TULSA, OK. (Top40 Charts/ TOMS PR) - With HANSON's fourth studio album, "The Walk," which debuted in the Top 5 on Billboard's Independent Chart, the band kicked off their nearly sold-out The Walk Tour this week in Nashville. Additional dates have just been announced and will go on sale next week.
After recording the song "Great Divide" in Africa (the proceeds of which are donated to AIDS relief in Africa), HANSON is continuing their efforts by teaming with TOMS Shoes on a unique initiative to help with the fight against poverty in Africa. On The Walk Tour, HANSON and TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie will be speaking about the importance of taking simple action, like purchasing a pair of TOMS shoes (for each pair purchased, a pair is given to a child in need). Shoes will be made available on each tour stop.
Said TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie, "The message (and beauty) of TOMS is that massive change is possible...we need only work together and each contribute a little bit. I cannot think of a better partner to help spread this message than HANSON."
As part of the tour, a one-mile walk will be staged in each tour market inviting the fans and local artists to join in, encouraging those participating to take action by purchasing a pair of TOMS as part of these symbolic one-mile treks. The exact location of each day's walk will be announced on hanson.net three hours in advance (fans who participate in the one-mile walk will get to "jump the line" for the concert that night so they don't need to worry about losing their place in line).
Said Taylor Hanson, "We want to inspire others to look for simple, tangible and fun ways to make a difference. It is easy to be halted by the great hurdles of poverty and AIDS, but making an impact can begin as simply as giving someone a pair of shoes or buying a song."
There will be a premiere walk event in late September ahead of the band's two sold-out shows September 29 & 30 at Chicago's House of Blues. HANSON's new single, "Great Divide," has been the No 1 Most Requested song on Chicago's Q101 radio station for the last 2 weeks. Proceeds from the sale of HANSON's song "Great Divide" go to HIVSA, an African AIDS relief organization.
Shoes will be sold at each tour stop, with the pairs donated on the tour being delivered by the team as part of TOMS shoe drop trip to South Africa and Ethiopia, set for November 2007 and early 2008. Purchases can also be made direct from TOMSshoes.com
LA Times praised the new CD: "'The Walk' is intelligent mainstream rock with a soulful influence. These brothers must be seen live"; and Billboard described it as "an iconic American sound."
Co-produced with legendary producer Danny Kortchmar (Billy Joel, James Taylor, the Eagles), "The Walk" was inspired, in part, by HANSON's recent trip to South Africa and Mozambique, where they recruited children from the local orphanage to form a choir, who are featured on two songs on the new album.
HANSON has been ubiquitous in the media lately, with appearances on "The Howard Stern Show," Fox's "Your World With Neil Cavuto," "The CBS Early Show," "The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet," "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," and "The Tom Green Show," as well as major coverage in People magazine, Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone.
Details on purchasing tickets and the one mile walks for TOMS Shoes can be found at the band's Web site: www.hanson.net.
Here's a list of venues/cities where you can catch HANSON perform on The Walk Tour:
09/10/07 - WILDHORSE SALOON - NASHVILLE, TN
09/12/07 - TURNING STONE - VERONA, NY
09/13/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
09/15/07 - SONAR - BALTIMORE, MD
09/16/07 - 9:30 CLUB - WASHINGTON, DC
09/18/07 - NEWPORTMUSIC HALL - COLUMBUS, OH
09/19/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - CLEVELAND, OH
09/21/07 - NORTH FORK THEATRE - WESTBURY, NY
09/22/07 - THE CHANCE - POUGHKEEPSIE, NY
09/24/07 - WEBSTER THEATRE - HARTFORD, CT
09/26/07 - ELECTRIC FACTORY - PHILADELPHIA, PA
09/27/07 - CARNEGIE MUSIC HALL - PITTSBURGH, PA
09/29 + 30/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - CHICAGO, IL
10/02/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - DALLAS, TX
10/03/07 - CAIN'S BALLROOM - TULSA, OK
10/05/07 - BEAUMONT CLUB - KANSAS CITY, MO
10/06/07 - THE PAGEANT - ST. LOUIS, MO
10/08/07 - BIJOU THEATRE - KNOXVILLE, TN
10/10/07 - TOAD'S - RICHMOND, VA
10/11/07 - AMOS' SOUTHEND - CHARLOTTE, NC
10/12/07 - COYOTES - LOUISVILLE, KY
10/16/07 - ROXY THEATRE - ATLANTA, GA
10/17/07 - TRUSTEES THEATRE - SAVANNAH, GA
10/20/07 - JANNUS LANDING - ST. PETERSBURG, FL
10/21/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - ORLANDO, FL
10/25/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - NEW ORLEANS, LA
10/26/07 - CLUB V - HOUSTON, TX
10/27/07 - LA ZONA ROSA - AUSTIN, TX
11/2/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - ANAHEIM, CA
11/3/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - SAN DIEGO, CA
11/5/07 - THE FILLMORE - SAN FRANCISCO, CA
11/6/07 - AVALON - LOS ANGELES, CA
11/8/07 - HOUSE OF BLUES - LAS VEGAS, NV
"The Walk" follows the 2004 debut release on their 3CG label, "Underneath," which went to No 1 on the Billboard Independent chart, producing the No 2 single, "Penny and Me," a Top 10 in the U.K. as well. The band's 1997 debut, "Middle of Nowhere," sold more than 4 million albums in the U.S., thanks to the chart-topping hit, "MmmBop," which U2's Bono has called "one of my favorite songs of all time." The group received three Grammy nominations that year, including Best New Artist and Record of the Year.
