Backstage Outtakes

At the American Music Awards show Wednesday at the Shrine, music celebrities came backstage to chat about everything from fashion to problems with the law and the feud between this event and the Grammys.

Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys, who had a run-in with a Florida police officer earlier this month, said the tussle was already behind him. If the officer “disrespected me, or if I did, it’s all over now,” he said.

Carter was arrested after allegedly refusing to follow police officers’ orders to leave a Tampa nightclub after a fight broke out. According to Jennifer Guggino, an eyewitness, the 21-year-old Backstreet Boy cried when he was arrested. Guggino told reporters at Thesmokinggun.com: “Nick wasn’t belligerent, but he started bawling. He said, ‘You just want to arrest a Backstreet Boy. I’ve never been arrested. I don’t know what to do!’ ... Tears were streaming down his face. People were laughing at him. The cops were chuckling.”

Carter was booked on a misdemeanor count of resisting/opposing an officer without violence and later was released.

“This is just going to go away,” Carter said Wednesday with confidence. “I’m not a bad person; I have never been a bad person.” Easy, there. We weren’t suggesting you’re an evildoer. Please ... don’t cry.

‘N Sync offered more laughs. When asked about the battle of the award shows, Justin Timberlake said, “We don’t play the political game.” Band member Chris Kirkpatrick added, “Now, that’s a good political answer.”

Timberlake, who is dating Britney Spears, was caught on camera earlier in the evening cheering after a Spears performance. When a reporter asked about it, Timerberlake joked: “Well, last night I was thinking, ‘What way can I get on camera?’ So I used her performance.”

Then came Destiny’s Child, who made Mr. Blackwell’s annual worst-dressed list.

When asked about that dubious honor, Beyonce Knowles innocently asked, “Who is Mr. Blackman?” Admonishing him, she added: “Observe yourself.”

Speaking of fashion, India.Arie said her mother had made her award show outfit--an orange dress which she wore over jeans. “She’d be mad if she knew I wore this hat with it,” she said, pointing to a denim hat.

“Hi, I’m Cher,” said Cher. Despite her new blond look, most reporters and critics knew who she was. The singer, a pre-Sept. 11 critic of George Bush, was asked what she would say about him now. “He’s the president,” she replied, and left it at that.

Then Sheryl Crow popped in, and commented on the awards show feud. She hopes it will be resolved before next year. “I’m a lover, not a fighter,” the singer joked.

Speaking of love, we hold a torch for Garth Brooks, who took home an Award of Merit. The country singer talked about balancing his career and family life, before paying homage to James Taylor. “You know the saying, ‘If you meet your heroes they won’t be your heroes anymore?’” Not true in this case. When the two met, Brooks was blown away because Taylor knew the name of everyone in Brooks’ family, including the nanny. “It was just 007 stuff,” Brooks said.

Michael Jackson ended the evening on a surreal note. Receiving an artist of the century award, Jackson thanked his mother and father, as well as Quincy Jones, Diana Ross and “my other father, Marlon Brando.”

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Case Closed?

“Family Ties” star-turned-rock singer Tina Yothers may have cleared her debt to her former public relations company, ending an eight-month legal battle. Yothers appeared Thursday in a Beverly Hills court and wrote a personal check to Steve Levesque’s Luck Media & Marketing for $5,050, money that a judge ruled she owed him for promoting her rock band, Jaded. “As long as the check clears, we don’t have to return [to court],” Levesque told us. “That’s all I wanted from the beginning--to get paid for the work.”

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FYI ...

The giant banner atop Hollywood & Highland featuring a midriff-baring Britney Spears enjoying a Pepsi was recently blown down by high winds. “We have every intention of replacing it. We’re investigating ways to keep it more sturdy,” complex spokeswoman Beth Harris told us. Harris dismissed rumors that Hollywood Hills residents demanded the banner removed because it spoiled their views.

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City of Angles runs Tuesday through Friday. E-mail: angles @latimes.com.