Entertainment

The Jonas Brothers have been in my life for 11 years, and not because I am a super fan, but because of my daughter. We attended their Happiness Begins Tour this summer, and it gave me proud Mom moments. But not for the reasons you may think. These guys are truly talented, enamored with their fan base, and bring it every single show.

The Jonas Brothers

Ok, so this won’t be some Rolling Stone esque write up about The Jonas Brothers, let me just put that out there now. As I sat in the stands during The Happiness Begins Tour, I had moments where I was proud of this band, and where I realized happiness really did begin, not just for the band, but for myself and my daughters.

Rewind To The Year 2008

Rewind to eleven years ago, and Kayla (my first born) was 9 years old. She was the prime demographic for the Jonas Brothers, who we saw open for Hannah Montana. I was a 31 year old Mom, simply enjoying my daughter having the time of her life at her first concert. She walked out of that show talking more about the opening act than she did Hannah Montana, and thus became her love for The Jonas Brothers.

First time we saw them, man they have come a LONG way.

She was a full fledged fan, watched every TV special, had all of the CD’s, joined the fan club, had the merchandise, you name it, she had it. And she never missed a tour.

I hope she doesn’t read this, because she may kill me for the photo below. But that was the epitome of my 10 year old, all Jonas Brothers, all the time.

Burnin Up Tour, green screen photos were all the rage in 2009.

For me, it was just teen entertainment, but these guys were actually good. We played Burnin’ Up at my wedding, and it wasn’t just for her, the whole dance floor lit up. Every generation has a band that grabs a certain demographic and in 2008/2009 it was the Jonas Brothers. If you don’t believe me, watch their documentary, it went from zero to sixty and these kids had no clue what to do when they got to sixty. They rode the wave of fame, until it crashed down around them.

The Band Broke Up

Sadly for fans in 2013, the band broke up. Yup, it happened, a full-fledged Jo-Bro Breakup and my kid was crushed. Again, if you want to know all the details watch the documentary, Chasing Happiness, it’s really good. The band breaking up was the best thing that could have happened to them. I know Joe and Kevin (it’s ok if we are on a first name basis, right) were crushed, but Nick was ready to move to a solo career, and honestly it was best for all three of them at the time.

Nick Jonas explained: “There was definitely a strain emotionally that was being put on all of us. We had such a specific way of doing things for so long and I think as we got older and tried to progress artistically, we got stuck in those old ways so our music suffered and our general vibe with each other and ability to communicate in a healthy way no longer existed.”

Solo Careers

So the band breaks up in 2013, and everyone does their own thing. Kevin was married, had kids and lived a pretty quiet life in New Jersey. Nick went solo, hit Broadway and did all the musical things he could. Joe, well he had fun, he also had a solo career with DNCE (who oddly enough, I saw perform on the Harmony of the Seas with Royal Caribbean for a media cruise), strange how things happen.

Such a fun show, couldn’t believe Joe Jonas was on the same cruise as me. Talk about weird!

This was a necessary time for them to find themselves, and for Nick and Joe to not only find themselves, but to find the love of their lives. No offense Nick, but we are full fledged Sophie T stans. I mean Joe Jonas marries Sansa Stark, in what world does that happen?

Tragedy Strikes

Not for the band, for my family. In December 2017, my family of four, became a family of three over-night. My girls and I decided we were going to get through this, no matter what came our way. We made it through a lot of firsts, from Christmas to Birthdays, to my oldest daughters graduation from high school, and my youngest turning double digits.  With each passing day, things seemed normal again, somehow. What helped us, music, and of course on that playlist was plenty of Jonas Brothers, their songs took us back to better times, fun memories. Music was an escape even if for a brief moment, of our reality. We haven’t moved on, but we have moved forward. Music does that, it’s powerful and brings you to a place you will always remember. I am thankful for the dance parties in my dining room with my daughters.

The JONAS BROTHERS ARE BACK

Fast forward to 2019, we see twitter buzzing,and guess what? The freaking Jonas Brothers are back together! Yup, this was happening and my oldest and I were geekin out. We heard their first single, “Sucker”, and knew this album would be good. It was Jonas all grown up. We were here for this. My youngest daughter really had no clue what the big deal was, but she loved the Jonas Brothers all the same because of her sister and I.

Then came the tour announcement. We (by we, I mean my daughter) had waited 10 long years to see them back on tour again, she saw them at Hersheypark Stadium, for the Burnin Up Tour, and that was the last time she saw them live.

This mom jumped on the fan page pre-sale code, and scrounged up all the extra money I could, (single mom with 3 jobs, not an easy task) to take the girls to see the Happiness Begins Tour in Hershey, PA.  I got the tickets, and now we had to wait until August, AND we had to keep the secret from my youngest, it would be her first concert.

Happiness Begins Tour

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting taking my girls to this show, but it was the best decision I made doing it. Kayla was in her element, she is a music major in college (audio engineering) and she was here for it, all of it. The Jonas Brothers were back, and she was hype. Maddie (she’s 10) was overwhelmed, the crowd was INSANE, all 20 somethings for the most part. They certainly have a fan base, and it’s not going anywhere.

Funny story, my friend Scott is a driver on this tour, and I hadn’t seen him in a year. So, he came up to see me and meet my daughters. He also brought them a gift, the set list from the show at The Garden in NYC. Just another little thing, all the pieces fall together sometimes.

The lights went down, and the show started. Rollercoaster is the opening song for this tour, and it’s absolutely perfect for it. As the song played, I realized the only two human beings I ever want to ride my roller coaster with is my girls. We have been through some stuff, and certainly have been up and down, and barely made it over. But here we are, and I would do it again, with them and for them.

I will always ride this roller coaster with you…

This tour is truly an homage to what these guys have been through, the songs, the stories, it all plays out over two hours on stage. The Jonas Brothers are the best they have ever been. Never did I think I would cry at a Jonas Brothers concert, but there is this part with Kevin, and dang parents, it is going to get you.  I am pretty raw about being a Mom these days, so it got me good.

My girls, taking it all in. No she didn’t wear a Camp shirt as a throwback to Camp Rock or anything.

The Hershey show was everything we could have hoped for, The band was all there (not just the brothers, but the whole original band).. “NO WAY, Chuck Taylor”…and then…BIG ROB! I don’t expect anyone that isn’t a Jonas Brothers fan to even understand, but my 20 year old daughters head almost exploded. We got ALL of them, they brought it to Hershey, and Hershey loved them for it.

OK, yeah let me frame this…BTW her concert t-shirt is hanging out of her pocket. Did you even go if you didn’t get the shirt?

While I sang, and danced with my daughters to every Jonas song we know, I felt overwhelmed with Joy and Happiness. Not because of The Jonas Brothers, don’t get me wrong we love them. But because here I was, almost two years after a terrible tragedy struck my family and I was enjoying life with my favorite people in the world. For that moment, I will always be thankful, and I will always remember it. It was worth every penny I had to save to make it happen, and I would do it again.

By the way, can someone tell Ticketmaster to stop reminding me that they (The Jonas Brothers) are going to be in Baltimore next month. I may make a rash decision. 

First day of school was 3 days after the show, and of course she’s rocking the concert tee.

Life will never be perfect, tragedies happen, bands break up, but you can pick yourself up, grow from the pain and allow Happiness to truly begin.