Adam Levine of Maroon 5, performing at the 2013 Grammy Awards.
The band that was making a good living on the casino circuit a couple years ago has shot to sold-out-arena-tour status thanks to singer Adam Levine’s high-profile role as a judge on TV’s talent-show competition “The Voice,” and a musical shift towards dance-pop. Here’s a chronicle of the band’s ascent from mere popularity to major crossover success:
Maroon 5 by the numbers:
10 million: Number of albums sold in the U.S. Add another 5 million in international sales.
28: Number of shows – out of 30 total — on the current North American tour that are sold out.
11: Number of gold- or platinum-selling singles Maroon 5 has celebrated. “Moves Like Jagger” has sold more than 5 million copies; “Payphone” and “One More Night” each sold more than 3 million.
5: Number of years between the band’s quadruple-platinum debut “Songs About Jane” (2002) and its follow-up, ‘07’s “It Won’t Be Soon Before Long.” Why such a long gap? Three reasons: It took more than two years for “Jane” to hit its sales peak at No. 6 on the Billboard albums chart. The band toured in support of “Jane” for three years. And original drummer Ryan Dusick left the band due to injuries sustained playing his instrument.
11: Number of Grammy nominations the group has, with three wins: Best New Artist in 2005,and Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals in ‘06 for “This Love” and again in ‘08 for “Makes Me Wonder.” Maroon 5 celebrated two nods in 2013, and performed at the ceremony, with Levine and Alicia Keys duetting.
Levine’s fame: The singer’s visibility increased exponentially once he hit primetime TV. He’s the most popular judge on “The Voice,” is now a sex symbol and is probably the primary reason Maroon 5 is selling as many tickets and albums as it is now. He appeared on “Saturday Night Live” twice in the current season, fronting musical guest Maroon 5 in November 2012 (the band’s fourth appearance on the show) and hosting in January 2013.
Musical progression: Maroon 5 always has boasted an unapologetically slick and poppy sound. But earlier hits such as “This Love” and “Hard to Breathe” were the work of a band rooted in guitar-pop, where most recent record “Overexposed” features the kind of electro-dance beats that appeal greatly to today’s top 40 radio, e.g., “Moves Like Jagger” and “One More Night.”
What the critics are saying about the current tour: “Thankfully, Maroon 5 rocked harder in concert than they do on record,” Gary Budzak of The Columbus Dispatch said of the Feb. 13 tour opener. On the band’s sold-out show at The Palace of Auburn Hills, The Detroit News’ Adam Graham said Maroon 5's new show boasts more production muscle than ever and leaned heavily on Levine’s star power. “The band's catalog is stacked with enough hits at this point that there was only one point when the show didn't pop, during a mid-show rendition of ‘Hands All Over's’ title track,” Graham wrote.
The opening acts: Owl City is best known for its hit singles “Fireflies” (2009, quadruple-platinum) and “Good Time” (2012, double-platinum), the latter featuring “Call Me Maybe” popster Carly Rae Jepsen. The electronic-music project is fronted by Adam Young, who’s backed by a four-piece band for live shows.
Neon Trees, a four-piece rock band from Utah, boasts a pair of double-platinum-selling hits, ‘09’s “Animal” and ‘11’s “Everybody Talks.”
Email: jserba@mlive.com or follow John Serba on Twitter