I have been a Hanson fan for seven years.

And still counting. In those seven years, I’ve loved anything Hanson-related. My notebooks were covered with Hanson pictures, its pages full of doodles of the names, Isaac, Taylor and Zac. I would have a bad day if I didn’t get to listen to their CDs or see their videos on television. I’d spend most of my savings on Hanson merchandise. Whenever I’d do the scripts of our class presentations, I always made it a point to include anything Hanson-related—whether it be a song or a character named Taylor. I was so adamant and vocal about being a Hanson fan that it came to a point that on Teacher’s Day, when I was asked to act as a teacher for the day, my classmates greeted me, “Good morning, Mrs. Hanson.”

But being a fan, and continuing to be a fan is something that one cannot do alone, or else you might lose your interest. My friends and I, fellow Hanson fans, were determined not to let that happen, thus, HOFF (Hanson Online Filipino Fanclub) was born. We organized parties to celebrate each Hanson brother’s birthday, as well as Hanson Day (yes, there is one, which is on May 6), and put up a spanking website to give an avenue for Filipino Hanson fans to be able to interact with one another to keep the pride alive. Together, we experienced joys (when Hanson’s latest CD Underneath came out!) and heartbreaks as well (we cried as Hanson canceled their concerts here twice).

Hunting Hanson

In October 2004, we thought we couldn’t be happier when we received the news that a Hanson concert was scheduled on November 30. A day before the concert, we checked in at their hotel. Imagine 12 (yes, 12) crazy, shrieking girls all shacked up in one big room. Hanson music and videos were played 24/7. It was great.

We were all there, when Hanson’s coaster finally pulled up in front of the hotel lobby. It was around 2 AM but there were about 50 of us fans holding up banners, screaming their names—still energized, never mind standing for about two and a half hours waiting for them. After seeing them for the first time, I actually cried. Taylor looked as he did on TV, Zac was a lot bigger in person, and Isaac was even handsomer than I thought he would be.

As we trudged back to the hotel room, my friend Kaycee and I couldn’t sleep. So at about 6 AM we decided to give up trying to sleep and look for them. We couldn’t stand being in the same place with them and not getting another glimpse. For about three hours of loitering around the hotel, we thought of giving up. Just then, we saw four huge bodyguards standing in front of us. My heart was racing as I quickly scanned the surroundings. I just knew they were going to appear any minute. As I pleaded to the bodyguards not to shoo as away, Kaycee started yelling, “Oh my God! Zac! Zac!” I turned toward the direction she was looking at and then said hi. Zac looked at us, amused expression on his face, and he said hi back! As we were talking to the bodyguards, Zac was watching us the whole time, still smiling. Then, Taylor appeared. We said hi, and until now, I can still remember the way he looked straight at me, waved and smiled. I was in heaven. But the bodyguards were scary, so we decided to just say goodbye and go. As we went inside the elevator, we screamed and started hugging each other even though the door was still open. I’m pretty sure Hanson heard it, but we didn’t care, we were so happy.

The meet and greet

Later that day, Hanson was scheduled to perform at a noontime show and we all trooped to the network and watched. They played “Penny and Me” on the show and afterward, we saw them again twice at the network’s grounds. We then decided to head back to the hotel to prepare for the concert and, with the help of meg, Sony Music and ALV Productions, go to the meet and greet.

While waiting in line for the meet and greet, I was busy rehearsing things that I was going to say to them in my head. I was about to meet Hanson. When it was our turn to talk to them, they were smiling. I went toward Ike, introduced myself and shocked his hand. He had a very firm handshake. As I moved toward Zac, I was just staring at him and he looked so friendly that I forgot all my manners and just asked for a hug right away. Their manager said, “You can do that later.” But surprisingly, Zac reached out and hugged me. For a couple of seconds, I found my head resting against his chest. I wanted that moment to last forever. When I pulled away, I was just looking at him, in a daze that I almost forgot to ask for an autograph. As he signed my Hanson book, I thanked him for coming to the Philippines and for still making music. When the event organizers took our picture, I remember Zac putting his arm around my shoulders. I leaned on him and gave the best smile. I swear I felt like crying. We still didn’t want to leave but there were other fans waiting to meet them and so we waved goodbye, and entered the concert arena.

Hanson Live!

To say that the concert was great is an understatement. I believe all the superlatives in the world cannot describe the way I felt in those one and a half hours. The energy of the crowd was so electrifying. I’m sure even the guys in the band felt exhilarated, too, as they rocked and played their songs, “Lost Without Each Other,” “Penny and Me,” “Underneath,” “This Time Around” (charming Taylor even taught the crowd to sing different parts of the song simultaneously), “Dancin’ in the Wind,” “Strong Enough to Break,” and of course, “MmmBop.” They also did covers of some U2 songs and Zac and Isaac did solos. Zac sang an unreleased track entitled “The Walk” on the piano, and Isaac sung my personal favorite, “Love Song.” Hanson really got the audience rewed up. And when they sang the song “Sweet Home Alabama,” Ike changed the lyrics to “Sweet Home Manila.” Aww.

The day after the concert, they left. We said goodbye to them at the hotel lobby. They waved at us, with Taylor putting his palm against the window of their bus as they pulled away from the curb. I felt so sad.

Why do I love thee?

When I was younger, some of the reasons why I liked them were because they were cute and wholesome. But now that I am older, I know that it goes deeper than that.

It took Hanson three years to release their second album, This Time Around. They took a long time because their record company didn’t see the potential in any of the 300-plus songs that they wrote at that time to become hits. The guys reportedly doubted their abilities and talents at that time. Finally, they decided to move out of that record label, and just start their own so that they could have full control of the whole creative process in making their music. Their old record company wanted to put them in the same mold of the bubblegum pop that was such a hit at the time, but Hanson wanted something different. Underneath was released and they wowed music critics and their fans.

Looking back, I realize why I like Hanson so much. I’ve wanted to become a writer so badly, but there were always people telling me that it’s not practical. I’d get so confused I almost want to give up. Hearing about what Hanson went through changed all of that. They fought their fears, doubts and just kept on doing what they wanted to do their way. Hanson has taught me that if you speak from the heart and remain true to yourself, you will succeed. That is the reason why I waited for seven years. To meet those few, rare people who change other people’s lives simply by being themselves. I must say, that the wait was well worth it.

Many thanks to meg magazine for giving us the chance to meet Hanson and to all the HOFF core group members: Klassy, Sanya, Lei, Helga, Yam, Riese, Denise and Alicia… we love you guys!

Please buy the album, Underneath. The Hanson Official Filipino Fanclub is open for membership. Kindly email me at c_panaguiton@yahoo.com and we’ll send you the details on how to join. ?



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