City of West Hollywood, HANSON and Tom's Shoes Will Join Together to Fight Poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa on Tuesday, October 30, 2007.

News Conference to Take Place at West Hollywood City Hall at 10 a.m.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. -- The City of West Hollywood, recording artists HANSON and TOMS Shoes will join together to help fight poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa. The partnership is a component of the City's "Global AIDS Initiative" which was created with the goal of advocating for and supporting education, outreach and funding efforts to combat the AIDS pandemic in Africa. The goal is to raise awareness about the correlation between poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa and to inspire people to look for simple ways to make a difference in their community and the world.

A news conference to discuss the unique partnership will be held on Tuesday, October 30, 2007 at 10 a.m. at West Hollywood City Hall located at 8300 Santa Monica Boulevard in West Hollywood. After the news conference, a one-mile walk to the iconic Sunset Boulevard and a performance by HANSON will take place.

"The partnership between the City of West Hollywood, HANSON and TOMS Shoes is an excellent opportunity to shine a spotlight on global poverty and HIV/AIDS," said West Hollywood Councilmember John Heilman. "It's unfathomable to most Americans that there are millions of people in the world who don't have basic necessities like a pair of shoes. I commend HANSON and TOMS Shoes for their humanitarian efforts," he continued.

Scheduled to participate in the news conference are West Hollywood City Councilmember John Heilman who sponsored the City's "Global AIDS Initiative"; West Hollywood City Councilmembers; Isaac, Taylor and Zac HANSON (of the group HANSON) who will discuss their mission to fight global poverty and HIV/AIDS; Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS Shoes will speak about the importance of taking simple action to fight poverty and HIV/AIDS globally.

At approximately 11 a.m., following the news conference, HANSON will lead a one-mile walk to Sunset Boulevard to raise awareness of global poverty and HIV/AIDS as part of the symbolic trek. The route will start at West Hollywood City Hall and proceed west to Holloway Drive up to the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Horn Avenue to the old Tower Records parking lot in West Hollywood. TOMS Shoes will be sold at the Tower Records parking lot, with the pairs donated being delivered by the team as part of TOMS Shoe drop trip to children in South Africa, set for next month. HANSON will also perform a mini-concert at the Tower Records parking lot of songs from their recent album "The Walk."

The City of West Hollywood was established in 1984, almost coinciding with the beginning of the HIV/AIDS crisis, and the start of the international pandemic. The City has been a leader in the fight to end the HIV/AIDS crisis since its incorporation. Today, the City of West Hollywood is home to close to 1100 people living with the virus, which is the largest concentration of people living with HIV/AIDS in Southern California.

HANSON's first single, "The Great Divide" from their new album "The Walk," was recorded in Africa during the group's visit there in 2006 to learn more about the AIDS crisis and was released on World AIDS Day, with all proceeds going to the Perinatal HIV Unit at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, South Africa.

During their current tour, HANSON have been partnering with TOMS Shoes, a company that donates a pair of shoes for every pair sold to a needy child. HANSON and TOM'S Shoes have staged walks in every tour city to promote its goal of delivering 50,000 pairs of shoes to needy children in Africa next month. TOMS Shoes was created by Blake Mycoskie after a trip to Argentina in which he realized the poverty and health issues the local people were challenged with. TOMS Shoes are inspired by a traditional Argentine shoe.