Happy birthday to Isaac Hanson, who turns 41 years old on Wednesday.
More than 25 years after Isaac, Taylor and Zac Hanson’s first performance at Mayfest, they have seen the world, played “MMMBop” more times than they can fathom and built an enormous and fervent fanbase.
The creativity of the Tulsa-native brothers, so many years after they started their career as pre-teens, shows no signs of slowing.
Take a look back at photos of them through the years.
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Isaac and Zac say “Hey” during group vocals for the upcoming album, releasing in 2022.
It’s hard to comprehend the enormity of Hanson’s 1997 smash “MMMBop” in today’s content-stuffed world. Back then, that one song topped charts in 27 countries simultaneously and turned three brothers from Oklahoma into superstars overnight.
Given the tune’s undeniable virality, it’s even harder to comprehend how little Hanson’s label cared about the band’s web presence.
“They were like, ‘Internet, schminternet’ … nobody had any interest whatsoever when that started,” Taylor Hanson tells me. “So we basically began to develop a direct-to-fan membership fan club and active public website without any hindrances, without any engagement from the label.”
By 1999, the band had launched Hanson.net, a paid-membership portal that gave users all sorts of exclusive content. They received their own “@hanson.net” email accounts and congregated in semi-private online spaces. And these fans—superfans, that is—even had the ability to make their own web sites and profile pages.
In other words, Hanson created something like a social network, years ahead of Myspace, well before Mark Zuckerberg even got his driver’s license. And none of the band’s corporate overlords tried to come in and gobble it up.
“There was a moment where this emerging possibility was there, where the industry that was the most fragile—music—could’ve adopted this new way of talking to people,” Taylor tells me. “But because it’s been dominated by a corporate power structure … they’re thinking in quarters, they’re thinking in stock prices … they don’t have any R&D happening.”
Taylor, Zac and Isaac Hanson (left to right), all grown up … and still rocking (Photo by Rick Kern/Getty Images)That sort of corporate myopia served Hanson well, enabling the brothers to build out their fan club without undue encumbrance. Critically, this growing web presence allowed the them to keep building their brand and connecting with audiences all around the world.
To be sure, many bands built thriving direct-to-consumer businesses even earlier. The Grateful Dead pulled it off with hard ticket sales starting in the 1980s and Radiohead did it with online profiles in the early 1990s. Indeed, a handful of acts used email databases and listservs to connect with fans in those days. But Hanson was perhaps the first to do so at a grand scale through the world wide web.
Then the shine of “MMMBop” wore off, and record companies didn’t know what to do with a bunch of long-haired teenagers from Tulsa singing Motown-style songs. And, at the time, the labels were too consumed with buying and selling each other to figure it out.
Eventually Hanson got offloaded onto Island Def Jam, and it seemed the group was at risk of being lost in the shuffle alongside acts like Jay-Z and DMX. But the brothers had a major advantage: they weren’t locked into an all-encompassing deal.
“Now, if you sign a deal to any major company … people are doing 360,” says Taylor. “The label’s trying to take a piece of the record, a piece of the touring, a piece of the merch. And a lot of times they’re grabbing the ownership of the URL, the likely website URL, which is really scary for the band.”
Rather than fall into record label purgatory as an eternal afterthought, Hanson went independent shortly after the turn of the Millennium. And why not? The group had direct access to its audience, as well a measure of built-in financial stability through the fan club (which costs $40 for a one-year subscription).
So, when Facebook and its ilk arrived, Hanson didn’t feel pressure to give away exclusive content in hopes of monetizing down the line, as so many others now do. The brothers had their own social network, with an audience willing to compensate them for their creative output.
Hanson also had access to details most bands didn’t, particularly when it came to the makeup of its superfan base. The band could see who ordered the most merch, which cities they lived in, and more. Such information played a crucial part in devising tour schedules, allowing the band to concentrate its earning power.
“We actually knew that we have this many fans in Israel, we knew that we have this many fans in Sweden,” says Taylor. “They’re going to show up at the radio station, they’re going to the show. Leveraging that is always really hard, but we basically had a picture, for the first time in modern history, of a kind of real time engagement metric.”
And it worked. Unlike so many bands doomed to the annals of history, Hanson has continued to record, tour and innovate—all independently. Hanson still packs rooms like the 2,900-seat Beacon Theater in New York, and does even better abroad, playing to crowds of 6,000-7,000 in South America and Australia.
In addition to touring constantly (in the Before Times, anyway) and putting out new records regularly, Hanson launched its own Mmmhops beer and Hop Jam festival. And, after a cancellation last year due to the pandemic, Hanson.net members can once again join the group for an annual weeklong event in Jamaica this winter.
“We’re a band that can play most places in the world,” says Taylor. “It’s a strong global fan base, but the amount of engagement that we see from that fan base is exponentially higher than the average band.”
That’s because Hanson doesn’t just have a fan base, it has a superfan base, one with clear lines of communication for maintaining and monetizing the relationship. And all entrepreneurs can draw inspiration from this playbook—whether they helped invent social media or not.
In 2022, Hanson will celebrate 30 years as a band. It’s a remarkable accomplishment for any group, let alone one whose members ranged from age six to 11. The group was propelled to success in its earliest days on the strength of its 1997’s Middle of Nowhere, a multi-platinum debut. Hanson’s seventh’s studio release, Against the World, arrived earlier this month. At first glance, the title is downright confrontational, though Taylor Hanson explains that the name is intended to reflect a kind of underdog status adopted by the group. It’s a strange notion, for band that has seen such high highs, but intervening years have forced the group to forge its own path in the often difficult to navigate world of the music business.
The members of pop rock band Hanson – brothers Taylor Hanson (vocals/keyboards), Isaac Hanson (guitar/bass) and Zac Hanson (drums) – rose to fame as teens with their 1997 worldwide hit “MMMBop.” Since then, they’ve managed to avoid the many personal and professional problems that can plague young artists as they navigate the difficult transition into an artistic career as adults. Earning respect right from the start for writing their own songs and playing their own instruments, they’ve successfully sustained the band (and a harmonious brotherly bond), as they prove with Against the World, their seventh studio album (out on November 5). They’ve even earned a major power pop seal of approval by having Cheap Trick guitarist Rick Nielsen as a guest musician on “Don’t Ever Change,” which was released as a single in June. During a phone call from his Oklahoma home, Taylor Hanson discusses the new album, and explains how determination and keeping a positive attitude have been crucial elements in the band’s longevity.
How did you know it was the right time to do another album now?
TAYLOR HANSON: This record was actually made pre-pandemic. As the pandemic begin to unfold, we sort of stepped back. 2020 was not the year to try and get out there, so we focused on polishing the album and preparing for it to come out in a different way. So I think it’s kind of interesting: it very much presents itself as a project that was written during and through the times we’re in, but it was more predictive then it was prescriptive. I think it’s an album that was fitting for this time.
How did you get Rick Nielsen to play on “Don’t Ever Change”?
TAYLOR HANSON: We’ve been making records for years, and along the way you get to connect with certain people that are legends that you respect. Cheap Trick are an example. I think Rick brought his daughter to see us play years and years ago, when we were in our teens, and then we kept a relationship with Rick. I also had a side project about ten years ago, Tinted Windows, that had Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos. So that’s another connection point to Cheap Trick. Bun E. is not on the road with Cheap Trick anymore, but he’s a part of that camp. [Tinted Windows also included Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha and Fountains of Wayne multi-instrumentalist Adam Schlesinger.] So when we came to this record, we were looking at songs on the list, and “Don’t Ever Change” is just a total power pop and guitar pop song. It was screaming for that Rick Nielsen touch. So we reached out, and he was gracious enough to want to be a part of it. We felt like it was a blessing.
What was your writing and recording process like this time?
TAYLOR HANSON: Everyone came with strong ideas. We didn’t write nearly as many different songs for this project. It was a little more, “These are the songs that are ready for this time.” We recorded them mostly in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, which is a legendary location. We purposely went there, trying to capture some of the spirit of that place. That was probably one of the best things about the overall project, was just going there, experiencing the energy in that place and building on the positive history that it has. Hopefully you do feel that in these songs. But all the songs really carried a lot of weight. I think the takeaway of the overall record is, [these are] songs about coming through difficulty, and looking for the silver lining. Fighting through things and seeking meaning amidst chaos and challenges. That’s really where the greatest strength lies, to be able to overcome those things.
Where does that grit come from, for you?
TAYLOR HANSON: I think all people have inside of them the ability to withstand difficulty. Otherwise, none of us would have made it very far! We definitely had to choose to stick to our guns, to stick to things we believe in, regardless of whether everyone understands your creative vision. We definitely grew up in a family realizing that difficulty was a part of the package. That was something that was always taught to us growing up. I’m getting much closer to forty than I am to thirty, and some of the greatest experiences and most meaningful experiences have come through doing difficult work and moments where you could have chosen to say, “This is too hard” and not fight, that would be easier. Those situations where the choice was made to withstand or push through or to find a way to overcome adversity, the reward has been given.
That seems like a necessary attitude to have if you’re in the music business, in particular. As you grew up, how did you know you should be a professional musician, instead of maybe thinking it was something other people thought you should do?
TAYLOR HANSON: For me, it was pretty simple, as far as the recognition of deciding to work on music and have that “push through it” attitude, because at a really young age, I could sing easily and harmonize – that was something that just was in the DNA. And I saw how people would respond to it, and I remember thinking, “Well, if others respond positively to this, I could get to do this rare thing that I see can be incredibly impactful.” So once you identify this possibility, this goal, that right there was enough motivation to almost overcome anything. You paint a picture in your head of living out this idea, writing songs, making music, performing – it can reach a lot of people. All the sudden, this picture is this ideal possibility. It’s enough motivation to withstand the naysayers. One of the things about anybody choosing a path is that the universe knows when you’re bluffing. So part of deciding to have longevity is just making no Plan B. A lot of people talk about having a back-up plan. My thought has always been, yeah, it’s wise to know that you can build skills, not just literally have one skill in life. But identify something that you want to be great in, and commit to that. Take all the risks. Throw enough risk into it that your sense of survival is attached to it. Part of longevity is not allowing yourself to hedge your bets and allowing yourself to say, “If this doesn’t work, I’ll just bounce back to the predictable thing.” Say to yourself, “This is what I’m doing and I will stick to it.” It may not be gloriously successful, but the attachment to that mission in and of itself is the deciding factor, because people will gather around that. I really think that you set the tone for what you begin to get from the world. If I walk into a room confident and willing to learn, but also willing to stick to what I believe in, you’d be amazed at how often it attracts others that are hungry for that. We all want to feel like we’re part of something.
Hanson is back with their tenth studio album, Against The World. © Screenshot/Instagram/Hanson
Tulsa, Oklahoma – Hanson is back to win hearts over with new music in the form of their tenth studio album, Against The World.
Hanson’s new seven-track album shows off the band’s wide array of musical influences and abilities, while reminding day-one fans why they fell in love with the trio to begin with.
Against The World comes one year shy of the brothers’ 30-year anniversary as a band, and to say they’ve come a long way from their MMMBop days would be a gross understatement.
With southern rock flares and strong visuals in the form of carefully crafted lyrics, Hanson seems to have found a sound that not only suits them, but also the fan base they’ve been growing alongside since the ’90s.
Long gone are the days when the trio of brothers croons about wooing a lady with child-like antics and untainted eyes.
Against The World proves just how much Hanson has grown not just as artists, but also human beings.
The song, One, references the challenges of getting older and becoming who you’re meant to be, as the band sings, “Lay down your arms doesn’t mean that we stop fighting, only that we recognize that we might shed blood for our pride. And we shout, ’cause we cannot help ourselves – carrying on.”
A similar sentiment is shared on the optimistic and empowering track, Fearless, which incorporates epic string instrumentals to pack quite the hefty musical and motivational punch.
“If you’re not gonna go home, if you’re gonna make waves, you’ve got to be fearless – but you could be so much more. You could be bold, breaking the mold – you are what you let yourself be told. You could be fearless,” the band belts.
While the album might be a quick listen, it’s one that will leave you feeling a little lighter after one listen through, and that’s something everyone could use a taste of.
Hanson performs a weekend of livestream concerts Nov. 5-7 to benefit independent music venues. (Photo by Jonathan Weiner)
It’s been 25 years since Hanson became a pop sensation with “MMMBop.” And the brothers from Tulsa, Okla. — Isaac, Taylor and Zac — are working as hard, if not harder, now as they did back then.
Since that breakthrough, the trio has released another nine albums, two of them holiday sets, along with startling a variety of philanthropic initiatives and side businesses, including a beer called Mmmhops. It’s also toured regularly and added orchestral concerts to its live offerings.
Since the start of the pandemic Hanson has also performed a series of livestream concerts from Tulsa, which have continued into the fall. On Friday, Nov. 5, the group releases a new album, “Against the World,” which compiles tracks recorded at historic FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Ala. And middle brother Taylor Hanson promises that there’s more on the horizon.
• Taylor, 38 — who’s also been a member of the all-star band Tinted Windows — says Hanson envisioned the roll-out of “Against the World” somewhat differently. “The idea originally was that we would take people through this journey. They’d continue to get content throughout the year, but there’d also be a tour. We’d be somewhere in the world and a new single would come out and then we’d be somewhere else in the world and another new single would come out. With the pandemic and everything it didn’t work that way, but I would say I’m pretty happy with how we were able to adapt and keep people engaged.”
• The livestream concerts, he adds, have been crucial to maintaining that engagement with fans. “I would say connecting through the livestream concerts was essential. That live music, that live event, makes (the songs) feel like they’re still a part of something. That’s still one of the most effective ways to keep people excited. It’s been as effective as we can hope for in this time of limited access.”
• The songs on “Against the World” were created over time, worked on after the initial recording sessions at FAME during 2019. But Taylor hopes that a message emerges in the set. “We as people are trying to put something positive into the world. This group of songs I’m definitely leaning into mostly heavy messages. We started off with the most bright, the most pop songs in the spring, and it got heavier as it went. I’m glad it at least has cohesiveness, ’cause there’s no song that sounds the same or cut from the same cloth. But I do think it has a sense of itself by the time you get everything together. I think people will feel the sense of an album of a project, even if the songs are very different from one another.”
• With Hanson’s 30th anniversary as a band looming in 2022, Taylor says he and his brothers plan “something meaningful,” with new music and a hoped-for return to touring. “Actually getting to play and run round the world, that’s the plan. There should be new music from another project next year, but I’m reluctant to open up about too many details. But next year is going to be a pivotal year for us. I think the band being 30 years old is definitely important.”
• Taylor adds that the 30-year marks gives him and his brothers some pause to consider. “Y’know, some things feel like just yesterday, other things. … The strangeness of time becomes more and more vivid. It’s not linear. It does not feel like everything has just passed and here you are, this many years later. Certain things look extremely fresh. You can’t believe something was two decades ago. And other things feel like another life. Being proud of where you’ve been is important, but I would say for me it’s really important that we continue to forge ahead and push ourselves to go to new places.”
It may not be obvious at first blush, but the Tulsa, Oklahoma-born band Hanson has been making music for just about three decades. The group, which achieved a No. 1 single in 1997 with the track, “MMMBop,” is comprised of three brothers—Isaac, Taylor, and Zac. And ever since their hit found the airwaves in the late ‘90s, it seems like everyone has an opinion about the band. If there’s no such thing as a bad headline, then Hanson has been happily staying in the public consciousness for decades. But, in reality, the roller-coaster ride of fame for the brother band hasn’t always been smooth. That’s why a major theme for the trio these days is the idea of perseverance. The theme of overcoming odds, of succeeding despite an underdog mentality, is all over Hanson’s newest LP, Against The World, which is out today (November 5).
“As a band, as a unit,” Taylor tells American Songwriter, “we’ve absolutely experienced that challenge of: can you persevere, can you stay the course?”
Taylor was barely a teenager when “MMMBop” came out. He’s 38 years old now. Being in the entertainment game for so long, Taylor is clear-headed about the role. It’s one he’s chosen to take on now for about 30 years. He has some perspective. He knows his job is dual-pronged. On one hand, he’s a creative person. Writing is how he processes the world. He needs to undertake the puzzle-making that is songwriting. But on the other, he’s also a public figure, one who isn’t always in control of the story he forges in unison with an audience, with the public.
“Making music and creating things,” he says, “isn’t simply about: will I do this when it’s successful. It’s a state of being.” Taylor adds, “As a unit, we have never shied away from putting out content about struggle.”
As kids, the brothers were exposed to a small selection of rock and roll at a young age. Their father was in the oil and gas business and, as such, took on jobs that had his family traveling all over the world, from Tulsa to Trinidad. The brothers, who are the oldest of seven children, heard their mom singing around the house. They also listened to the music of Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, and Ray Charles. The brothers began to make their own music. They would harmonize and stun family members with their abilities. That power soon found a larger audience.
“When the first record broke,” Taylor says, “we truly were able to suddenly live the ultimate dream of having a huge following. The experience has been amazing and it has also been extremely challenging. It puts your sense of character and sense of compass to the test.”
It can be dangerous to see yourself through the eyes of another person. And when you’re known globally, it’s almost impossible not to do that. Not to mention, if you grow up in front of a camera, it can be difficult. Along the way, the Hanson brothers have not avoided controversy completely. Zac, the band’s drummer and youngest of the three, had pro-gun and possibly racist memes from his Pinterest account leaked last year. He later apologized. The oldest, guitar player Isaac, also got into some hot water over “emotional” social media posts about COVID-19 and the worry of potential cancelling of American holidays. While these aren’t crimes, they certainly caused a ruckus for the band and its fans. But, as Taylor points out, that’s where personal growth—and the band’s new record—comes in.
“This record shines a light on a band that is definitely reflecting a lot and is still evolving,” Taylor says. “Where we are as a collective, there’s a lot of coming through adversity messaging in these songs.” He adds, “I think this whole project is really communicating this idea of different paths to come through a challenge or deal with challenging situations, both internally and externally.”
The new seven-track album title, Against the World, came from a conversation the three members had together about the state of the band and its place in the grand scheme. To be up against something, even if that’s the internal world of yourself, can help crystalize real purpose. And the band’s song, “Stronger,” from the new LP is a microcosm of that aim. The track, which sounds like a long-lost Queen number, is all about wanting to be better in the face of personal weakness.
“It’s a conversation a person is having, talking about their own demise and feelings of depression and feeling destitute,” Taylor says. “And then the chorus is the response: I want to be better than this, stronger than I am.”
For Taylor, music, and songwriting offer the chance to improve. Each song is a keyhole to a different and hopefully better-lit room, so to speak. Songwriting has offered Taylor and his brothers the chance at seeing the world, connecting with millions, and learning the depths of their brotherhood and even themselves, as individuals. What more could one ask for? Now, with growth as the main theme, the brothers are poised for more.
“I love that music evolves to reflect wherever you are in your life experience,” Taylor says. “Music is the great connector. It’s with you through sadness, through celebration. It’s with you as a storyteller, it’s your soundtrack to your workout in the morning. It’s a companion that helps people make sense of the world.”
HANSON RELEASE NEW ALBUM, AGAINST THE WORLD
SEVENTH OF SEVEN CONSECUTIVE MONTHLY VIDEOS STREAMING NOW
WATCH “FEARLESS”
“The seven-track ‘Against the World’ is a rich and diverse group of songs that showcase the brothers’ range, musicianship, and influences.”
– Associated Press
HANSON release their new album today. Against The World was recorded at the legendary FAME studios in Muscle Shoals, AL, and brings together a series of new sounds that build on the band’s history. The project illustrates HANSON’s musicality, rooted in soul and melodic, rock ‘n’ roll, as well as the band’s longevity as songwriters and performers who have continued to mine their origins while propelling their music forward. The album is streaming now at all DSPs.
“These seven songs each highlight different musical influences, but the common thread is in their message, facing adversity in its many forms, and seeking a way forward. It’s exciting that fans can finally hear the songs as the body of work that is Against The World, the album,” said Taylor Hanson.
PURCHASE/STREAM AGAINST THE WORLD
Against The World was initially announced in May with the release of the debut single and video, “Annalie.” HANSON proceeded to release one song and video per month through today, which sees the release of the clip for “Fearless.” After “Annalie,” the band shared “Don’t Ever Change” in June, “Only Love” in July, the title track “Against The World” in August, “Stronger” in September, and “One” in October.
WATCH “FEARLESS”
