Jonas Brothers light up the BJC before bringing the party to downtown State College
The lights dimmed, and suddenly — in a blaze of smoke and fireworks — the Jonas Brothers were brought down to the stage on a lift, each wearing a brightly colored suit and with smiles across their faces.
“Happy Valley, welcome to the ‘Happiness Begins tour,’ ” Joe Jonas said.
After their last surprise visit at Champs Downtown in April, the Jonas Brothers returned to State College Wednesday to debut their new album at the BJC, as a part of their “Happiness Begins” tour. Joe Jonas, who’s becoming a familiar face in Happy Valley, was just in town last week when he dropped by Beaver Stadium for Penn State football’s home opener before his band’s stop in Hershey.
The brothers, Joe, Nick and Kevin, opened with one of their newer hits, “Rollercoaster.” They followed that followed up with a mix of older classic Jonas Brothers staples.
To complement all their high-energy hits, they eventually made their way to the back of the BJC to perform more casual, acoustic songs, creating a bonfire-like atmosphere.
Lit-up balloons floated in the air as fans held up their phone flashlights to resemble lighters.
Nostalgia overtook the BJC when the Jonas Brothers played fan-favorites such as “When You Look Me in the Eyes,” and “Gotta Find You,” from the Disney Channel original movie, “Camp Rock.”
Upon returning from a short break, Joe Jonas ran up to the edge of the stage and said, “This is the part of show where things get fun.”
He proceeded to lead an enthusiastic and high-spirited “We Are” chant.
“Penn State has a special place in our hearts, for many reasons,” Nick Jonas said. “One of those being, this is where our manager grew up.”
Jonas Brothers manager Phil McIntyre has had the band visit his hometown on multiple occasions, including to perform at the BJC in 2008 and to celebrate Joe Jonas’ 21st birthday with a private party at Champs two years later. Joe Jonas returned in 2017 with his band DNCE for a surprise concert at Champs Downtown during Thon, before returning with his brothers and each of their wives — shortly after the band reunited — in April to debut their single “Cool” in yet another surprise concert.
The Jonas Brothers finished out the night at the BJC with a new popular song from their new album “Sucker,” and added in some all-time fan-favorites such as “Lovebug” and “Year 3000.”
The brothers were active on stage throughout the concert, even jumping through fire to perform one of their earliest hits, “Burnin’ Up.”
At the end of the show, each of the brothers held up a shot glass, “A toast; to the happiest place in the world,” Nick Jonas said.
After the show ended, many fans stuck around, singing along to all the songs they heard and trying to follow the band’s tour bus home.
Three friends huddled near the exit, still taking in all that happened at this concert they had been waiting to go to for months.
“It was really fun,” Megan Murow said. “We all danced and sang along; it was a good throwback to our childhood.”
Julia Buckley said seeing the Jonas Brothers live has been a dream of hers since she was 10 years old.
“It was awesome,” she said. “I loved it.”
Added Zoe Martin: “The Jonas Brothers put on a great show. They really made it a party.”
Even after the explosion of fireworks and confetti during the grand finale, the band was not done quite yet with partying in State College. Two of the brothers, Joe and Nick Jonas, along with opening act Jordan McGraw, ventured back down to their favorite spot —Champs Downtown — for an impromptu performance and after-party for eager fans who had been lined up all day for a chance to party wit the musicians.
“We love you, Penn State. We can’t wait to come back,” Joe Jonas said.
This story was originally published September 5, 2019 at 2:44 PM.