April 26, 2010 - NewYork - HANSON is proud to announce the first two legs of their North American tour in support of their highly anticipated fifth record, Shout It Out. The announcement of the tour follows a whirlwind week of excitement for the band’s debut single, “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’” which was released to digital outlets Friday in conjunction with the premiere network television performance of the song on the Late Show with David Letterman, and the music video debut on Myspace, garnering praise from fans and critics alike including Perez Hilton, MTV, Entertainment Weekly, Absolute Punk and Salon. The video, featuring “Weird” Al Yankovic, was viewed over a million times in the first few days of release, and is still rising. The exuberant homage to classic film The Blues Brothers, recreates an iconic scene where the band’s soulful music incites over 300 people to dance in the street.

Billboard said that Shout It Out represents some of the band’s “most soulful work ever committed to record”, while Salon hailed that the new single “may be their finest moment yet”, Entertainment Weekly praised “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’” as “a delicious, catchy slice of pop-soul”, and Idolator predicted, “don’t be surprised if there’s a Hanson revival in 2010”.

The first leg of the Shout It Out Tour begins July 21 with support from Rooney, and covers the east coast, south and midwest. The second leg, featuring A Rocket To The Moon, covers the southwest and west coast and begins September 14. The Shout It Out Tour also provides a platform for HANSON to continue their passion and support for independent music by partnering with OurStage to host an opening band contest in each market, where local indie artists can compete for the chance to share the stage with the band. Ben Campbell, CEO of OurStage, said “We are honored that HANSON approached OurStage to find emerging artists to perform as opening acts at local stops of their tour. HANSON has been a leader in the music industry for a long time as musicians and by running their own label, paving the way for other emerging artists seeking to make a name for themselves.”

HANSON is also excited to announce their partnership to create dynamic live streaming content with Livestream.com, beginning tonight with the band’s sold-out, five-night concert series at New York’s Gramercy Theatre. Each concert will feature the band performing one of their albums in its entirety, leading up to the worldwide debut of Shout It Out on the final night. The live streaming concert series will be viewable by the public on Hanson.net and Livestream.com as well as MSN.com. The live broadcast gives fans around the world the opportunity to be a part of the career-spanning event, and begins a series of exciting live streaming content to be continued throughout the rollout of Shout It Out.

“Our band has always been fuelled by a dynamic relationship with our fans, and the launch of live content with Livestream is going to open a new door for us to engage music fans wherever they are in real time through Livestream’s player which can be embedded anywhere from Facebook to Twitter and turn a broadcast into an online conversation,” said Taylor Hanson. Isaac added, “The live platform is where we think the future is for artists who want to really engage their fans.”

Shout It Out, to be released on HANSON’s own 3CG Records on June 8, was written and produced by HANSON, augmented with special guests: Funk Brothers bassist Bob Babbitt, who played on some of Motown’s greatest hits, as well as horn arranger Jerry Hey, who worked with Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Earth, Wind and Fire and many more. The three-time Grammy-nominated band has been enjoying a massive resurgence in recent weeks as the response to the album’s first single and video, “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’”, now available at all major digital outlets, has been rapturous, receiving rave reviews everywhere.

The tour dates for the North American tour are below:

 

Leg 1:

July

21                                 Buffalo, NY                                Club Infinity

23                                 Hyannis, MA                               Cape Cod Melody Tent

24                                 Cohasset, MA                             South Shore Music Circus

25                                 Philadelphia, PA                         Theatre of the Living Arts

27                                 Baltimore, MD                            Sonar

28                                 Richmond, VA                            Hat Factory

30                                 Asheville, NC                             Orange Peel

31                                 Raleigh, NC                               Lincoln Theatre

August

2                                  Louisville, KY                             Headliners

3                                  Nashville, TN                             Wild Horse Saloon

4                                  Memphis, TN                              Minglewood Hall

5                                  St. Louis, MO                             Pageant

7                                  Kansas City, MO                         The Beaumont

8                                  Omaha, NE                                Slowdown **Rooney is not on this date

10                                 Minneapolis, MN                     Music @ Zoo Outdoor Amphitheatre

12                                 Milwaukee, WI                           Pabst Theatre

13                                 Chicago, IL                                House of Blues

14                                 Chicago, IL                                House of Blues

16                                 Grand Rapids, MI                        Intersection

17                                 Royal Oak, MI                            Royal Oak Music Theatre

19                                 Cleveland, OH                           House of Blues

20                                 Pittsburgh, PA                            Carnegie Music Hall

21                                 Columbus, OH                           Newport Music Hall

23                                 Cincinnati, OH                            Moonlight Gardens

24                                 Indianapolis, IN                          Egyptian Room

25                                 Tulsa, OK                                  Cain’s Ballroom

 

Leg 2:

September

14                                 Mesa, AZ                                   Piper Theater

16                                 Anaheim, CA                             House of Blues

17                                 Los Angeles, CA                         House of Blues

18                                 San Diego, CA                            House of Blues

20                                 San Francisco, CA                       Great American Music Hall

21                                 San Francisco, CA                       Great American Music Hall

22                                 Portland, OR                              Wonder Ballroom

23                                 Seattle, WA                                The Moore

25                                 Vancouver, BC                           Commodore Ballroom

27                                 Spokane, WA                             Knitting Factory

28                                 Boise, ID                                   Knitting Factory

30                                 Salt Lake City, UT                       The Depot

October

1                                  Boulder, CO                                Fox Theatre