Formed in Dayton, Ohio in 2001. Playing from the start on self-booked tours across the country gave them some initial national exposure, but they weren't signed to Victory Records until late 2003. Hawthorne Heights developed a huge MySpace following that became a catalyst that would launch them from underground to international awareness. The band became regulars on MTV, their signature hit Ohio Is For Lovers the anthem for the new wave of “emo”. Their debut album The Silence In Black And White soon went Gold, and with their second album If Only You Were Lonely, the band scored Victory Records’ biggest ever debut, landing at #3 on the Billboard 200 in 2006.