# Taylor Hanson
**Taylor Hanson** (Jordan Taylor Hanson, born 1983) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, producer, and entrepreneur best known as the keyboardist and lead vocalist of the pop-rock band Hanson, which he formed in 1992 at the age of nine with his older brother Isaac and younger brother Zac in [Tulsa, Oklahoma](https://www.edgepedia.org/tulsa-oklahoma)[1](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrities/taylor-hanson/) • [2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson). The band's 1997 debut single "[MMMBop](https://www.edgepedia.org/mmmbop)" reached number one in 27 countries, and Hanson has since spent more than two decades as an independent artist through the label 3CG Records, which Taylor co-founded at age 20[3](https://hanson.net/about) • [2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1983, Tulsa, Oklahoma; full name Jordan Taylor Hanson[4](https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=HA064) • [1](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrities/taylor-hanson/) |
| Role in Hanson | Lead vocals, keyboards, and guitar; the middle of the three brothers[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000949780) |
| Breakthrough | "MMMBop" (1997) hit number one in 27 countries; debut album *Middle of Nowhere* earned three Grammy nominations[3](https://hanson.net/about) |
| Independence | Co-founded 3CG Records at age 20; the band's third album *Underneath* (2004) was its first release on the label[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson) • [6](https://hanson.net/news/washington-times) |
| Side project | Member of the power-pop supergroup Tinted Windows with Bun E. Carlos, James Iha, and Adam Schlesinger[7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/) |
| Philanthropy | Founded Food On The Move in 2014 to address food insecurity in Oklahoma[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson) |
| Recognition | Tulsan of the Year 2024; Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Class of 2025[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson) |
## Early life and the Hanson breakthrough
Taylor grew up in Tulsa in a home where artistic expression was encouraged, the middle child of the three brothers who would form the band[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson) • [4](https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=HA064). In 1992, at age nine, he formed Hanson with Isaac and Zac, and the group's first gig came that year at Tulsa's Mayfest Arts Festival[7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/) • [2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson). The brothers released independent recordings before signing with [Mercury Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/mercury-records), which put out their major-label debut *Middle of Nowhere* in 1997[1](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrities/taylor-hanson/) • [6](https://hanson.net/news/washington-times).
The lead single "MMMBop" went to number one in 27 countries, and *Middle of Nowhere* sold millions of copies, earning the band three Grammy nominations[3](https://hanson.net/about). At the time of the breakthrough Taylor was 13, singing lead and playing keyboards while 16-year-old Isaac played guitar and 11-year-old Zac played drums[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000949780). The band's sunny, soulful pop stood apart from the alternative rock that dominated the late 1990s[3](https://hanson.net/about).
## Going independent with 3CG Records
**The split from the major labels.** After the band's second album *This Time Around* (2000), the label structure around Hanson collapsed: Mercury's parent company Polygram merged with Universal in what the band describes as the largest music merger in history, leaving Hanson at Island Def Jam in an increasingly corporate environment[3](https://hanson.net/about). With a third album already recorded and an online fan community built outside label control, the brothers left the major-label system and founded their own company, 3CG Records, named after their parents' three-car garage where the band first rehearsed[3](https://hanson.net/about) • [8](https://hanson.net/news/the-age-australia).
Taylor was 20 when he co-founded the label, and he has been recognized as a longtime advocate for independent music[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson). The label's first release, *Underneath* (2004), entered the Billboard Independent Chart at number one, and the band financed its U.S. marketing themselves[5](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000949780). "We knew there were fans out there and we had a chance to build a company that worked for us, instead of the other way around," Taylor said of the decision[3](https://hanson.net/about).
## Side projects and collaborations
In 2009 Taylor joined the power-pop supergroup Tinted Windows alongside drummer Bun E. Carlos of Cheap Trick, guitarist James Iha of The Smashing Pumpkins, and bassist Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne[7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/). Within Hanson, his songwriting has anchored projects including *RED GREEN BLUE* (2022), in which each brother helmed a third of the album; Taylor's section, RED, includes the song "Child At Heart"[3](https://hanson.net/about) • [9](https://www.grammy.com/news/hanson-red-green-blue-album-interview-taylor-zac-isaac-solo-projects-tour/).
He has written with a range of collaborators, from [Carole King](https://www.edgepedia.org/carole-king) and the songwriting team of [Barry Mann](https://www.edgepedia.org/barry-mann) and [Cynthia Weil](https://www.edgepedia.org/cynthia-weil) to Owl City, AWOLNATION, Blues Traveler, and Cory Wong[7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/).
## Philanthropy and civic work
**Food On The Move.** In 2014 Taylor founded the Tulsa-based organization Food On The Move, which works to transform food deserts and address food insecurity through access, education, and innovative solutions; since its founding it has distributed millions of pounds of fresh produce in Oklahoma[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson) • [10](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/taylor-hanson/).
His other civic work includes service on the boards of the Sam Noble Museum and the Will Rogers Foundation, a role as a National Trustee of the Recording Academy, and community music projects such as "For Women Life Freedom," highlighting human-rights abuses in Iran, and "The Sounds of Black Wall Street," commemorating the centennial of the Tulsa Race Massacre[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson).
## Personal life and recent work
Taylor married Natalie Bryant in June 2002, when he was 19, and the couple have seven children[8](https://hanson.net/news/the-age-australia) • [7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/). He lives in Oklahoma and California[7](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/).
He was named Tulsan of the Year in 2024 and was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in the Class of 2025[2](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson). In 2026 he competed on season 35 of *Dancing With the Stars*, partnered with six-time show veteran Britt Stewart; for the season's number-one-hits-from-1983 theme he suggested [Billy Joel](https://www.edgepedia.org/billy-joel)'s "Tell Her About It," which Stewart choreographed as a quickstep[11](https://au.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-news/dancing-with-the-stars-taylor-hanson-interview-101168/). In the same period he has described beginning work as a solo artist while the band takes a pause, calling the shift a major change in how he thinks about his career[11](https://au.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-news/dancing-with-the-stars-taylor-hanson-interview-101168/).
## References
1. [Taylor Hanson News, Us Weekly](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrities/taylor-hanson/)
2. [Taylor Hanson, Class of 2025, Oklahoma Hall of Fame](https://www.oklahomahof.com/hof/inductees/taylor-hanson)
3. [Hanson, About, hanson.net](https://hanson.net/about)
4. [Hanson, The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture](https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=HA064)
5. [Hanson Biography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000949780)
6. [Washington Times, Hanson, July 8, 2004](https://hanson.net/news/washington-times)
7. [Taylor Hanson, ABC Press bio](https://www.detpress.com/abc/bios/taylor-hanson/)
8. [The Age (Australia), Hanson](https://hanson.net/news/the-age-australia)
9. [Why Hanson Decided To Go Solo For 'Red Green Blue', Grammy.com](https://www.grammy.com/news/hanson-red-green-blue-album-interview-taylor-zac-isaac-solo-projects-tour/)
10. [Taylor Hanson, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/taylor-hanson/)
11. [Taylor Hanson on 'Dancing With the Stars': 'This Is Very Personal', Rolling Stone Australia](https://au.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-news/dancing-with-the-stars-taylor-hanson-interview-101168/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Pop and R&B singer-songwriters › Pop singers, 1980s and 1990s › Dance-pop and teen pop singers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license