The Jonas Brothers have been the hottest band in the world for the past few months, since their reunion earlier this year. They’re constantly on the radio, in the news and trending in someway. A lot of the times the headlines also include Penn State. They did a surprise show at Champs Downtown in State College during Barstool’s Best Bar contest, attend football games, tweet about Penn State, went to the Penn State Hershey Medical Center to visit a fan with cancer, and even bring their Happiness Begins Tour to Happy Valley. I think it’s safe to say that the Jo Bros love Penn State. Their ties to State College are deep. Phil McIntyre, the band’s manager, was born and raised in State College. He was the one to take Joe out to The Phyrst, a bar in State College owned by the same people as Champs, and then to the original Champs location for his 21st birthday. Joe also performed at THON 2017 and went to the then newly opened Champs Downtown for the first time.
Their latest return to Happy Valley was the past Wednesday, September 4th, bringing their “Happiness Begins” Tour to the Bryce Jordan Center. It was an event that many college students were looking forward to ever since it was announced months ago. Many waited outside the venue for hours to get in for the show, and others decided to wait hours to get into Champs Downtown, even though there was no official word that the band would be there. It was a night of current hits, nostalgia, and Penn State pride. The brothers played their current hits including Sucker, Cool and Only Human, as well as cult favorites like Lovebug, Year 3000, SOS, and Burnin’ Up. They even took requests from the crowd as they always do, played Gotta Find You from Camp Rock and a medley of some of their throwback hits. Some of the songs were from so far back in my memory that I forgot that I knew all the words to them and it brought back ALL the feels. They also paid tribute to their time apart with Nick Jonas and DNCE songs.
Their openers were also amazing, Jordan McGraw and Bebe Rexha, created a fired up crowd for the band to come out. We also found out that Jordan McGraw is Dr. Phil’s son and that Bebe Rexha looks AMAZING for 30. She also joked about dropping out of college and most of the students in the crowd completely understood that feeling because we’ve all been there before.
I ended up leaving sweaty from dancing the whole time and in tears from so many memories, emotions and overall happiness. I think it is safe to say that Happiness Begins in Happy Valley was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Thank you to the Jonas Brothers for making my hometown your go-to destination, you’re the best.
Images from https://www.popsugar.com/celebrity/Jonas-Brothers-Performing-Penn-State-… and https://www.collegian.psu.edu/news/campus/article_a3208038-588b-11e9-93d…