Foreigner frontman Kelly Hansen played his last gig with the legendary ’80s rock band—at least, for now.
The singer has been the lead vocalist for Foreigner for decades, but is taking a step back from it all. As Parade reported, Hansen announced he was leaving the band last spring on The Voice.
Kelly Hansen Honored at Last Concert
Even though Hansen isn’t using the word retirement to describe this new phase in his life, he’s definitely not looking for work. Hansen has been in the music grind for nearly five decades, and he’s ready for a break.
Hansen played his final performance with Foreigner at Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Foreigner bassist and musical director Jeff Pilson took a moment out from the concert to acknowledge that it was an emotional night for the band, as Hansen was leaving the group.
“This is a big night for us, and in many ways it’s very special for me personally because I’ve been with this guy for 20 years,” Pilson expressed.
The bassist then reiterated that Foreigner is a family. Even when members come and go, as they have over the years, everyone in Foreigner is family for life.
Pilson then honored his friend Hansen, saying, “Tonight we are saying a very loving goodbye to someone who has made such a difference with this band, and he’s been so important in helping take it to where it’s right now.”
Kelly Hansen Gets Emotional at Final Foreigner Show
Following Pilson’s heartfelt speech, Hansen appeared on stage to share his own message.
“If I could even string together the number of times that I’ve had experiences with fans — or I don’t like to call you guys fans; I like to call you guys people who love music, appreciate music. My whole life, since I was 17, it’s been great people who come to shows. Thank you for that,” Hansen shared.
The singer explained that over the decades, Hansen has had friends who have stood by his side. These friends and family travel near and far to support him, including at his last Foreigner concert.
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Hansen gave a special shout-out to those loved ones before taking a moment to thank his wife, Anna. “I wanna thank my wife. She changed my life. I got married for the first time at 59 years old.”
The singer closed out his speech with a message to the fans there at the concert, and those who may have been watching via video.
“And just thank you, guys, for being here. Thank you, guys. And I’m speaking collectively to not only you guys who are here tonight, but whoever might be viewing this on the Internet sometime later. Thank you all for all of your support,” Hansen declared.
After 20 years, Hansen played his last show with Foreigner as a regular member. Luis Maldonado will replace Hansen on lead vocals.
Original Foreigner lead singer Lou Gramm is expected to still pop in at some concerts for the next few months and will, as always, take over the role. Hansen took over as lead singer of the band in 2005, when Gramm stopped playing full-time.
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This story was originally reported by Parade on Oct 16, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com ’
