Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas perform onstage during Jonas Brothers “Five Albums, One Night” Tour – New York at Yankee Stadium on August 13, 2023 in New York City.
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Jonas Brothers Embark on Their Own Eras Tour at Massive Yankee Stadium Shows
No one could have predicted what it was like sitting in the middle of the Jonas Brothers’ second sold out night at Yankee Stadium. The trio of Nick, Joe and Kevin rose to stardom in the Aughts as Disney’s handsome, Christian answer to Hanson, but not even Disney could prepare for the grip the brothers had on teen culture between 2007 and 2010. They were all excellent songwriters who needed little aid in the studio, plus tabloid-baiting romantic menaces amongst their fellow teen superstar peers, Disney and otherwise.
Nearly two decades after they officially turned their brotherhood into a band, the JoBros are somehow bigger than ever, not only successfully pulling off a comeback in 2019 (following a contentious break-up six years earlier, some solo flops, and then some solo hits) but also continued interest and fandom growth after the novelty of them finally being back wore off.
To celebrate, the band is embarking on The Tour, named to go along with the simplicity of their 2023 LP The Album. It’s their version of Eras Tour, with the boys and their massive E-Street-like band tackling over 60 songs from five of their six albums (they don’t include 2006 debut It’s About Time, their sole album on Columbia before Disney’s Hollywood Records scooped them up).
It’s an ambitious feat from any group, let alone from a boy band that spent several years trying to shed their family-friendly teen pop images while trying to find their identities outside the band. But their proud reclamation of their pasts comes with a full circle identity loop, as they further embrace their roles as married dads, deeply in love with their cool wives, who have often called themselves the Jonas Sisters. They balance all of this in the structure of their set list, which goes in chronological order of the albums, with The Album separating each era.
After a pair of post-reunion songs, including doo-wop-y 2020 single “What a Man Gotta Do,” the Bros launched into there 2007 self-titled. It was the album that kicked everything off for the band, thanks to the success of “S.O.S.” and the timing of the Disney teen renaissance of that year. Yankee Stadium was buzzing in time with the flashing lights attached to fans’ wrists, singing along to every word in the way that all nostalgic albums get seared into the folds of one’s brain.
During moments when the trio would speak directly to the audience, Nick Jonas would take the time to rightfully point out that these songs were written when they were teenagers, an underrated element of their success and talent. He spent a lot of time during the sets for the first three albums reminding everyone of that fact, in a way that was less braggy and more a testament to what he and his family built.
As “Year 3000” called a close to Jonas Brothers, the group immediately tour into a few more songs from The Album. It was a little jarring to step back into the present after getting to live in their 2007 world again for a bit. It may have been better, in hindsight, to give The Album its own set at the end or more combined with Happiness Begins.
A Little Bit Longer was next up, and the set felt like as much of a blockbuster as the album itself was. It was the band’s first Number One album and features some of their finest songs, some of which were written solely by a 15-year-old Nick. They kicked it off with the title track, a ballad about Nick being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. But Joe was the star of this set, showing off his grown and sexy growl on tracks like “BB Good,” “Lovebug” and “Burnin’ Up,” which also featured a surprise appearance from their former security guard-turned-guest rapper Big Rob.
After a brief intermission, the stadium was surprised with another special guest: Jimmy Fallon. The Tonight Show host sported a boom box and dark shades, hyping up the audience and inviting them to join him for a quick karaoke session to the Killers’ “Mr. Brightside.” It was confusing as it was delightful. He noted his long friendship with the Jonas Brothers before introducing them for the second half of their show. Lines, Vines and Trying Times was up after a few more new cuts. Its an that was once a bit of a dark spot in their career that signaled the beginning of an imminent end at that time: both fans and critics weren’t sold on it and while it still debuted at Number One on the album charts, it wasn’t nearly as much of a phenomenon as their previous two.
But in the glow of Yankee Stadium, the Brothers’ last album before they broke up got some time to shine. Songs like “Fly With Me,” “Paranoid” and “Black Keys” felt pretty mesmerizing, making it seem like both the band and their fans should spend some more time revisiting the black sheep of their musical family.
Like always, the brothers spent some time showcasing their solo music as well. Nick performed “Jealous” on his own before Joe sang his band DNCE’s hit “Cake By the Ocean.” Unlike their past shows in recent years, we didn’t get the joy of hearing Joe and Nick exchange vocal duties on each other’s non-trio hits. This may have been for practical reasons, letting the singers get a bit of a break in the midst of the massive show. They joined forces again on The Album standout “Walls,” where they were then joined by Jon Bellion and Kirk Franklin.
Happiness Begins, the Brothers’ 2019 reunion album, closed out the night. The audience barely tampered down for the fourth full-album set of the long evening, proving they probably made as many new fans in the last four years as they had brought back the ones who had been with them since George W. Bush was in office. In true wife guy fashion, the band dedicated the songs to their wives, their muses. And at one point, the audience began chanting for Kevin, to which the eldest brother and often quiet, guitar-playing presence got visibly teary-eyed.
The group’s second-to-last song of the night was “Sucker,” the track that kickstarted their second act and has become one of their biggest hits to date. As it proved upon its release, which came a full 13 years after they began releasing music, the Jonas Brothers are always going to be better together.