Hanson, more than a flash in the pan.

  It's been fifteen years since the world was exposed to a musical sensation that, like it or not, changed us all forever. You can claim you hated it from the beginning and that you do still, but reality is that MMMBop was a game changer.
  In 1997, so much was happening, musically. R&B was still reigning high in the ranks, taking up more than it's room on the charts. The rap world was just getting used to the idea of losing Tupac when they had to mourn the loss of Biggie Smalls, creating a dispute that would last the ages in regards to the two deaths being related.Then there was the new phenomenon of the super sexes. Suddenly there was a rush of testosterone and estrogen flooding the scene with boy bands and girl power. Synchronized dance moves accompanied coordinated outfits and alternating pre-pubescent solos. Short shirts met platform shoes and fearless, cheeky, British women.
  What a trip that day was! When all these trends took over pop culture something refreshing appeared and provided a pleasant distraction from the cookie cutter crazies. That's right, Hanson was discovered. True, they were two albums deep by the time MMMBop became a mainstream single, but the public really was ignorant to that major accomplishment. All of a sudden, there was a following of a different kind. Throngs of screaming young girls shifted the paradigm of what they wanted in their music. It wasn't canned hits or empty promises of love anymore, it was something that they could believe in.
  If I were to explain to someone who hadn't been provided the opportunity to experience Hanson in that era, the one word I would use to describe them is REAL. They were these homegrown guys from a town in the middle of nowhere, and they knew good music and how to make it. There was no false pretense as to what they were doing, no lip synching or dance moves- just them, the fans, and the music. It was magic. One of the best parts about Hanson was that they wrote their own music, and it was obvious. There were catchy songs about girls and love, but they were real, and sincere, and written by very young teens. That was a breath of fresh air from their competition.
MMMBop became more than a hit, it was an anthem. It was a reminder to live in the moment and remember all that you have now, because someday it will be gone, and all you have left are the people that really love you. You can't create passion or maturity of that standard anywhere, and the world should have known then that they hadn't seen the last of Hanson, even when MMMBop eventually lost it's footing on the charts.
  Now, fifteen years from that date, I still love our anthem of life from '97. If we're  honest with ourselves, I think we'd  admit that deep down, we all kind of love it. How can you condemn such a nostalgic reminder of  our generation's greatest times? You can't, simple as that. Though MMMBop lives on in my heart and stands tall as a monumental homage to the 90's, I've not lost where it came from, nor has the majority of Hanson's fan base that has followed them for the last two decades. As I said, the world should have known better than to think Hanson would fade out. Hanson doesn't sit in the background, they Shout It Out, as their newest, and technically 8th album, proclaims. As amazing musicians with the right priorities, they've proven they're not going anywhere. Hanson is here to stay, for the music, and for the fans. In time, these men have grown into their talent to a brilliant extreme and their music only gets better with age. Shout It Out is the perfect reminder that the past determines our foundation, and the future is yet unwritten. Hanson was born to do this and that, my friends, is why we'll have their music to experience for years to come.

20 years as a band and 15 years in the spotlight. Congratulations, Hanson!