For weeks, Nick Jonas has been hinting with a new project adding space themed emojis to his tweets and instagram posts. As fans became more curious about what this could possibly mean after getting his name trending on social media and bombarding him with questions, Jonas finally released his big news: new music.
On February 25th, Jonas announced he was dropping his new solo album, Spaceman, and surprised fans with the first single from the album of the same name.
Obviously having Nick releasing his own music, puts into the question: What’s happening with the Jonas Brothers? There were rumors about the band of brothers releasing their second album in 2020 after their revival, but with a change of plans, the youngest of the three took a slight detour and is doing things on his own until they can all create music together again.
With having a background in music, Allison Lanza, an E-Commerce Inventory Coordinator for Manhead Merch, was able to give insight as to what this means for the future of the band, “I think the Jonas Brothers audience has changed a lot in general. Prior to their comeback, when they were on Hollywood Records, the Jonas Brothers hardly got radio play. Since the comeback and being signed to Republic, they’ve been given a ton of radio play, more mature appearances and just in general attention from an older and more wide-ranged audience. I think people have moved past seeing the Jonas Brothers as a band for teenagers, and I think Nick’s solo music will translate well to the same audience, and depending on radio play, maybe even a wider audience.”
Jonas explained on an Instagram post about his new album, “So excited to be starting this journey with all of you. I made this album while doing what most of us have been doing during this past year, sitting at home getting used to the new normal and hoping for better days ahead. There are four central themes we will explore on this album… Distance. Indulgence. Euphoria. Commitment.”
Each theme for the album means something different for Jonas, especially when connected to the current state of our country. Jonas has been updating his fans on social media by giving snippets of his songs and describing the meaning of each:
Distance: “We’ve all experienced some form of loss, and likewise some form of grief over the past year. Distance became a universal woe for everyone and led us to ask ourselves – How can we shorten this newly required separation from one another?… These three songs all explore the theme DISTANCE and how it’s now become such a big part of all our lives.”
Indulgence: “Indulgence is often nourishing, natural, and human. It can provide us comfort, an escape, and sometimes even a hangover the next day ? but it’s never where the mission ends.
Indulgence is the fun part – the experience of trying new things, eating and drinking way too much, extravagance!… These songs explore the theme INDULGENCE and some of the different methods we used to push beyond. Whatever your indulgence has been… enjoy!”
Euphoria: “Euphoria is the rush you feel when you’re finally reconnected with those who matter to you most, when your soul finds its counterpoint in another. So when we ask ourselves how do we find closeness when we are separated from one another? The answer is and always has been love!”
Commitment: “Commitment is an unending dedication. Throughout life, we find ourselves searching for what sets our souls on fire & our truth and/or purpose. When we find that counterpoint in another person, we know that it’s unconstrained by time, distance and our earthly existence… [the songs] explore the theme COMMITMENT and the promise to always find our way back to love.”
Just shortly after announcing Spaceman, Saturday Night Live released the name of their next host and musical guest for their February 27th show: Nick Jonas.
With his album coming out in just a few short weeks from the show, it gives Jonas great publicity, and gives the audience a sneak peek into the album.
When asked why she thinks Nick was such a huge part of the episode, Lanza said, “I did watch [the episode]! I think Nick was the host and musical guest because he’s got a fun, infectious personality. If an artist is big enough and well known enough, most of the time they’ll get to be the host AND musical guest. I think it’s just a testament to how much of a household name he is at this point, and of course he was there to promote his upcoming solo record.”
During the show, Jonas sang his single “Spaceman” as well as an unreleased song which he later dropped the following week titled, “This is Heaven.”
Lots of songs have been coming out about the pandemic, but Jonas wrote his in a different matter. As much as “Spaceman” the song insinuates it is about the past year with lyrics like, “TV tells me what to think…/’Cause I feel like a spaceman…/ They say it’s a phase, it’ll change if we vote/ And I pray that it will, but I know that it won’t…/ And the numbers are high but we keep goin’ down/ ‘Cause we ain’t supposed to live with nobody around,” it gives off the impression that Jonas has been staying at home like the rest of us, as well as stressing about the most recent Presidential Election.
Obviously with most people staying home, Jonas will not be able to tour with this album as most artists do, he will most likely rely on social media and radio exposure to share his new music.
Nick Jonas’ new album, Spaceman came out Friday, March 12th on all streaming services.