Hanson's Surprising Durability

I've long admired Hanson for their sheer tenacity. Unlike most one-hit wonders, especially kiddie one-hit wonders, they've refused to go away, fighting tooth and nail to remain in the spotlight. Adept at turning proverbial lemons into lemonade, the Hanson brothers are a walking survival guide for fading pop stars, a group that post-fame has done everything right.

Once their 15 minutes expired and their label did the inevitable, dropping them, the brothers passed themselves off as victims, telling their side of the story in the sympathetic documentary Strong Enough to Break. They've since toured and recorded as an independent band, mining their minor celebrity for enough press to survive on. They've also nicely branded many of their tours—including the "Walk Around the World" tour, which stops at the Rave on Sept. 27—as charitable events. They've taken control of their image, embracing their bubblegum roots in a way that lets fans know they're in on the joke. And perhaps most importantly, they've been aggressive in their fan outreach. In other words, the kids—now adults—do alright for themselves.

Oh, yeah, and there's one other reason Hanson hasn't entirely disappeared: They're aided by a pitbull PR firm that lobbies with everything its got to get the band little write-ups like this one. Needless to say, they do a wonderful job.