Fame and fortune:
Hanson Brothers find success investing in themselves
By Larry Getlen • Bankrate.com

The three brothers in the band called Hanson found themselves in a bizarre but enviable conundrum at an age when most American teenagers are more worried about grades, dates and pimples. The release of their 1997 major label debut "Middle of Nowhere" found the three musicians -- guitarist Isaac (age 16), keyboard/lead singer Taylor (14), and drummer Zac (11) -- atop the music industry on the strength of the saccharine hit single, "MMMBop." The harmonizing brothers were cute and peppy, and teen girls shrieked for them in a manner reminiscent of predecessors Backstreet Boys and New Kids on the Block.

And therein lay the problem. The Hanson brothers bore one significant difference to most of the teen singing idols dotting the musical landscape throughout the 1990s: The trio out of Tulsa, Okla., actually had musical talent. They were skillful on their instruments, and wrote most of their remarkably catchy songs themselves. Unlike most of the boy bands, whose futures would clearly be in doubt once their appeal to teen girls faded, the Hansons had the talent to become "real" musicians, to outlive their reputation as dream bait for the pubescent.

Unfortunately, the music industry is an unforgiving place for those without a distinct niche. The debut CD, "Middle of Nowhere," had sold eight million copies, spawned three hit singles, peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard charts, and led to three Grammy nominations for the brothers. But by the release of their follow-up, "This Time Around," many of Hanson's faithful had moved on, and the band found themselves in the same place as many of their bopping brethren -- cast adrift with minimal (compared to their debut, at least) audience.

By this time, however, the brothers had not only the talent that many of their peers did not, but the wisdom to have paid very close attention while the business of music was happening around them. For their third release, Hanson decided to abandon the major label system and go it alone. The brothers formed their own label, 3CG Records. They sold out a 10-date acoustic tour by offering tickets exclusively through their Web site, and released a CD the same way.

Now, their third full-length release, "Underneath," is out on 3CG Records (with major distribution), and the brothers Hanson are giving it a go not only as musicians, but as moguls as well.

Bankrate spoke with 23-year-old Isaac Hanson, and found a man seemingly decades removed from any life as a teen idol. Hanson possesses a wisdom about the business uncommon in one so young, and only possible from one who has spent his years in the business with his eyes wide open. We discussed the challenges of the music business, and how the boys -- well, men -- of Hanson are just beginning to control their own destinies.

BANKRATE: I saw a clip of your younger brother Taylor (now 20) talking about the music industry, and sounding quite bitter and worldly for a guy his age. What did the business do to you guys?

ISAAC HANSON: I wouldn't consider myself to be bitter. I'd say that I'm wiser. One thing we've definitely been excited about is that we've taken the bull by the horns. There's a lot of chaos in the industry right now. The most obvious scapegoat is the Internet, but I think that's a byproduct of a bigger problem, which is that there is a lack of respect and attention given to the audience and their ability to discern quality records from not-as-quality records. Some of the quality control has been lost.

BANKRATE: Did anything specific happen to you, or is it that over time the labels didn't seem as interested?

ISAAC HANSON: We could have stayed with Island/Def Jam, but we felt that it wasn't the right place for us anymore. The company that signed us originally in '96, Mercury, was no longer in existence, and everybody we knew had been removed in the initial merger between Polygram or Universal, or slowly fired as the years went by.

BANKRATE: What were the circumstances under which you started the new label?

ISAAC HANSON: We felt like the creative process had broken down between us and Island, and it made it hard to finish the record. We talked with a lot of different labels, but as we shopped around we felt like the best place to be for the next 25 years was to maintain ownership of our records. The music industry's at an evolutionary place right now. I joke that the industry is at its phoenix stage. Out of the ashes, something will come. So we formed a record company and released this record independently. Everything we gave to our fans, a newsletter or little snippet of information or whatever, always came directly from us. It's a very personal thing. We've always been a very independent, do-it-yourself kind of band. That's always been at the heart of what we do. So it's very natural for us to take it to the next level and also form an independent company.

BANKRATE: Looking back, do you feel that as kids you were taken advantage of?

ISAAC HANSON: I definitely don't think we were taken advantage of, because we were always aware of what was going on. We had people who cared about our well being. Our manager understood that a good manager not only looks after the business well-being but also the psychological well-being of his clients. He actually cared about that.

BANKRATE: So you had people looking after your money to make sure it wasn't squandered?

ISAAC HANSON: We were always very conscious of where our money was going, and what investments we were using them for. In most cases, we were very simplistic and conservative about where we spent our money, because obviously you want it to last, especially when you're 16, 17, 18 years old. So we've been very lucky to have made enough money that we're able to feel comfortable making risky investments, like owning a record company.

BANKRATE: So you funded the record company yourself?

ISAAC HANSON: Oh yeah, very much so. It's a completely self-owned entity, which is also exciting because we're looking in the future to help out other artists the way we were helped out, whether it is in the classic artist/label relationship sense, or some other form. We've been lucky enough to have some cool opening acts over the years, and we've taken out independent artists like Michelle Branch, who we found through our manager. She played for us and it was good for her, she got signed and made a name for herself. It was cool to be on the front end of that. That's the kind of thing we're always looking to do.

BANKRATE: It seems like you got an amazing lesson in business really quickly. Did you all take to it that fast? Was someone there to say, this is really important for you to know?

ISAAC HANSON: We've always had a lot of smart people around us who were never shy about sharing information, because a good client/artist relationship is one of trust and constant exchange of information. In a lot of cases too, your attorney is a musician on the side, because that's why he took music law, because he loves music. So you have that kinship. It's kind of a funny reality. A lot of guys in the music industry are there because they love it, and they wanted to do it as a career. So because of that there's always a kinship between you and the people you work with. Also, we've always been aggressive pursuers of information. I can confidently say that there's not a contract I've signed that I haven't gone through. Every artist should be able to say that.

BANKRATE: The label is owned solely by the three of you?

ISAAC HANSON: It's a partnership, solely owned by the three of us. We're the CEOs of the company.

BANKRATE: Had you learned enough about the business where you felt you knew enough to start a label, or did you need outside help?

ISAAC HANSON: The important thing about leading a process, about owning a company, is not just your own personal knowledge, it's also having people who w