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AllPop's
Interview with Hanson
5/23/00 (AllPop.com) |
First, the news Hanson fans have been anxiously waiting for.
"We're definitely planning on touring, and we'll definitely be coming to Canada and all throughout the United States."
Isaac Hanson's confirmation of a North American tour in late July (probably around the 20th) should soothe the shrieking Hanson fans who continue to bang on MuchMusic's front window long after Zac, Isaac and Taylor have finished their performance on Saturday afternoon.
For those of you who assumed Hanson disappeared when
"MMMBop" faded from the playlists of radio stations everywhere, here's an update: Hanson's long-awaited follow up to their smash album
"Middle of
Nowhere", titled
"This Time
Around", is two weeks old.
Although the new album hasn't knocked *NSYNC's "No Strings Attached" out of the No. 1 slot, it has made it into the Top 20. From the reaction of the hysterical fans who continue to follow every move the brothers make, it's easy to see that the group's popularity is still strong.
Earlier on Saturday, as the boys left their hotel en route to MuchMusic, a few girls who had somehow tracked them down circled them in the lobby, begging for photos and autographs, but that was just a taste of what was to come. As Hanson pulled up to MuchMusic, both sides of Queen St. West were clogged with screaming fans who waved banners and proudly sported "I Love Hanson" headbands.
How can three teenage boys (aged 14, 17 and 19) handle all the attention and still lead normal lives?
Taylor, who wins the Hanson heartthrob competition hands-down, tried to downplay his pin-up status and explain how it would be possible for him to enjoy a romantic relationship.
"All those screaming people ... I think you don't take that too seriously," Taylor says. "If you did, it would mess you up. There's so many bands that happens to. If there was somebody you met and really liked, whether they really liked you or not ... that whole thing, you figure it out really fast. You just work it out.
"The thing in our case is, we've got a little bit of a unique situation where I mean, whoever that girl might be, she has to be able to deal with you being gone a lot," Isaac adds. "You have to be good at long-distance relationship. Even if we were older and married it would be hard. You can't always be with your girlfriend or wife. It's just one of those things that requires an exceptional girl."
Mind you, they make no mention of any girl in particular (that sound you hear is female Hanson fans everywhere breathing a sigh of relief), so at the moment, there's no female influence that could possibly threaten their popularity.
There is, though, the question of university. Isaac, 19, is obviously bright and well spoken and if he wasn't a pop star, he'd probably be excelling in the world of academia.
"I have definitely been thinking about it," Isaac says about the possibility. "It's just one of those things where, at this moment in time, my main focus is music and if I go to school I'm going to be a music major anyway, I'm just going to kind of get credit for what I'm already doing in an academic sense. I think that is definitely something I'm looking into, who knows? At this moment I don't have any exact plans. It would have to be web-based curriculum to do it 'cause I'm
traveling so much."
That leaves Zac. At 14, the most hyperactive Hanson has been on the road and making music for most of his life. Because he is occasionally irritated by the continuous flood of high-pitched screams, you'd think that Zac could be the Hanson who longs for a different life. But the long-haired, youngest brother disagrees.
"I haven't missed out on anything," he says. "This is something I wanted to do. I've got a long life ahead of me. I'll have time to have fun and do the other things I want to do."
The boys are finished talking about their romantic and educational futures and are eager to talk about their online ventures.
Hanson's loyal fanbase can partly be attributed to their strong presence on the Internet. Their Yahoo! chat club boasts thousands of members, and AllPop alone receives dozens of e-mails a week asking for more Hanson information.
The boys are eager to take advantage of their online popularity, and as AllPop reported earlier this year, the boys are launching their own ISP (Internet Service Provider). Perks will include Hanson e-mail addresses for fans and exclusive Hanson information.
"You can instantly communicate with people all over the planet," Taylor says about the Internet. "I think it's just going to keep growing."
Being the web-savvy pop stars they are, each Hanson has definite opinions about the current Napster/MP3-swapping controversy, which has resulted in law suits from bands such as Metallica, who aren't happy with the notion of people downloading their music for free.
"It's kind of a mess. It's going to be chaotic for the next couple years, because the problem is if somebody has that much freedom, people will abuse it," Taylor says. "The thing about it is, it scares record labels because it's hard to control. It's the kind of thing where it's going to be a little bit messy at first, but in the end it's going to alter the way records are sold, it's going to change people's perspective. It's going to make it easier for some bands to get out there."
"It also does affect the small, local bands more than the big bands," Isaac says. "Instead of people buying records from a band after the concert, all of a sudden one guy buys it and he just starts passing around MP3s all over the place, and it really effects the little guy cause he's the guy who needs every single sale. I think what people miss about the whole thing is just the fact that they are literally taking away the ability for people to continue to do music if they abuse it. However, sending out information is a great thing."
Zac however, is quick to point out that Napster doesn't seem to be doing too much damage to the record industry.
"What you have to look at is, sales are great," he says. "They're bigger than they ever have been, so I don't think at the moment it's hurting a lot of people."
Apart from their web adventures, Zac, Taylor and Isaac's next project is to direct one of their own videos.
"It's just something we're just very, very into because when we make a video we're very involved in what goes on," Isaac explains. "You never know where it could go. We have a lot of things in our head that can't properly be expressed unless you are doing the exact direction of where everything is going. In essence, a video describes a song in a visual way, so you want to take that video and have even more creative input."
Their creative thoughts are cut short as someone motions at them and taps their watch. It's time for the Hansons to catch their next plane and make their next promotional appearance. Taylor smiles shyly and waves goodbye, Isaac
nods and gives a polite "thank you", while Zac waves, flips his long hair and saunters out of the room.
Outside, Hanson fans are putting down their "We Love You Hanson" signs and heading home.
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