The Jonas Brothers

Hot Teen Group The Jonas Brothers Talk About Their Best-Selling Album On Hollywood Records By Jonathan Widran The Jonas Brothers Over the past year, the power-pop anthems of New Jersey born and bred siblings The Jonas Brothers - Kevin (age 19), Joe (17) and Nick (14) - have led them to become teen stars while defining the edgier side of Disney Radio. Now, with a new label (Hollywood Records) and a new album The Jonas Brothers, they’re hoping to build on the crossover success they had with “Year 3000,” the second single from their 2006 debut album It’s About Time. Without any mainstream radio airplay, the track reached #31 on the Billboard Hot 100. While It’s About Time peaked at #91 on the Billboard album chart, the Jonas Brothers’ success on a multitude of Disney-driven platforms was like a wild ride through the Magic Kingdom itself. They hit #1 on the Radio Disney chart not only with “Year 3000,” but also with “Mandy,” “Poor Unfortunate Souls” (which they covered for the Little Mermaid platinum-edition DVD), “Kids Of The Future” (a remake of “Kids in America” from the Meet The Robinsons soundtrack) and the new album’s debut single “Hold On.” They have also guest starred in an episode of The Disney Channel’s Hannah Montana called “Me and Mr. Jonas” and this fall will be starring in J.O.N.A.S, featuring the brothers as a group of government hired spies. The Jonas’ Brothers influence has expanded beyond Disney as well, with their popular video for “Mandy” running on MTV’s Total Request Live and some of their songs included in the Nickelodeon TV film Zoey 101: Spring Break Up. “There’s definitely a huge Top 40 plan in place for us by Hollywood Records with the new album,” says Kevin Jonas, “but we’ll never be one of those artists that goes away completely from Disney, which is our home and where we work. There would be no reason to cut off the hand that feeds us, because they have been incredibly supportive of our music as it’s evolved and of our desire to reach as many fans as possible. Through them, we’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazing video directors like Declan Whitebloom, but Disney has allowed us input into the creative direction of each one. On the first album, we got to write seven of the 11 songs, but on the new one, we wrote or co-wrote all twelve tracks!” In addition to those, The Jonas Brothers album - the first CD released with the new Walt Disney Company created CDVU+ (CD View Plus) technology - also includes bonus editions of their hits “Year 3000” and “Kids Of The Future.” The album was produced by John Fields, who adds the hard-driving but melodic rock expertise he’s gained by helming projects by contemporary bands like Rooney, Switchfoot and Lifehouse. Both onstage and on their albums, Kevin plays lead guitar; Joe plays guitars and keyboards, and Nick plays keyboards, guitars and drums and handles lead vocals. While Fields was ultimately in charge of the sessions, Kevin says it was important that the band be completely involved in the project from day one. “The album was very much a collaborative process,” he adds. “It’s definitely our baby, but John completely understood our vision and made sure we were there to help him guide the process every day of the recording process. We rented out a house in Studio City that we called ‘Rock House,’ living there for the whole month of February (2007) and working from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. in the attached facility called Underbelly Studios. It was a really awesome, one of a kind experience.” Nick adds, “When we did It’s About Time, it was the first record we had ever done, and we have so much more experience to draw from now, both from doing so many live shows to spending all that time in the studio. We’ve had two more years now to become more proficient on our instruments and do all the things we needed to become a better band. We were a much bigger part of everything that happened this time.” The Jonas Brothers insist that they take their songwriting craft and performances very seriously, but as Joe says, “we’re really here to have fun and write songs that are upbeat and energetic. We could write a haunting breakup song but we still want people to dance along.” Asked about any sibling rivalries and jealousies, and whether they get along in real life as well as they seem to onstage, he adds, “We’re just out there having a good time with what we’re doing, have a lot of respect for one another and don’t really fight a lot. We’re too busy living the dream and having a blast!” Addressing their fans and other talented teens out there who would like to follow in their footsteps, the trio is eager to pass on what they call the greatest piece of advice they were ever given: “Live like you’re at the bottom even if you’re at the top, and stay humble through everything, because you never know who you’ll meet on the way up who can later help you when you’re on the way down.”