Nick Lachey never thought his daily life would be what thrust him into the spotlight.

Before the Love Is Blind host starred alongside his then-wife Jessica Simpson in Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, which ran from 2003 to 2005, he suspected the reality show would simply be a catalyst for his and Jessica’s music careers.

“Newlyweds obviously became a huge reality show,” Nick told host Vivian Tu during a May 27 episode of Richer Lives, revealing that the MTV series was initially created as a “vehicle to promote music.”

“My ex-wife had an album coming out, I had an album coming out,” he explained. “We had no idea it was going to take on this other life of being this reality fly-on-the-wall type of show.”

But amid the series’ “totally unexpected” instant success, the 98 Degrees frontman discovered that putting his everyday life on display came with a few desirable perks. Namely, for a singer who primarily had a “pretty female” demographic, it introduced him to a new audience.

“What reality TV did for me,” he said, “is it allowed me to introduce myself as Nick Lachey—the person—to the world. And even guys around me [were like], ‘He’s kind of cool. I’d have a beer with that guy.’”

And along with expanding his audience, Nick—whose divorce from Jessica was finalized in 2006—expressed that the show “opened up a different world for me as an entertainer.”

“No one ever got to see that side of me before,” he said. “It allowed me to become very comfortable being myself.”

But even so, the 51-year-old found himself struggling to adapt to having camera crews watching their every move in their California mansion—especially when they felt like strangers.

“At first they were like, ‘Don’t talk to the crew,’” Nick recalled of the producers. “’They’re a fly on the wall!’ I was like, ‘Guys, if this is ever going to work, that’s just not how I’m wired. You’re not going to be in my house and watch my every move and we’re not going to talk to each other. We got to get past that right now.’”

And before long, Nick—who now shares kids Camden, 12, Brooklyn, 10, and Phoenix, 8, with wife Vanessa Lachey—grew so close to everyone involved in the production that he deemed them an honorary part of his and Jessica’s family.  

“I actually came to really love the crew,” he gushed. “I remember crying the day we shut down because you develop relationships with them. They really became family.” 

For a full timeline of Nick and Vanessa’s love story following his split from Jessica, keep reading.

The 98 Degrees singer was a TRL regular, here joining the former Vanessa Minnillo during Spankin' New Music Week' in November 2003.

Nick seemed to appreciate Vanessa's hosting skills when he was a guest during TRL's "High School Week" in 2004.

They may have been breaking up in Nick's "What's Left of Me" video, but their relationship was just getting going in real life. 

A night out at Tenjune to celebrate Vanessa being on the October 2006 cover of Maxim marked their first high-profile outing together.

Vanessa, who shares Nick's Nov. 9 birthday, looked happy to be his date for the birthday soiree thrown for him at Social House a couple of weeks later in 2006. 

The couple donned matching caps to watch USC take on Notre Dame at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum in November 2006.

Getting their groove on in 2007 at Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammys party.

They could barely wait for midnight as they rang in 2008 on MTV's TRL New Year's Eve special.

The couple look ready to party in Scottsdale, Ariz., in January 2008 at Axis/Radius nightclub's Super Thursday block party.

They made the scene at Jet Blue's LAX With VH1 Save The Music At MyHouse party in June 2009 about a week before their reps confirmed they had split up.

Date night heads to Sydney, Australia, for the March 2012 opening of Marquee at The Star.

The expectant couple enjoyed a low-key dinner at L.A.'s Next Door to celebrate their first wedding anniversary in July 2012.

A couple of zombies show off their undying affection for each other to celebrate Halloween in 2014.

The parents of soon-to-be two share a kiss in 2014.

Even a cold day at the beach is a day at the beach as they snap a selfie on their joint birthday, Nov. 9, in 2014.

Hats off (and on) to Nick and Vanessa at the 2015 Kentucky Derby.

The couple head to dinner at West Hollywood hot spot Craig's in July 2015.

These two have never stopped taking Halloween seriously.

Nick really got in on the spirit of St. Patrick's Day during the couple's well-timed trip to Dublin in 2016.

The whole family gets in on the Frozen theme for Halloween 2016.

The couple sneak in a date night in West Hollywood before son Phoenix's arrival in December 2016.

The smiling couple stop to snap a photo—we're guessing the kids are having a pony ride—at their neighborhood Farmers' Market in March 2017.

Nick and Vanessa hammed it up with their pro partners on Dancing With the Stars, fellow marrieds Peta Murgatroyd and Maksim Chmerkovskiy, at the season 25 casting announcement in September 2017. Peta and Nick made it to week four, while Vanessa and Maks were booted a week later in a surprise double elimination.

The parents of three got close at the Adopt Together Baby Ball in L.A. in October 2017.

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