Hawthorne Heights’ eighth studio album, The Rain Just Follows Me, offers some of JT Woodruff’s most resonant, and personal, writings to date. Candidly exploring the life of a touring musician, he navigates the complex themes of physical and emotional distance from his wife and daughter back in Ohio, while introspectively exploring his personal identity as the frontman of one of the most iconic emo bands of the new millennium.

Throughout Hawthorne Heights’ long and storied career, the band has overcome obstacles at every turn – but these roadblocks always seemed to come from external forces, from unscrupulous record labels and the shifting whims of fickle audiences to unimaginable personal tragedy threatening to derail them.

Despite the odds, the quartet composed of JT Woodruff (Vocals, Guitar), Mark McMillon (Guitar, Backing Vocals), Matt Ridenour (Bass, Backing Vocals), and Chris Popadak (Drums), have overcome it all: earning two Gold albums (2004’s The Silence In Black And White and 2006’s If Only You Were Lonely), penning some of the genre’s most well-known songs (“Ohio Is For Lovers,” “Saying Sorry”), and remaining a hard-touring act nearly two decades after forming in Dayton, Ohio.

In 2022, Hawthorne Heights added festival curator to their resume, launching the Is For Lovers Festival, a North American touring event uniting music aficionados for a day filled with joy, laughter, and camaraderie—all set to an exceptional soundtrack. 2023 saw the expansion of the Is For Lovers Festival to 10 cities, with tens of thousands of fans enjoying the summer spectacle. Featuring performances by a multitude of bands, including Jimmy Eat World, Alkaline Trio, Yellowcard, Underoath, Thrice, The Story So Far, and handpicked emerging artists, the festival also extended its support to local communities through an onsite marketplace and activity center.