Hanson got their start in music as young kids and this fact is not lost on them. All three Hanson brothers — Isaac, Taylor and Zac — are now fathers and shared with Radio.com how being dads has influenced their music just in time for Father’s Day.
“Being a dad is the best thing around,” Taylor admitted. “Everything else pales in comparison to the connection you have with your kids and wanting to be with them.”
Taylor said he and his brothers admire songwriters who were poets and found ways to weed everything from their life into their songs. “The day you have kids you don’t all of a sudden only write about having kids or being a dad. It wouldn’t really have much challenge to it,” he said.
That doesn’t mean that their music doesn’t embody tales of fatherhood.
“It’s in the songs. It’s in the music. It’s in the stories, it’s in the backdrop,” he explained. “It’s also in the motivation you have to be who you are and continue to live out the passions you have. Now you have this next generation that’s looking to you and watching you and seeing what’s going on and learning from the way you live. For me it plays into the whole picture of who you are and how you want to paint the picture of your world through music.”
Brother Isaac agreed and said one of the most interesting thing about having kids is “their very honest and visceral response to music.”
“Slash they’re your biggest critic,” Taylor chimed in. “‘Dad I don’t like that song. Next.’”
“That being said, I think all of our kids are pretty sophisticated music listeners because their dads really care about music,” Isaac added. “My kids already know AC/DC, late 50s early 60s R&B, Michael Jackson and the whole nine yards.”
That’s not all though, some of Hanson’s kids seem to follow in their dad’s footsteps. “They’re rewriting the lyrics to our songs already,” Zac said.
Hanson’s forthcoming album, Anthem is due for release next Tuesday (June 18).
