Legendary 70s rock band Foreigner is embarking on a new era as a group — which includes the passing of the torch from one singer, Kelly Hansen, to another, Luis Maldonado. But don’t worry, original frontman Lou Gramm has given Maldonado his blessing to take up the helm.
"He just stepped up and sang the crap out of these songs," bassist Jeff Pilson told Ultimate Classic Rock of Maldonado. "I mean, he just sings them with so much heart and yet holds the original intention of the songs. Lou Gramm is really excited about Luis doing it. He's fully endorsing Luis as a singer, which is a pretty cool thing. He just stepped up to the plate and it was just an obvious thing."
Gramm, 75, previously opened up to UCR about working with the newer members of Foreigner, including Hansen, 64, Maldonado, Pilson, 67, Michael Bluestein, Bruce Watson, and Chris Fraizer.
“I’ve been doing shows with them and I’ve been enjoying it a lot. The band is excellent. They portray the songs [in a way that] an original member of Foreigner would be proud to play along with,” he revealed in a recent interview. “They have their own style, but they stick close enough to the original [versions] where no one’s going, ‘Hey, where’s that part?’ So it’s a lot of fun.”
Luis Maldonado, Kelly Hansen, Rick Wills, Lou Gramm, Al Greenwood, Chris Frazier, Michael Bluestein, Jeff Pilson and Bruce Watson of Foreigner pose in the press room during the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony streaming on Disney+ at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on October 19, 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio.Dia Dipasupil/2024 Getty Images
The OG singer added, “They’re fun to hang out with. Their musical expertise is very apparent when you hear them play and they’re a pretty loose bunch of guys. We have fun on stage and offstage. There’s a lot of camaraderie there that is a different brand from the original Foreigner, but nonetheless, it’s very appreciated.”
He also reflected on meeting Pilson during the chat, highlighting their instant connection. “It was sit down and answer 100 questions, you know, but they were all good questions,” Gramm explained. “I honored that because I could see where he was going with them. They weren’t just trivia questions, it was all to help the sound of the band when I was singing. They honestly pull off those songs with a great deal of feeling and staying true to the original versions.”
Gramm was really into Pilson’s approach to the music because it was so similar to the original band had with their live shows. “We always wanted to bring enough of the song as it was heard on the album to make fans go, ‘Oh yeah,'” he noted to UCR. “But we would take liberties with guitar solos and maybe throw an extra harmony on there or just something to make them go, ‘I never heard that before.’ It was always fun to do that, and I think the fans appreciate it a lot.”
Hansen has sung for the band since 2005, but just ended his tenure this month. That said, Pilson revealed the transition to Maldonado made perfect sense. “Once Luis [Maldonado]'s voice was uncovered and we all realized what he had, including Kelly, the future became so clear to us,” he explained to UCR. “This whole transition just fell into place naturally and we couldn't have asked for a better one to be honest with you."
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