In the glittering heyday of ’90s pop, when frosted tips and synchronised dance moves ruled supreme, one man stood at the epicentre of a cultural phenomenon — talent manager Lou Pearlman.

But beneath the bubblegum beats and screaming fans lurked a darker rhythm — one of greed, exploitation, and staggering fraud.

On July 24, Netflix will pull back the curtain on this sordid saga with its bombshell docuseries, Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam.

"Lou Pearlman changed music culture forever," reads a description on Netflix’s publication, Tudum.

"The architect of an extraordinary era of pop, he launched the careers of The Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, Britney Spears, O-Town and so many more. But he also carried a dark secret.

"With never-before-seen archive and unique access highlighting the artists’ epic rise to global stardom, this series uncovers Pearlman’s web of lies, revealing the harsh realities of fame, power, exploitation and greed."

Watch: Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam trailer. Article continues after video.

What happened in the Lou Pearlman boy band scam?

Lou Pearlman, the impresario behind ’90s megastars like the Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC, seemed to possess an alchemist’s touch, turning fresh-faced teens into global sensations.

But his pop empire was built on quicksand — a massive Ponzi scheme that would eventually swallow everything.

From the mid-1980s until 2007, Pearlman defrauded investors of over $300 million through his sham company, Trans Continental Airlines.

The facade began crumbling in the early 2000s, when band members began questioning their meagre earnings. By 2006, the FBI was investigating. Pearlman fled the United States in January 2007, was captured in Indonesia that June, and in 2008 was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

He died behind bars on August 19, 2016.

TAKE SURVEY ➤