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-[lock opens] -[man shouting]
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[pounding on door]
NICK: Before we kind of step into this again,
I think there's a lot that we probably could discuss
about the ways the old Jonas years worked--
-[girls screaming] -[fingers screeching on window]
...and how even the three of us felt about
the way things were supposed to be.
[crowd screaming]
And that fear that everything would go away--
[crowd screaming]
...at any minute.
To do this the right way,
we need to make sure everyone feels comfortable...
and just focus on being brothers.
[crowd cheering]
-Hey. -Hey.
-It was a good one. -Hey!
And probably stop looking at it through rose colored glasses too.
Actually have an open conversation about it.
Yeah.
Like, some things just won't work.
Like what?
I don't know yet. I haven't figured it out.
I think just having that open dialogue instead of rehearsals being like,
"This is what it's gonna be."
What are you really saying? I don't understand.
Building a set list--
-I'm saying I will do that. -Yeah, yeah.
-Yeah, that's what I'm-- -Okay, sorry.
I'm a little tired. I'm trying.
I think you're afraid to be confrontational.
I mean, it's fine.
No, not at all.
I'm not at all.
-Um... -[chuckles]
Begin.
-[laughter] -Fight!
♪♪
♪ Nights flying down 10 ♪
♪ Nearly 2 a.m. ♪
♪ Happiness begins ♪
♪ Days lifted in a haze ♪
♪ We were just a phase ♪
♪ We were just pretend ♪
♪ I remember no lows and highs ♪
♪ We threw our hands up ♪
♪ Palms out to the skies ♪
♪ It was fun when we were young ♪
♪ And now we're older ♪
♪ Those days around the world, they seem to glow now ♪
♪ We were up and down and barely made it over ♪
♪ But I'd go back and ride that roller coaster ♪
♪ It was fun when we were young ♪
♪ And now we're older ♪
♪ Those days when we were broke in California ♪
♪ We were up and down and barely made it over ♪
♪ But I'd go back and ride that roller coaster ♪
♪ With you ♪
NICK: Someone asked me the other day
if I had unfinished business
with anyone or anything in your life
and you had a chance to handle it before you died, what would it be, and...
-Hello. -What's up, man?
-What's up, dude? -[bag clatters]
-How you doing? -Love you. Love you, man.
-Love you too. Missed you. -Welcome to Australia.
I need a coffee and a mimosa, and I'll be good to go.
Okay, yeah. Well, let's get you sorted.
KEVIN: It had been nearly six years since we had spent time together...
just the three of us
as brothers.
Holy shit!
[laughing]
How'd they get you out of America? This is impressive.
-It is impressive. -[laughing]
Good to see you.
You're actually surprised.
-I am surprised. -Yeah, man.
I jetted right after the recital.
KEVIN: In order to move forward together,
we had to revisit our past.
JOE: Welcome to Oz, Kev.
This is what Australia's all about.
KEVIN: Cool. Welcome.
-Happy meeting, boys. -Cheers.
Have you liked being here, Joe?
It speaks for itself, I think.
And I feel real lucky to be able to, like,
call this a second home now.
I often wonder how it happened.
What?
All of it. Us.
You know how many people
in similar situations to what we all went through together
can't even stand to be in the same room?
I mean, we were not supposed to
get out of Jersey.
-No. -[chuckles]
You know what I mean?
[chattering, indistinct]
Welcome to the Jonas family--
[stammering]
-Ready? -[stammering]
Welcome to the Jonas family household. This is our life.
DENISE: Oh, here we go. Hi!
NICK: From the beginning, my brothers and I
were always very close.
We did love doing everything together.
Wrestling, backyard sports.
Every vacation.
JOE: Most of time we would just run around the neighborhood.
We didn't really grow up with, like, a lot of family around.
There were friends with my parents,
musicians, singers, people that they knew.
Other than that, it was kind of just us.
We had a really tight-knit family.
We became each other's best friends.
[singing note]
GRANDFATHER: Hold that note! Hold it!
NICK: From an early age,
it was kind of like the Von Trapp family.
♪♪
What are you doing? Get out of here.
NICK: Music was just always there.
GRANDFATHER: Man, you playing that guitar.
Where you learn how to play like that, Nicholas?
In our household, it wasn't "No singin' at the table."
It was encouraged to sing at the table.
GRANDFATHER: This is my grandson's stage.
Very talented young man.
He got a piano.
He's got a guitar.
Look at that guitar there, man.
Wow! And where is he?
KEVIN SR.: Nick was three years old,
and he's walking down the hall.
GRANDFATHER: ...bring to the stage Nicholas!
KEVIN SR.: And he hit kind of a bum note.
♪ La-la, la-la, la ♪
And he went--
And he backed up, rewound himself.
Started walking--
♪ La-la, la-la, la ♪
And he smiled.
Kept walking.
And I turned around to my wife, and I went,
"Did you see that?"
♪♪
We immediately went into his room...
took out the lullabies,
threw them away.
Put in Stevie Wonder's "Definitive Collection."
♪♪ ["Superstition"]
NICK: I remember I was with my mom
at a hair salon in Jersey.
I was about six.
Just hanging out and singing.
The woman next to my mom leaned over and said,
"My son is on Broadway right now
"doing 'Les Mis.'
Your son could do it."
DENISE: Nick looks at me and says, "Mom, I'm gonna be on Broadway."
And then he told us what shows he was going to be in.
I was like, "Who is this kid?"
♪ I'll get you, I'm Captain Hook ♪
♪ King of the island, cheapest crook ♪
♪ Only one enemy do I know ♪
♪ Peter Pan, my cheapest foe ♪
♪ Aha, aha ♪
♪ Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha ♪
When I auditioned for "A Christmas Carol,"
and I started working.
It was the first time I really felt like I belonged somewhere.
He was kind of the first to try at this,
and he had this confidence that he could just go and sing in front of people.
It came natural for him.
NICK: I loved being around kids who were like me
that liked to sing and dance and act.
All these adults, too, that were so kind
and so different to any people that I'd met.
JOE: Think I was probably a little bit envious,
somewhat jealous.
There was always competition as brothers.
I mean, that was just natural.
Whether it was who could do
the most flips on the trampoline
to who can sing the highest or lowest.
So looking up on stage and seeing Nick
getting this attention,
I remember saying to my parents,
I think I want to start auditioning.
GRANDFATHER: Joseph! What are you doing?
He was suddenly becoming this comical person.
like, all the time.
GRANDFATHER: What? Hold on!
Wait, wait, wait, wait.
Joe was just kind of a goofball.
Dude! Cool! Yeah!
JOE: I wanted to be an actor. I wanted to be a comedian.
Definitely was doing standup comedy in the basement.
Here's Joseph Jonas. Whoo!
JOE: I remember making, like, a fake talk show at night.
He wanted to be on "All That,"
the variety show on Nickelodeon.
[vocalizing]
JOE: The first show I was in was "Oliver."
It was an off Broadway production.
Really opened me up as a singer and performer.
And being on stage and hearing the reactions,
it felt great.
I knew that this was where I was supposed to be.
MAN: Action.
"76 Trombones."
♪ 76 trombones led the big parade ♪
Growing up, I always did kind of odd extracurricular activities.
You know, whether it was gymnastics,
pole vaulting, magic.
KEVIN SR.: Good one!
KEVIN: Those are not the most popular things
that young boys would see as cool.
And also, we didn't have money at all.
My clothes were just was what it was.
I became a target.
Kids are cruel at that age.
They would call me gay, they'd call me fag,
they would, you know, call me pisshead.
It would break me down. I remember coming home from school,
and like crying to my parents.
But I think what was really hard was...
I never felt like I could find the place that I fit in.
Even though I had things I loved,
I just never felt like I connected with anyone truly.
I found my other avenues.
Pop in the E-Brain CD, and you can choose from eight different menus!
KEVIN SR.: Kevin started doing commercials
KEVIN: I started getting booked right away.
-[belch] -[laughing]
It was kind of a crazy season
where their talent started opening up opportunities.
We had Joe and Nick in Broadway shows and Kevin doing commercials.
♪♪ [piano]
NICK: We lived 45 minutes from New York City.
My mom had given birth to Frankie
and was driving me to the city most days.
Hours and hours in the car.
Seven days a week.
Just a lot.
Especially with a newborn child.
Sometimes my dad would do a shift.
On the way home,
he said, "Try writing something."
So we'd start writing songs on the way home
from the Broadway shows.
Eventually, we sat down at the piano
and properly wrote a song.
♪♪
♪ When I'm lost ♪
♪ And I just can't find my way ♪
-♪ There you are-- ♪ -Wait, wait.
Nick and my dad write this song, "Joy to the World: A Christmas Prayer."
And they put it on a CD.
♪♪
Somehow that CD ends up with David Massey...
at Sony.
I first met Nicholas Jonas as he was then
as a ten year old.
♪ What I know you wanna see ♪
♪ That I can hold on through these trials ♪
♪ But I need you to leave this love ♪
♪ Because I can't take it no more ♪
He was an amazing singer.
He was really naturally charismatic.
♪ So I can dance now ♪
His voice even then was absolutely undeniable.
♪ Thank you, yeah ♪
You could already tell at 10
he was just that guy.
I actually signed him then and there.
[applause]
[truck approaching]
Kevin and I started to feel like, wow, like,
he's actually doing it.
We started to kind of write on our own.
And me Joe and Nick were in our little room,
and we played guitar together just for fun.
KEVIN: And we're playing around, it goes--
♪ They come and go ♪
♪ But they don't know ♪
♪ That you are my beautiful ♪
We wrote a song called "Please Be Mine."
♪ I'll be there forever ♪
The song just, like, literally wrote itself in 10 minutes.
♪ Our hopes and our dreams ♪
I think that was the moment we all looked at each other
and were like, "This could be something."
Very few feelings in my life as sure...
as that.
♪ For you ♪
♪ Till the end ♪
♪ The end of time ♪
♪ Please be mine ♪
And then Nick wanted me to meet his brothers.
-Such a sweet place. -There's a huge fish in here.
DAVID: They came into the office,
they told me they had written a song
called "Please Be Mine,"
and they stood in a semi-circle, I'll never forget it,
and sang me this great song,
and I was blown away by their chemistry together as brothers.
Then I added the other two brothers to the mix
and the Jonas Brothers was born.
KEVIN: I was in high school at this point--
Why are you following me?
...and I was so excited.
But I wasn't allowed to tell anyone
that we were signed,
because my dad was the pastor of a church.
♪♪
Doubt in yourself and doubt in your god will keep you from your destiny.
[applause]
KEVIN: We didn't tell anyone at the church at the time,
'cause we didn't want my dad to lose his job potentially.
We were signed to a secular label,
and we weren't making a Christian album.
We lived two doors down from the church.
And we were there pretty much every day.
It was a humongous part of our life.
DENISE: The community we lived in in Wyckoff, it was amazing.
Always friendly. And we were so happy to be there.
JOE: All of our friends were the kids that went to this church,
and they were a part of the family.
The way we saw it was our dad went on stage every Sunday,
and it was like this big thing.
[applause]
[overlapping chatter]
NICK: There were people in the church all the time,
people that really needed that place.
You could feel they expected a lot of my dad.
Being the pastor's family, you're kind of a first family in a sense of the church.
There was a lot of responsibility on us...
and also a lot of eyeballs.
There's a pressure to be the example.
Everything should always look like we're this perfect family,
and nothing's ever wrong.
As a kid, it was hard to understand that,
like, there's no way that doesn't affect the family.
[overlapping chatter]
That's not your pitch.
-One, two-- -Look at him.
Hold on. Let me get my composure.
One, two, three, four.
♪♪ [singing tones]
JOE: Overnight, we're a band.
It wasn't something that we, like, sat around for years
or months and started writing music
and then presented this stuff to anyone.
We had to figure out who we were and what we were creating.
♪ Wouldn't it be nice if I had some tissues ♪
♪ Wipe away the tears ♪
♪ That's right you've got issues ♪
We weren't great writers, obviously, at the time.
And we were in-- We were kids.
But we were trying hard.
♪ 'Cause you love me ♪
♪ And I hate you ♪
♪ I'm right, you're wrong ♪
♪ Move on ♪
The first day I met the Jonas Brothers,
you just could feel that
this was something unique.
It was less about how amazing they sounded,
and it was just more about a connection
between the three of them.
I just remember thinking
there's something so special about this family.
NICK: The label had a vision that we would be a punk rock band.
One of the fundamental issues selling the Jonas Brothers
as a rock band is that we--
we were not a rock band at all.
Okay, you guys ready?
I gotta go to the bathroom. Sorry.
The idea was, we're gonna put together a band.
♪♪
We spent a lot of time at SIR in New York,
nonstop rehearsals all day long.
♪♪
To me, that was the ultimate band camp.
We were just there every day perfecting three or four songs.
We were there 12-hour days,
six days a week, every day but Sunday.
It was a crash course in how to do rock and roll.
♪♪ [singing indistinctly]
People have this in their mind that the Brothers was
manufactured by some machine at Disney World.
Put in, like, a bunch of kids with moppy hair and guitars in their hands,
and, like, we came out.
-Good morning, Kevin. -Good morning.
Today's the big day. What's the special day?
Today is my 18th birthday. It's a good day.
We're going to the show, and then we're driving back to Jersey.
JOHN TAYLOR: It's really easy to look at the Jonas Brothers and just think,
"Oh, they were this huge thing."
But there was, like, two years of tried and true,
like, rock and roll cutting your teeth.
KEVIN: We were starting to play little shows here and there
around, like Jersey, Boston.
GREG: We would wake up at 4 a.m.
and then start loading gear.
It felt like we were a real band.
♪♪
KEVIN: We're were doing two shows a day.
We'd wake up at the crack of dawn and do a school assembly,
and then later play a club.
We had equipment and suitcases
and sleeping bags on the floor.
And on a long road trip, we'd be actually really excited.
We're in Boston, about to do the concert.
It's gonna be so awesome. We're really excited.
So we're getting the big mama out. This is the big mama.
GREG: We'd be fully set up, ready to go, before school started.
So we would be ready by about 8 a.m.
♪♪
It was awesome, 'cause we would win those kids over
by the end of every assembly.
KEVIN: We would drive all the way to Boston,
do the show in Boston,
drive all the way home,
to then drive back to Connecticut the next day,
because the gas money was cheaper than buying a hotel
and we couldn't afford both.
♪♪
[cheering]
JOE: We didn't look at it as, like, roughing it.
You look at it as, like, we're doing it.
We're living our dream.
Once upon a time, there were three brothers who all love music.
Even more, they love making music together,
and now they're living the rock star dream.
Please welcome the Jonas Brothers.
♪♪
KEVIN: The numbers at the show were starting to grow.
It went from, like, 50 people, all of a sudden to, like, 200 people.
♪ Mandy used to be that girl ♪
♪ The one that never said a word ♪
♪ But she only sang S Club 7 ♪
♪ And all those boy bands ♪
When you saw them play, there was no question about it.
There was some chemistry there that you hadn't seen before.
And their success came from hard work. It wasn't luck.
♪ Mandy always laughs when I act stupid ♪
♪ I am unaware that I'm a nuisance ♪
♪ With her it's never wasted time ♪
NICK: There was a spark about it.
It was evident to everybody.
And then it started to bubble.
These guys hail from right across the river in New Jersey,
and they're about to take the world by storm.
TRL, show some love for the Jonas Brothers.
[cheering]
KEVIN: Out of nowhere,
the "Mandy" video becomes the number one song on TRL.
You walked down the hallway,
and there was fans waiting for you outside.
That was it.
You see retirement after that.
♪ Nick J. is off the chain ♪
♪ America, feel his name ♪
♪ Nick J. is off the chain ♪
GREG GARBOWSKY: It's important to remember that at this time,
Nick is very, very much the leader of this group.
♪ What's my name? Say it once again ♪
♪ Nick J., Nick J., Nick J., Nick J. ♪
That year saw a lot of change.
Nick started getting a little more moody.
We were hearing from a couple of the band members
that his personality was getting...
direct, uh, more agitated.
GREG GARBOWSKY: He would demand that we would pull over
and get pizza and Diet Coke.
And he would say, "I need it."
KEVIN: Every time we would stop,
Nick would get this massive Big Gulp.
NICK: Drinking a ton of water.
KEVIN: Like, so much liquid.
KEVIN SR.: The band members,
they were a little concerned, he was really thirsty.
JOE: We would stop every 15 minutes
'cause Nick really had to pee,
and it was like a running joke.
GREG GARBOWSKY: We would pull out on the side
of the turnpike in New Jersey,
he would run into the woods and pee and then hop back in,
and then two miles later we'd have to pull over again.
KEVIN: One day, me, Joe and Nick are all sharing a room,
and Nick is changing.
I looked at him and I could see
every single bone in his body.
NICK: I look in the mirror
and I'm like a skeleton.
Feel like I'm dying.
I wouldn't see Nick for 10 days sometimes.
Every time he'd come home, he was little bit more thin.
JOE: I, like, went to my parents and I was crying,
and said, "Something's wrong with Nick,
like, we have to go-- bring him to the doctor."
NICK: My pediatrician looks at me,
and I tell her the symptoms.
She starts to tear up and I get kind of concerned,
and says don't go home, don't pack a bag,
just go straight to the hospital.
She's like...
you have diabetes and...
he asked if he was gonna die.
I had dealt with people in church life
that had diabetes.
I forgot everything I knew.
It's just this amazing thing when it comes to your own kids
or your family.
And we all started crying.
I passed out in the hospital room
because I couldn't see him,
like, all hooked up to these wires,
and it was like a really...
life-shifting moment for everybody.
DENISE JONAS: Nick as we had known him--
happy, smiling...
smiling...
singing at the top of his lungs when he wakes up--
he was different after that.
We were worried for him,
but there was also professional concern.
We actually had a show, and we didn't know,
should we cancel the show or not,
all the executives from Sony were gonna be there.
I got out of the hospital and we said,
let's not tell the label,
'cause it'll make 'em think, uh, he won't be able to work.
You don't want to give a label an excuse to drop you,
which would have been the lowest thing anybody could have done,
but... it's a crazy business.
And Nick said,
"Get outta my way.
We're doing a show, and we're gonna kill it."
And he went from the hospital to the stage,
and the three of them just rocked it.
MAN: So, Nick, man, where we goin'?
We are going to the heart of Boston.
Gonna go to some cool places.
Last time we came here to do, like, the school shows,
I was sick, so I couldn't go out with the guys,
but this time I'm going out.
Gonna be awesome.
♪♪
I haven't been back to Wyckoff in, I think, about 10 years.
It's about the same for me,
-maybe-- maybe more. -Maybe more, yeah.
-Twelve years? -Wow.
New Jersey. It gets a bad rap,
but it really is beautiful.
This is, like,
kind of where it all started for us out here.
Like anybody's story, the good, the bad and the ugly,
so I think there's like a-- a mix of emotions
that we'll all be feeling today.
♪♪
-Oh, shit. There it is. -Holy shit!
-There it is. -Wow.
Let's go check it out.
KEVIN: Hold on, Joe, wait for the cameras.
They'll follow. Come on.
KEVIN: They're not even close to being ready.
Whatever. I want to see it, too.
I'm not just here to, like,
be filmed.
Oh, my God.
So crazy.
Weird, man.
[traffic noise]
♪♪
This is so trippy.
It's at a complete standstill.
Frozen in time.
We haven't been back in so long.
We wrote "Please Be Mine"
in that living room right there.
Where that window is, with the red curtain.
I mean, it's even trippier 'cause there's, like,
nothing's changed about the house at all.
-Yeah. -Feels like we would just walk back in there
and be six years-- seven years old.
There's a lot of firsts for us here.
First song.
First hospital visit.
Mom and Dad got pregnant with Frankie there.
-Whoa... -That church.
♪♪
This is, like, the first place I sang.
It was at the church, yeah.
I played on the worship team here every Sunday.
We were here every single day.
Should we go in or--
-No. -MAN: Go inside.
-We could go underneath-- -No.
So...
Let's-- Let's go.
KEVIN: Things began to shift in the church.
That became really challenging.
Once we started doing our own thing in music,
there were people starting to speak about our dad
in-- in a negative way.
There was this perception that was put on us
that we were supposed to be these
squeaky clean, perfect kids.
Dad's job essentially hinged on it.
NICK: I think that there was some judgment on us
for not being a Christian band.
Singing about girls started to become
a bit of an issue.
JOE: There was so much going on
that our dad and mom never told us.
I think in their minds they were protecting us,
but for us as kids, it just was scary.
NICK: I just remember my dad being so stressed out.
I started to realize our dream that we were chasing
freaked a lot of people out in the church.
You know, that's a totally different lifestyle,
than I think they expected a pastor's son to be in.
KEVIN: And they just started a whole platform
to kind of get my dad removed.
KEVIN SR.: The day I resigned at Wyckoff
was really... devastating.
I couldn't even read my resignation letter.
But I made the mistake of thinking that was just me,
uh, that was hurting.
JOE: I'll never forget, my parents spoke to us,
it was, like, we're leaving the church,
that means we're leaving the house,
and Columbia's decided to not work with you anymore,
to drop you.
I remember feeling, like, scared and worried.
That was like the world was crashing on us.
We couldn't believe it.
NICK: For me, it became really, really tough.
These people that we had invested
so much of our time and life,
and especially my parents.
Really disappointing.
JOHN TAYLOR: It was like a really brutal blow to them.
Their whole community kind of wasn't there anymore.
KEVIN: My dad at this point
had put $90,000 of his life savings--
essentially our college fund--
into the band.
Maxed out his credit cards,
and had no money, like, we were done.
It hit when we were already at a low,
and took us even lower.
DENISE JONAS: We lost our home.
We lost our friends and our social life.
Everything they knew for 10 years of their life, gone.
NICK: I mean, it's sort of...
perfect.
JOE: It's really trippy.
I mean, literally, 30 minutes ago
we were crunching ice cream outside Dairy Queen
-in the sunlight. -JOE: Yeah, like it's sunny--
like, July 3rd, all American day.
And then it was just, like-- And this is our old church.
-[imitates thunder] -Fire and brimstone.
NICK: This may sound a certain way, I don't know,
but it's weird that we go to a place where we're not accepted.
Like, there's two buildings in the world that I can think of
where we're told, no, you may not enter.
It's, like, the house we grew up in,
and the church that we helped...
build, you know?
♪♪
KEVIN: Then we leave the church and we go to this house
in Little Falls.
The chief of police of our town was so gracious to us,
and rented this house to us for nothing.
Because we didn't have an income anymore.
We were playing roulette, you know, on the boys.
KEVIN: Four boys in one bedroom,
my parents in the other.
JOE: The Little Falls house
felt like we were trapped.
We were dealing with so much at once.
It was overwhelming.
Our parents were fighting, like, every day.
I constantly wanted to get out of that house,
to get out of the vibe.
JOHN TAYLOR: Joe is naturally, like,
a really sensitive, caring type of person.
I remember when Kevin Sr. was talking to us about,
"We hope you stick around for the ride,"
and Joe was looking at us, like,
"Please stay with us."
He was worried that we were gonna be upset.
And it's, like, I'm just a dude with a gig,
and maybe I can go get another one.
Like, I haven't poured my entire life into this thing,
my identity like you have.
But he didn't think of it that way.
It was, like, is everyone gonna be okay?
Are we all gonna make it together?
[indistinct chatter]
JOE: Having the pressure to go out there
and tour to make money
became a different reality setting in, like,
we have to do this so we can survive,
rather than this just being, like...
we were out there doin' it when it was like
free and fun.
And that's a lot of pressure for somebody that age.
Everything was a mess.
The label shut you down,
you're trying to do it on your own,
you're spending a lot of money.
It was going to be difficult.
KEVIN: Uh, we're playin' in the mall,
super early, none of the stores are open,
and we are getting booed by the old people
that are walking around.
-MAN: Senior citizens. -Senior citizens.
KEVIN: The band at a certain point was, like,
"Hey, are we gonna get paid this week?"
And it was, like, "Okay, I'll-- I'll get it covered."
And then it was the next week.
It was getting really tight.
♪♪ [guitar]
NICK: The great part about, like,
being a young person writing music,
is that everything is the most important thing in the world.
Okay, one more time.
♪♪
NICK: We wrote a bunch of songs in that house
out of the pain and the hurt and the abandonment.
KEVIN: After we got dropped from Sony,
we wrote the entire Jonas Brothers Album
in the basement of that house.
I think we felt that people didn't believe in us,
so we were gonna prove 'em wrong.
♪♪
JOE: And then we got a phone call
from Disney,
they were, like, "We know you need something.
"Well, we have it.
We're gonna hand you a record deal."
Yeah, boy!
And at that time, it was a huge opportunity.
But for us, it really meant
we're getting out of Little Falls.
PHIL MCINTYRE: We went from working with
a company that didn't understand teens,
to having an opportunity with a company that
specifically spoke to that audience.
To us, it was a no-brainer.
KEVIN: So pretty.
We're in L.A., boys.
JOE: Where's the Hollywood sign? Is it around here?
NICK: Kind of felt like we had a second chance.
Like we were given another go at the plate,
to try and hit the ball out of the park.
Okay, go! [laughing]
NICK: When we got to Hollywood Records,
I felt a warmth I'd never felt.
And a desire to make it great.
Bathrooms are down to the left,
kitchen's around to the right.
Great.
[indistinct dialogue]
NICK: We were in this big, beautiful house
with John Fields
and just doing whatever we wanted.
Um, this-- got it all.
He was encouraging us in our craft
at that young age,
and letting us play instruments,
write songs with him.
JOHN FIELDS: I knew this was gonna be special.
You could just tell meeting the-- the boys.
It's like there is an energy there
that is undeniable,
and the songs were amazing.
And it started to become this...
sort of like little unit.
♪♪
KEVIN: We would play, we would write, we would sing.
We pumped out, like, a song or two a day.
"S.O.S.," "Hold On," "Goodnight, Goodbye,"
"Just Friends."
It just felt so passionate and-- and exciting,
and there was nothing holding us back from creating this.
JOHN FIELDS: Energy through the roof.
Everyone was just stoked to be on this new path.
KEVIN: So we're working at studio early in the morning,
8 a.m. 'til 11:00 at night,
and we had this song we recorded.
NICK: Shot a music video for, but never released,
"Year 3000."
♪♪
It was a video we did at Columbia Records,
and when we got dropped, we carried it with us.
♪ One day when I came home at lunch time ♪
♪ I heard a funny noise ♪
♪ Went out ♪
♪ With my neighbor called Peter ♪
GREG GARBOWSKY: You're done watching your TV show,
all of a sudden here's "Year 3000,"
you watch another show, here's the "Year 3000,"
and it just got played constantly.
♪ He said I've been to the year 3000 ♪
JOE: It was just, like, skyrocketing.
We were, like, oh, my God.
♪ And your great, great, great granddaughter ♪
KEVIN SR.: The next day they were top 10.
[indistinct chatter]
♪♪
Ready? ♪ La ♪
KEVIN: And then we get a phone call.
Joe has just been offered the lead in this movie
called "Camp Rock" on the Disney Channel.
♪♪
KEVIN SR.: We debated it and talked about it,
and ultimately said,
we can't split the brothers up.
KEVIN: My dad called the president of the Disney Channel and said,
"What if instead of just Joe, it was a band?"
We were filming four hours north of Toronto.
We were in no-man's land.
NICK: When I was acting on TV,
I felt like that was my zone.
I really enjoyed myself.
I mean, Kevin and I were barely in it,
but you're 13 years old and you get to go make a movie,
it was incredible.
KEVIN: But what we didn't know was that
in America, the band was...
blowing up.
MAN: Don't forget the marionette show.
And it sure is a lot of fun for the kiddoes.
KEVIN SR.: I receive a phone call from the promoter
of the Texas State Fair,
and he said there was a traffic jam to Oklahoma.
JOE: We just assumed, like, oh, well,
everyone's just trying to get there.
They're, like, no, it's the concert you guys are putting on.
What?
KEVIN SR.: He said, "I'm sending helicopters."
I thought the guy was crazy.
And he said, "You don't understand."
[whirring]
JOE: I remember getting in the helicopter
and looking down at the crowd,
and thinking, "Oh, this-- that must not--
that's someone else's stage."
Oh, my God!
There was more people than I've ever seen in my life,
just thousands of people.
KEVIN: We had no idea that, like, people were getting excited
about the Jonas Brothers.
Well, we found out that day.
KEVIN SR.: The boys walked on stage.
There's no way to describe that sound.
♪♪
♪ So don't give up stand 'til the end ♪
KEVIN SR.: The roar that went up.
♪♪
Everything was different.
♪ So hold on ♪
♪ Hold on ♪
JOE: I also remember us being shocked
at how many people knew our words to our songs.
They were singing our music back to us.
We were, like, they're fans.
These are not just people that came to this,
these are 50,000 fans.
[screaming, cheering]
PHIL MCINTYRE: It was so validating
to how much sacrifice had gone into it,
and to the family being able to fight through
those tough seasons
to be able to get to the other side of that,
and see them get on stage.
It was one of the most incredible moments of my career.
NICK: Hey, what's up, everybody? We're the Jonas Brothers.
-I'm Nick. -I'm Kevin.
I'm Joe.
And you are on our Myspace page.
Listen, guys. One week our album's coming out.
This is-- I'm gonna run in traffic.
NICK: We embraced the internet
in a way that I-- I don't think
a lot of people had before us.
KEVIN: We were making 15 second videos
on YouTube.
Like, one was, we walk into a room,
turn a table around.
Oh, how the tables have turned.
Just look into the camera. That's the video.
Hey. I'm Nick Jonas.
And today we're talking about anger.
[clattering]
We actually really comment you guys on Myspace.
It's actually us. We are actually sitting there.
JOE: And we started growing such a big fan base.
I think there was a hundred followers on Myspace,
and we freaked out.
Yeah! Jonas Brothers!
And then a few thousand, and we were, like,
"Wow, it was, like, happening."
-Hey, we're the Jonas Brothers. -And we want to tell you
that we want to go on a date with you.
We want to go on a date, we're gonna hold hands,
we wanna just walk on the beach, whatever it is.
Bill, the Jonas Brothers have no idea
what they've gotten themselves into.
How much did you sleep last night?
Um, probably about two hours at most.
I think my brothers and I became closest
when we found a common ground
beyond music and family.
Girls. [chuckles]
WOMAN: Do you have a favorite Jonas brother?
-Not yet. We like 'em all. They're hot. -Yeah.
Yeah, they're all pretty hot.
I love Joe and, um, he should come and meet me, please.
-[screaming] -I love you, Nick.
Oh!
Kevin, don't get married.
Please. I'll wait for you.
While I was in high school, I couldn't get a date
no matter how much I tried.
I could not get a date.
After the Disney Channel played our music video,
life immediately changes as a teenager for me.
♪♪
[no audible dialogue]
I would hug you but, it would be a little--
Me and Joe were, like, wing-manning each other constantly.
-Write me on Myspace. -Okay. Of course.
[indistinct chatter]
We got to be on the "Hannah Montana" episode
on the Disney Channel.
Great mama, it's the Jonas Brothers!
That changed girls for Nick forever.
Wow. You're pretty.
Nice save. I'm Kevin.
We met Miley,
I think that kid's head exploded.
NICK: I started writing about love,
and I actually knew what it felt like, you know.
♪ Called you for the first time yesterday ♪
♪ Finally found the missing part of me ♪
♪ It felt so close but you were far away ♪
♪ Left me without anything to say ♪
♪ Now I'm speechless, over the edge ♪
♪ I'm just breathless ♪
♪ I never felt that I'd catch this ♪
♪ Love bug again ♪
♪ Hopeless, head over heels ♪
♪ In the moment ♪
♪ I never thought that I'd get hit ♪
♪ By this love bug again ♪
For the first time, I was asking them
the kinds of questions that only a younger brother
can ask their older brothers.
Hey, Danielle, it's Kevin.
How are you?
Rockin', I want to give you
a little bit more information about tonight if I can,
So, um, great doors open at 9:00,
so we go on, I think at 10.
-or shortly there-- soon around. -[indistinct whispering]
And, um-- and if there's any issues,
I'm gonna give you a number right now to call.
She's our-- She--
No, no, I know I'm moving, like, a million miles an hour.
I'm-- I'm having a lot--
But I'm just so excited for you to--
to see you tonight, so...
Okay, the number is...
-810-- -Yes.
-Okay. -8622
Yes! He did it.
Um, this is-- Her name is Felicia.
-She handles all of our-- -Oh, there you go.
You know, she's with us, she like a--
I don't want to call her a personal assistant.
[chuckles] That's good, that's good.
Yeah, essentially, yeah. She takes care of all that stuff.
Um, so, sweet, that is the number to call, I hope,
and I can't wait to see you.
Not a problem. No, no, no, it's not gonna be a problem,
uh, just, you know, 10:00 we hit the stage.
So be there or be square.
Oh, wow.
Yeah, that's-- that's totally cool, I hear you.
No, um, I think-- And then we're hanging out a little after,
like, I think there might be a little chill out time
after the show. Stop.
Okay.
Rockin', I will see you in a little while, then.
Awesome, bye.
-Good job. -You-- Don't talk to me
while I'm on the phone anymore.
-Sorry for-- -We're just really excited,
because she's your wife.
[crowd shouting]
KEVIN SR.: I mean, they're almost out of room.
They're on the--
KEVIN SR.: I know, they-- they see you.
Guys, ready? Watch this.
PHIL MCINTYRE: That's unbelievable. They see you.
[crowd screaming]
[shouting]
The line in the--
So far, and is huge, packed.
They said there's 15 right now, 15,000.
A lot of people.
Wow.
[woman talking on TV]
WOMAN 1 [on TV]: The Big Apple has never seen dedication quite like this.
These die-hard fans have been here since Tuesday morning.
WOMAN 2: You're some of the biggest Jonas fans here, huh?
GIRLS: Yeah!
WOMAN 1: All for their chance to see Kevin...
PHIL MCINTYRE: We definitely hit a tipping point
where we entered a new stratosphere.
It was uncharted territory for all of us.
WOMAN: We're in Times Square.
We are waiting for the Jonas Brothers
"A Little Bit Longer" CDs to come out at midnight.
JOE: Every time we would release an album,
we would go to Times Square and celebrate.
Wait in line at midnight and hold it in our hands.
7:30, that's like, five more hours--
four and a half more hours until they come.
KEVIN: We release "A Little Bit Longer,"
and, just like tradition, we go to Virgin Megastore in Times Square.
Whoo!
KEVIN: So two years prior, there's eight people there.
The next year there was maybe 30 or 40 people there.
Let's go. Let's roll.
This time, it's a little different.
Seriously, like, for safety,
if we say we gotta go, that means we gotta go.
Before we even left, we were getting calls
that it was complete pandemonium.
BIG ROB: I'm gonna tell you straight,
stick to us like white on rice. Okay?
MAN: Is he all right or is he--
-WOMAN: She is so happy. -MAN: I hear people.
Oh, my gosh. This is incredible.
Like, it's actually happening.
-Holy cow. -Oh, my God. Wow.
-Look at those barricades in the middle of the street. -Are you kidding me?
Are you kidding me?
[screaming]
Oh, my-- Yes!
MAN: You may have to walk us in like the pope, man.
I don't know that we're gonna be able to go through this crowd.
-Goodness! -Oh, my--
-It's New Year's Eve. -I've never seen anything like this.
BIG ROB: Open the doors here.
-[screaming] -This is incredible.
Oh, my God, there are so many people here.
[screaming]
[chanting]
[screaming continues]
You see outside?
MAN: Boys.
[shouting]
BIG ROB: We shut down Times Square
for seven to ten minutes.
There had to have been over 20,000 plus people there.
No movement, cars, people, the fire department.
It's just-- We thought it was just mayhem.
GREG GARBOWSKY: 2007 started off with us playing
in food courts in malls.
And we went to theaters and arenas
in a really short amount of time.
REPORTER: Something close to a mob scene
in Sacramento this afternoon.
[screaming]
♪♪
♪ Come on, girl ♪
[horns honking]
BIG ROB: The pace that it's growing at right now--
it's goin' so fast.
I mean, I've been doing this 14 years,
and the things that we're doing with these--
I-- I've never done before in my life.
These guys put a tour on sale
and they sell clean at Madison Square Garden,
and they're, like, we're gonna add another date,
and they sell clean at Madison Square Garden,
like, we're gonna add a third date, and they sell that clean,
and we didn't have room to add a fourth.
Please welcome the Jonas Brothers!
-Jonas Brothers! -WOMAN: Jonas Brothers!
Jonas Brothers.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Jonas Brothers
KEVIN SR.: They had three albums in the top ten,
a gold record in a week,
"Camp Rock" went platinum,
they're first album went platinum,
this record was going multi-platinum.
The Grammy nominees for the Best New Artist are
the Jonas Brothers.
JOE: Right now, we're making a demo with Stevie Wonder.
We're performing with him on the Grammys.
And to have Stevie Wonder out there playing it with us,
is gonna be absolutely amazing.
These are the nominees for the Best New Artist.
Come on, Stevie!
♪♪
How you doin'? You feel good, you feel great?
I can't stop smiling.
I don't know, you can't make this shit up.
The experiences are priceless.
I mean, we were on an airplane playing our new album
before our other album had come out
while the numbers were coming in for the tour.
And it was like, "We just sold out Idaho,"
as we were, like, listening to the new record.
It's like stuff that's in a movie.
but it was really-- it was happening.
[shouting]
JOE: I mean, think about it.
Two years ago, we're in a minivan touring.
And now we're chartering a 757 to go on tour.
It's-- It's just insane.
♪♪
JOHN TAYLOR: Hey, there's no other way to put it.
Literally, like, pinch me, this is happening, like, oh, my gosh.
And, like, Joe would be, like, "Dude, this is crazy,"
like the energy was-- was unimaginable.
NICK: I dreamed of being on a chart.
The fact that we were on "the chart"
was just amazing.
♪ Baby, you turn the temperature hotter ♪
♪ Come on ♪
♪ I'm burnin' up, burnin' up for you, baby ♪
♪ Burnin' up, burnin' up ♪
♪ For you, baby ♪
[screaming]
I think that fans fell in love with the brothers
because they represented something to them.
I think that they meant more than the music.
I think that they meant more than the concert.
You know, they were such a positive force.
People really appreciated that.
It was amazing to see--
amidst unstoppable...
ascent to fame--
the continuous gratitude from these guys.
They were never taking anything for granted.
What was crazy for me was these songs that we'd written
in a two and a half bedroom house
in Little Falls, New Jersey,
um, were being sung by 70, 80,000 people
in countries where English was not the first language.
♪ I'm hopeless ♪
♪ Head over heels in the moment ♪
♪ I never thought that I'd get hit ♪
♪ By this love bug again ♪
One of the few times I wish I could go back and just
relive that experience,
because it was so mind blowing
and such a beautiful sight.
[screaming]
KEVIN: Three guys from Jersey
that, like, really never had much,
to now, all of a sudden, have fame and people know your name.
Like, it felt cool.
NICK: I don't think I really
processed the magnitude of it.
♪♪
Jonas Brothers are here.
Sasha and Malia are huge fans.
♪♪
♪ Speechless, over the edge ♪
♪ I'm just breathless ♪
♪ I never thought that I'd catch this ♪
♪ Love bug again ♪
♪ Now I'm hopeless ♪
♪ Head over heels in the moment ♪
♪ I never thought that I'd get hit ♪
♪ By this love bug again ♪
Jonas!
♪ Oh ♪
♪ Love bug again ♪
[screaming]
KEVIN: At a certain point, it was so big.
It was insane.
[screaming]
KEVIN: It shifted from being, like,
this hype is super cool to...
should we be, like, scared?
♪♪
[screaming]
GREG GARBOWSKY: I think what started to happen
is that it gets so big that you can't control it.
[screaming]
And there's too many moving parts.
Instead of bringing in more people that they trusted,
They each took on more themselves.
[screaming]
MAN: Joe, where are we going?
Uh, we're going to...
catering, but we're going to do interviews.
JOE: It always felt like it could go away in the blink of an eye.
That's why we did every interview, we did every meet-and-greet.
We really never said no to the point of exhaustion.
This game I played a few days ago
it's fun 'cause it's questions
we either have to answer ourselves
or it might be directed towards everybody else.
And I think you take a big gulp of your drink
if two people know
that you didn't answer fully honestly.
That work? The more we drink,
the more the questions are gonna be answered,
-so... -[chuckles]
Joe.
Okay.
"Is there someone in your life you hold real resentment towards?"
-Uh, yeah, the ballerina that-- -[laughing]
That talked about your small penis?
[laughing]
She talked about my penis, she didn't-- I don't--
She didn't talk about a small penis.
[laughing]
That ballerina, to this day
I think she was talkin' shit, and I don't--
I'm not cool with it.
[laughing]
-Drink all that. -Drink it all.
That was the truth, though.
Doesn't matter. It's a terrible answer.
Ready? One, two, three--
Boom! Nick.
Bowl it.
"Do you regret anything?" Yeah, of course.
Regret, like, so much shit all the time.
Let's say specifically to this-- the Brothers.
Well, yeah, I mean, it's all encompassing.
Um, biggest regret in regards to the Brothers.
Um... season two of "Jonas."
[chuckles]
That's a big regret.
We shouldn't have done that.
It really stunted our growth, you know?
I feel like it was...
just a bad move.
-Yeah. -Like, it was just not the time and--
Literally, we-- we couldn't evolve because of it.
♪♪ [harmonica]
KEVIN: The way it was presented to us was
the show will help continue the brand around the world.
It'll keep it relevant in the times you can't tour.
Let's not be those guys who wear their sunglasses at night.
♪♪
KEVIN: The show was not good.
JOE: It didn't feel like it was us anymore.
It felt young.
And-- And we're becoming adults.
KEVIN: It was not on brand for us,
as, like, the band that we were becoming,
the songs we were writing.
It was almost like two very different identities.
BRAD WAVRA: It was made for eight-year-olds,
or ten-year-olds.
It just was going to make you uncool.
KEVIN: I think that affected the perception of the band,
that we were a joke,
this is-- They're not real, they're robots.
And then it was--
And cut.
Great video shoot, guys.
This is bull puckey!
Yeah, we've had it, gosh darn it!
"South Park" did an episode about
Disney and the purity rings.
What's all this I'm hearing about
not wearing the purity rings?
They were saying Disney created a band
who are these cookie-cutter boy band brothers,
that everything was perfect, and they used Christianity and purity rings
as a way to sell music to kids.
Well, we don't want to be selling sex to little girls anymore.
Rings stay on.
Maybe we'll just refuse to go on stage.
[grunts]
I mean...
they weren't far off, that's for sure.
God's favorite virgins, the Jonas Brothers,
will be performing at the VMAs this year.
Oh, my God!
JOE: In the church, it was encouraged that we go through this program,
and it was, like, wait for the right person and wait 'til marriage.
All the kids that I grew up with were doing it,
so I was, like, oh, this is cool.
Probably by, like, I don't know, 15,
I was like, what?
[laughs] What is this?
The property has six bedrooms,
and it's located in a gated community.
Why do three virgins need six bedrooms
-is what I want to know. -[audience laughs]
That was not who we were, like, it was just
something that we did when we were young kids,
but we wore the rings through
the first bit of the band starting to explode.
At that point, it was already too late because it was in the media.
In case you were unaware, each of the Jonas brothers
does wear a tiny ring
as a mark of their commitment to God.
I'd take it a little bit more seriously
if they wore it on their genitals.
KEVIN: We had all of this success,
and that's the only thing we could, like, hear or focus on.
What things that people were saying about us.
NICK: It was embarrassing
to be aware of this joke in real life with people.
When I would go to a sporting event,
and they would put me on the jumbotron or us, whatever,
they would boo us.
As a sports fanatic, I would be so hurt
'cause I was, like, I am one of you.
I'm just like you.
KEVIN: It's funny 'cause, like, we never really,
like, talked about the disappointment of those things.
You know, we always just went into more work.
[screaming]
JOHN TAYLOR: It created a recipe for fear and paranoia,
and insecurity.
I think it started to take its toll on the guys.
JOE: Do you think that's when things started changing?
I think I became frustrated because...
I was in those sessions to write the music,
and, like, you guys didn't want to do that,
and so I just felt, like, a little bit of resentment,
that seed of getting angry that you guys weren't...
in it with me there
-Mm-hm. -creatively felt shitty.
The way I said it is after this year,
we need some--
-There needs to be a legit-- -Pause.
Like, think about it.
♪♪
Felt like it was just a ticking time bomb.
-MAN: Let's go. -A reality we might
have to face in our-- in our artistry as well as--
that this record we're doing right now
might not be as big as "A Little Bit Longer."
Do you think that one of you might turn out to be,
uh, like Justin Timberlake
and break away from the group?
-Joe? -You know,
we always talk about solo projects--
-Mm-hm. -And I think for us,
it would never be a solo project,
-it would be a side project. -Really?
There's no way we can just break up
because, I mean, I live in the same house as them,
so it's gonna be pretty difficult.
♪♪
NICK: I was frustrated creatively,
feeling like I've got some music in my head
that I could make on my own or with a side project,
and instead of getting frustrated with the fact that
I can't do that with this creative outlet,
why don't I just do it somewhere else.
♪♪
I saw the Administration as a great escape.
It felt great to be in an environment
where I knew if I, like, hear something,
tell them a reference, give them a feeling,
and everyone in the room could do it.
The initial idea with this-- with this record
was that it was side project,
and-- and that's still the-- the whole concept.
Me and my brothers breaking up
is not something you need to be worried about.
MAN: And, Nick, this way.
NICK: After the Administration,
I moved to New York City.
And it was really sort of like a--
a college experience in a sense,
where, you know, I...
was on my own for the first time. Real independence.
♪♪
When I first went in to do the rehearsals for
"How To Succeed,"
I was a little nervous.
And it was...
exhilarating.
♪♪
I really felt like the work on stage
was being recognized.
I was having so much fun.
♪♪
JOE: I was so thrilled for him,
because I knew how happy he was,
but I was scared.
It was in, like, the peak of the Jonas Brothers.
The dude was getting a taste of what it's like on his own, and it was awesome.
At the time, I felt like I needed to go
and try to live a normal life
and do my own thing.
-Excuse me, guys. Thank you. -Have a good night, man.
Go travel, meet girls, date,
just have time off.
I was trying to find myself.
I was outside of the Brothers for the first time ever.
Finding independence,
and just seeing what was out there
besides the Jonas Brothers.
I felt inspired,
and I-- I just couldn't wait to put my attention and focus
into music of my own.
And I made, like, an R&B pop record.
It was definitely, like, an exciting time.
♪ Do you hear what I say? ♪
I was really trying to prove myself
probably to my brothers, but to everyone out there
that I can do it without Kevin and Nick.
And I started dressing differently,
I started acting differently,
and the music didn't do as well as I anticipated.
I guess a little taste of reality.
♪♪
My mind's, at the time, like...
here's my first failure.
I think it was really tough for me
because I felt like
I can't do anything without my brothers,
like, it was embarrassing.
So instead of staying with the band and the hype,
and, like, rolling in, like, another tour,
and more music and kind of, like, pushing that envelope,
we were, like, let's take a pause and take a break.
And at the time, for me, it was like--
[exhales]
Danielle was the normal girl from New Jersey who was a hairdresser.
We fall in love and we get engaged.
I feel like...
I'm my own man.
Kevin, you may kiss your bride.
[cheering, applause]
After four years of, like, craziness,
I was living my best life.
It was nice to, like, just be together.
You know, like, we needed it.
Age wise,
I'm five years older than Nick.
You know, like I would have been out of college at this point,
I would have had all those experiences,
I would have been able to just go on a normal date.
After I got married, my priorities shifted a little bit.
And then we got offered a reality TV show.
[chuckles]
I wanted to do it.
All of a sudden, they sent a crew of people
to our Denville house in New Jersey,
and we were shooting a pilot.
For the first time it was, like, this is my thing.
I felt like I could really do well
in this environment.
We filmed all of this stuff,
and then it all kind of changed when, like,
the Jonases show up and it's, like,
all weird.
Our whole life was a closed-door meeting,
and Kevin invited cameras into that meeting finally,
and we felt like he was going to air out a lot of our shit
that we didn't want people to know about.
KEVIN: Joe and Nick didn't want to have anything to do with it.
They were, like, kind of forced to do the show.
JOE: We didn't like the idea that
the reality show could dictate who we were.
And to watch it every Sunday was not fun for us.
NICK: We got the band back together,
I think, in a lot of ways 'cause we felt like we had to,
uh, but this time, everything was different.
We thought because of the success we'd had,
or because of the familiarity of the name,
the Jonas Brothers, that it would have success.
We were wrong.
We put out a couple songs that really didn't connect.
We played some shows
and fewer and fewer people were coming out,
and it just didn't feel like anything was-- was working.
JOE: We were three people
all living different realities of what the Jonas Brothers were.
We lost sight of the fact that we were just a band
having a good time.
People liked seeing us happy,
and we were not happy.
We just decided that we could beat it or something, and...
that's not how it works.
NICK: We're about to go do this tour.
The reality of it all was starting to hit me.
We're all so frustrated.
And nothing is working.
We hate each other, basically.
And I called my dad, and he actually picked me up
and drove me around LA for two hours,
replaying the night before where I had a full-on panic attack.
And we sat and talked through it all.
And I was just full of anxiety.
He said, "I feel like I'm fighting against
"something that's not working.
"I've given everything I have to this music,
"but I'm going here, Joe's going here,
"Kevin's over there,
and I just can't do it anymore."
It was scary because
I'm not just the manager at that point.
I'm the dad.
In the car, I just decided the best way to handle this
was just going to-- was to be as honest as possible.
So we go into that meeting
And Nick actually said to me,
"They probably are even anticipating this."
They were not.
So me and Joe sit down,
and Nick says,
"As you guys know, like, things haven't been the same,
and the Jonas Brothers should be no more."
It was not, "My heart's not in it,
"and I wanna be real with you as band members
and brothers, this is where I'm at."
It was, "The band is over.
"I wanna go do stuff without you guys,
and I've made up my mind."
And neither one of them were saying anything.
I just remember looking at Joe
and being like, "Wait-- What do you-- What?"
JOE: I felt betrayed.
I felt lied to,
I felt angry.
Numb.
And Joe said, "I have nothing to say to you."
Joe has shut down.
I'm looking at my brother just being destroyed inside.
I was 25-26. This was all I've known.
This is what I loved more than anything.
I loved doing this.
And somebody that you loved and cared about so much
could take it away from you so quickly,
that was, um...
That was heartbreaking.
It's like you get one taste of solo success...
and you forget all the work we put in together.
What hurt the most is that it came from Nick,
because he is my best friend,
and I thought that me, Kevin and Nick were gonna do this forever,
and it was us against the world, you know?
Then Joe finally broke down. It was like,
"You want to be done?
Fine. We're done."
Folks, please step out of the road.
That's when I knew the band was over,
because Joe and Nick were thick as thieves.
[crowd cheering]
MAN: What's up, Nick?
ROBIN ROBERTS: The fans were just stunned at the bombshell news
that the band of brothers were calling it quits.
They are going to set the record straight.
The burning question, Kev-- Why now? Why?
MAN: Are you guys gonna break up for sure?
You're not gonna say?
What's the deal, man?
They wanna know, man. everyone wants to know.
You're not gonna say?
For a while, it was dark.
MAN: All right, man. Well, have a good one.
I got an eight on Nick.
A 10, oh, it's to me.
"Why did you play
a Jonas Brothers radio show after we broke up?"
Oof.
KEVIN: What I was told was, the radio station said,
"If you don't play these shows,
"we will never play the Jonas Brothers
or any Jonas individually on the radio again."
It'll just be like, "Joe's gonna play his music,
"then Nick's gonna come out, and Nick's gonna do his music.
"No Jonas Brothers music.
So, Kevin, it's okay, you don't have to be there."
Okay. Fine. Whatever.
We're not playing together anyway.
[crowd cheering]
♪♪
KEVIN: The entire set was them singing all the Jonas Brothers songs together.
♪ Don't include your crazy friends ♪
All the big hits, all the big moments,
and I'm just not there.
I think that might have been the hardest moment of my entire life.
[exhales]
Um...
I think it's because we felt you were holding us back.
That's the truth.
I think there was, um...
moments that...
Nick and I wanted to...
do our own thing,
and we felt like your focus was not in it anymore,
and it wasn't a priority for you,
and starting a family was,
and your guitar playing, kind of, like, fell in the back seat.
And I think we wanted to both continue doing music.
And I think we had these gigs in front of us.
Now, as I think back on it, I realize how fucked up it is,
going to take a Jonas Brothers gig and you weren't on stage,
but it took me time to understand,
having someone in my life that--
I'll do fucking anything to see Sophie for an hour.
All of those years, our first love was music,
first love was the band.
And so for me as a teenager
and a young adult,
to see you prioritize anything but was bad.
But it took me a long time to understand that.
Like, you found love very young.
Um...
and I do think you know now, too,
it's a balance.
Back then, we didn't feel like you even tried that.
It felt like, it was just like, "The show's done. I'm out."
And it was like, "Well, fuck, like, sometimes that hang with brothers is so important."
And I get that.
I love you. I'm sorry that you had to go through that.
Yeah.
Let's carry on. Let's leave it there.
[sighs]
KEVIN: I got my card.
Didn't really see him for Christmas that year.
Didn't see him the holidays.
[chuckles]
But I think what was really hard for me was...
when Alena came...
we weren't really talking.
It was the first time I saw my brothers since the breakup.
-[coos] -[laughs]
[camera shutters clicking]
Nick came to me at 21 years old and said,
"I feel like I'm a has-been."
And it was really tough.
NICK: I think a lot of people in my life
gave my ability to be okay a little too much credit
during that time.
[overlapping chatter]
NICK: I just didn't feel like I deserved to...
to unravel because I had initiated this...
very tough conversation.
[overlapping chatter]
DAVID MASSEY: When Nick split up from the band,
it was a very difficult time for him,
but because our history was so long,
I was aware of what he was capable of
as a singer and as a writer,
and he knew it, too.
♪♪ ["Jealous" plays]
His ambition was wholly intact.
NICK: For a while, this "you need to be great at something,"
or being the best, would drive me crazy.
There wasn't a defining moment that I can look at
and say, "Oh, that was the moment everything changed."
But when "Jealous" came out,
it was like I was ready to evolve.
ANNOUNCER: I'm a big fan of this new song.
DAVID MASSEY: He'd become more and more charismatic as a young man.
Congratulations on all your success.
You could tell he was ready to be a global superstar.
♪ You're too sexy, beautiful ♪
♪ Everybody wants a taste ♪
♪ That's why I still get jealous ♪
[crowd singing, indistinct]
NICK: I was operating with more freedom,
and I was really enjoying it.
I began to recognize that,
when you're enjoying yourself and having fun, it resonates.
All the stars were aligning and...
it was like, "Next chapter. Here we go."
♪♪
[crowd cheering]
Thank you!
Joe came to me and said, "Hey, I see what Nick's doing,
and there's more in me as well."
The first batch of songs I wrote was just like--
I can't explain the style 'cause it's not out there.
And I was like, "I don't know. I don't think anyone's gonna get it."
♪ Talk to me, baby ♪
"Cake By The Ocean"-- It's on every single day of my life.
♪ Ah ya ya ya ya ♪
And I love that it is.
♪ We'll eat cake by the ocean ♪
♪ Walk for me, baby ♪
JERRY O'CONNELL: It's funny that you were nominated for Best New Artist.
I was like, "Wait a minute. I think he's been around for a couple years."
ALL: DNCE!
JOE: DNCE allowed me to be
as wild and as free as I can possibly be.
I was able to dress whatever crazy outfits
and change my hair color every week
and just really, like, live it.
I became more confident.
I was reverting back to that young me.
Really finding that space where I could evolve as an artist,
and people accepted it.
♪ ...eat cake by the ocean ♪
[crowd cheering]
JOE: It was my own little paradise.
Your brother's having great success as a solo artist.
You've got DNCE. Kev, is he just in--
Where's Kevin?
KEVIN: I don't think I fully comprehended
what it would do to me after the fact.
Even to this day...
I get asked if I'm Joe or Nick every day.
"Are you Joe Jonas? Are you Nick Jonas?"
And it's like, "No, I'm Kevin."
[no audible dialogue]
NICK: My whole life,
I've been so concerned with success.
I felt like there was a screwdriver in my head all the time saying
you have to be successful, you have chase the dream,
you have to get the number-ones, all that.
But I found that success
isn't always tied to fame and fortune
and awards and those kinds of things.
-WOMAN [on phone]: Hello? -Hey, babe.
-Hey. -Hey. What size is Valentina?
What size diapers? Is she a three, four, or five? I can't remember.
-She's a four. -She's a four?
Not the purple, so then this guy.
All right, cool. I got it.
All right, cool. Love you.
WOMAN [on phone]: All right. Love you. Bye.
KEVIN: My identity now is just, like, I'm a father.
I'm a husband. I'm passionate about the things that I like.
[pepper grinder ratcheting]
JOE: I think it was amazing when Kevin had children.
He-- He became a leader.
And I've never seen Kevin like that before.
Wanna go see Alena?
I got asked by someone, "You look really familiar."
My daughter said, "Well, that's because he's a Jonas Brother."
You guys all right? Did you sleep good?
Four-year-old said to this girl.
But it's starting to become weird,
because that part of my life is dead now.
Here.
That's no longer my identity, and I had to get to a place where I could say, like,
"Formerly of the Jonas Brothers."
-[feet pattering] -You wanna play?
-[static sounding] -Oh, don't do that.
You wanna be a real rock and roller,
you gotta do this, though. Okay?
You gotta put all your hair in front of your face like that.
Alena, she's only heard music.
She's never seen Daddy on stage.
Being able to see her in that audience
see me do what I do did best for so long...
And she knows me as her dad--
[laughing]
She doesn't know the person that was great.
NICK: You know, it's funny how you spend so much time
chasing happiness and the things
you think will bring you that joy in life
and not realizing it's been there all along.
JOE: Letting go of my anger and my sadness...
It took time.
I'd rather we be brothers
and not have our band dictate our relationship.
JOE: I think Nick said it casually, like,
"I really miss performing with you guys."
And I don't even think I really heard him.
I just was like, "Yeah, cool,"
and then kept on moving.
♪♪
JOE: No way in hell I would do it again.
That was where I was at,
until I was, like, "No, like, I actually-- I miss it."
♪ Well, they come and go ♪
♪ But they don't know ♪
♪ That you are my beautiful ♪
♪ I try to come ♪
♪ Closer with you ♪
♪ But they all say ♪
♪ We won't make it through ♪
♪ But I'll be there forever ♪
♪ You will see that it's better ♪
♪ All our hopes and our dreams ♪
♪ Will come true ♪
NICK: Even after I found solo success,
I would miss looking over...
and seeing them.
♪ Please be mine ♪
NICK: A little rusty.
But currently we don't have a label, so--
-Eight years. -Still a jam.
♪♪
KEVIN: We started the conversation with,
"I'll do this if we can have fun together."
[overlapping chatter]
JOE: It's been probably six, seven years
since just the three of us just got to hang out.
KEVIN: We spent the last year traveling the world together
and really just reconnecting.
Laughing and talking, reminiscing.
These old things that we used to do together.
And I really missed it.
We laid it all out there. We really held nothing back.
NICK: This is an adjustment.
I mean, it's not all, like, rainbows and butterflies.
-Don't touch it! -Yeah, don't touch it.
-What are you doing? -Just rolling back--
-Don't touch it. -Look how you mapped it.
That's bullshit.
NICK: That's part of the re-establishing of chemistry
and camaraderie and the brotherhood aspect.
And that will be a process in this.
-Go back to it. -Did it go away?
Yeah, 'cause you were, like, jacking the phone. Hold on.
NICK: There's already little things each of us do
that probably annoy the fuck out of each other.
-Give me my phone. -Yeah, but we're getting a tape measure.
I don't give a shit about your--
I wanna show you how exact this is.
-[laughing] Give me this phone! -Bring in the tape measure!
[laughter]
-First time in Australia. -You brought the rain with you.
-[laughing]
-Cheers. -Salud.
Salud. Yeah. Nice to meet you.
♪ Come back to me, baby ♪
♪ I'll come back to you ♪
♪ You know the place that I go running to ♪
♪ I get scared when you're scared ♪
♪ But what else can I do? ♪
♪ Come back to me, baby ♪
♪ I'll come back to you ♪
I really want to have a second chance
with them so I can enjoy
every moment with my brothers...
and I can...
smile more.
It's hard to pick one, but I think my proudest memory would be
this past year,
because this is the year that
I have grown as a person, and I've grown with my brothers.
♪♪
JOE: It's been a long road.
We've been through so much.
In finding myself, I was also able to find a partner.
The impact of falling in love
has made me want to be a better man...
a better person...
and ultimately made me a better brother.
KEVIN: We all spent the time apart
truly coming into our own.
I focused on my family,
on being the best husband and father that I could be.
NICK: The time apart was necessary.
I was able to pursue different creative avenues
and experiment with life in a way I never could before.
I was feeling inspired...
and it led me to find something even greater
than I could ever imagine.
Love.
And this love has changed my life...
forever.
Everything's amazing.
My husband.
PHIL MCINTYRE: I think that the brothers
had to grow apart
to be able to get perspective.
They've realized if you can get through life
with a couple key relationships intact,
they now have the perspective just how special that is.
All I cared about was that they would be okay as brothers.
They made it through.
There are brother bands that don't speak...
that hate each other.
Not my sons.
And it wasn't about the money,
wasn't about the music,
wasn't about the fame.
It was, "Hey, brothers...
you wanna do something awesome again together?"
[crowd cheering]
♪♪
♪ We go together ♪
♪ Better than birds of a feather, you and me ♪
♪ We change the weather, yeah ♪
♪ I'm feeling heat in December ♪
Can you believe this?
Jonas Brothers back together out of nowhere,
releasing "Sucker," which I love.
But they're actually the first family band
to ever have a debut number one song on the Hot 100.
-They're all grown up now. -I know.
I put my head on the pillow at night
happy that the Jonas Brothers are back together.
♪ I'm a sucker for you ♪
I am their number one fan.
I know every lyric of every song.
I can recite every story of how they were made.
I love their music so much.
♪ I'm a sucker for all the subliminal things ♪
♪ No one knows 'bout you ♪
♪ 'Bout you, 'bout you, 'bout you ♪
♪ And you're making the typical me break my typical rules ♪
♪ It's true ♪
♪ I'm a sucker for you ♪
Thank you.
I chipped my tooth during a show.
I had the mic, and I was, like--
Right here. I chipped my tooth.
Can you see it? Yeah.
♪ We weren't meant to get out of Jersey ♪
♪ Two stops past the parkway and that old cemetery ♪
♪ We weren't born to grow in early ♪
♪ But it rained hard in the Garden State, and we shot up like weeds ♪
♪ Walking out of the red brick house, yeah ♪
♪ I could hear it screaming ♪
♪ Please don't leave ♪
♪ Like, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ Don't you want to talk about it before you walk away? ♪
♪ Like, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ When there's still so much left to say ♪
♪ Hollywood's a lot like the Bible ♪
♪ Both take faith, and if you want grace then you gotta believe ♪
♪ Holding on was always a battle ♪
♪ Even the Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost ♪
♪ Don't always agree ♪
♪ There was always room for one of us, but not enough for three ♪
♪ So, who's it gonna be? ♪
♪ Saying, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ Don't you want to talk about it before you walk away? ♪
♪ Like, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ When there's still so much left to say to each other ♪
♪ If we're broken, rather be honest ♪
♪ Than unspoken words that can hurt, but ♪
♪ What could be worse ♪
♪ Than that final curtain comin' down? ♪
♪ Like, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ Don't you want to talk about it before you walk away? ♪
♪ Like, hey, where you going? ♪
♪ When there's still so much left ♪
♪ There's still so much left ♪
♪ Still so much left to say ♪
♪ I am what I am, I know what I'm not ♪
♪ I'm not the type of guy that doesn't know how good he's got it ♪
♪ And I won't back down, won't come around ♪
♪ Saying that I changed 'cause that's not how it's going down ♪
-♪ And I know ♪ -♪ I know ♪
♪ I go ♪