demi is cause they never left. They went from Disney right into the mainstream. Alt & AJ disappeared. I think if Bridget Mendler came back and was like I’m ready to be taken as a serious mainstream artist, she too would have the same predicament cause everyone knows her from Good Luck Charli. She had one hit and then disappeared. But Selena and Miley really never stepped out of the scene. They did projects outside of Disney. And kept making music, whereas these girls disappeared for a long time. People forget and the reminder of their past helps people remember who they are. That past will never be behind them until they are out there making more music that’s not attached to anything from Disney. Once they establish themselves outside of their past, their past will always be there. And maybe they are wanting to now at 30 years old not be associated with Disney and it’s understandable, but it’s also understandable why media is still attaching them to their past.

I wanna point out that Aly was on the CW show, HellCats, which was bomb but only had 1 season.

All of these disney stars both big and small paved the way for the likes of new disney artists like Olivia Rodrigo to gain success as "easily" as they have. I dont think if her music cameout back in the day would it have ever seen the light of day on radio especially when Aly and AJ, Hilary Duff, Jonas Brothers, Miley who made similar genres could be considered just as good. Tweens and Teens just werent take that seriously back then.

Who else is gonna listen to potential breakup song after this

Since iZombie, I associate Aly with her character on that show. lol

The Olivia Rodrigo erasure though

Funny thing, I was a tad too old (grew up with Hilary Duff) to get into their older music. I didn't like any of it. I happened to stumble upon them on RU-vid some months ago and heard their new album. I absolutely love it. It reminds me of Lissie.

Wait a minute, they became disney stars around the mid 2000s. There was nothing BUT teen stars coming out from the 90s to the mid 2000s. I don’t get that comment about not having a lot of stars being in their teens. Hilary, Selena, Miley, all from Disney channel were. That was pretty much the thing to do was be 16 with a hit record.

hilary duff was the lauren conrad of disney

Steve: Name TFW you don't offer the talent a second contract because you don't have a second contract? Buuuuuuuzz: What is Disney?! Judges: This ain't Jeopardy, Bitch. The answer is Nickelodeon.

I think yall were before your time

I mean Hilary was EVERYWHERE.

Ummm they’re mostly known for Disney...

I mean they kinda went ghost after Disney that’s prob why they’re associated with Disney… 😅

The older you get, the more you realize that being a Disney Channel star was indentured servitude. They sure made it look cool, though.

"We're not nearly as successful." Funny how this is true when they're talking about the likes of Miley and Selena...

Because Disney doesn’t want to be associated with Miley

AJ is TOO humble!! What she's too nice to say is THEIR shit deserved main stream credit cause THEY could actually sing!! Now Hilary Duff, Raven, etc could not. They were super stars but vocally, it's a no. Disney Channel at one point would automatically give a record deal to ANYONE who was starring in the show. But they almost could NEVER sing!! Aly & AJ and Demi Lovato are the only ones that truly had good singing voices!! The other girls were just cute.

Wow Aly has aged

Hollywood records sucks.

Did ey used to be so good in the 90s and the early 2000s now is sucks the only good show now on Disney is Gabby and unsitablles the aliens show Disney gone down hill after this last show ends u going to stop watching Disney am 24 me and my twin grew up watch Disney channel

aJ looks trasH

🙄🙄🙄🙄 17 yos aren’t on radio?? Only 20-somethings??? Ummm Olivia rodrigo??? Billie Eilish??? Also back then Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Selena, Miley, Demi, etc... before that Britney, Christina, *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, etc 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️ talk about not knowing music

I can’t with his nails. Had to pass on this video, is too distracting