Joe Jonas is giving fans the whole truth, and nothing but it.
In a revealing piece that Joe gave to Vulture, the former Jonas Brothers member opened up about everything from the band’s recent breakup, to losing his virginity, to the first time he smoked pot.
JoBro fans are bound to learn a lot from this uncensored essay, which is why MTV News has rounded up seven new facts about Joe from his candid tell-all.
Not-So-Sudden Breakup
Fans may have been left shocked and heartbroken over the Jonas Brothers split, but Joe explained that the trouble was “going on for a lot longer than people thought.” Joe admits that he and his brothers, Kevin and Nick, weren’t “jelling” anymore in the studio and on video sets. They couldn’t agree on how they were going to release their new music, which ultimately resulted in a band-breaking argument.
“The fight got loud. I was screaming. When Nick presented the idea of closing a chapter and moving on, I freaked out,” Joe said. “I didn’t know whether to pick up and leave or just punch something, because I was furious. I’d spent so long working with my brothers on this band, and in my mind, it felt like we were just giving up. It didn’t make sense to me.
“But once I started peeling back the layers, I understood. There were a lot of dysfunctional things going on.”
Disney Pressure
In 2006, the Jonas Brothers released their debut album, but their level of fame changed once they were embraced by the Disney family. They went on to star in their own television series, “Jonas” and the “Camp Rock” Disney channel specials, but the fame came with a downside. The group was forced to maintain a clean-cut image and saw the repercussions of what would happen if they slipped through the cracks.
“We were working with Disney in 2007 when the Vanessa Hudgens nude-photo scandal happened. We heard that she had to be in the Disney offices for a whole day because they were trying to figure out how to keep her on lockdown,” Joe said. “We’d hear execs talking about it, and they would tell us that they were so proud of us for not making the same mistakes, which made us feel like we couldn’t ever mess up. We didn’t want to disappoint anyone — our parents, our fans, our employers — so we put incredible pressure on ourselves, the kind of pressure that no teenager should be under.”
Coming Clean About Demi
While it was short-lived, Joe and Demi Lovato dated for about a month back in 2010. Joe revealed that while dating Demi, which was a relationship that “meant a lot to fans,” he felt the need to “take care of her” as she was struggling with personal issues.
“I felt like I needed to take care of her, but at the same time I was living a lie, because I wasn’t happy but felt like I had to stay in it for her, because she needed help. I couldn’t express any of that, of course, because I had a brand to protect,” Joe said.
“Things kept building up, and Demi ended up punching a girl in the face on a plane, because she thought the girl was blaming her for something. Everybody gasped, and the girl just started bleeding. That’s when her team and her family told her, ‘You need to go into rehab.’ I remember being in South America, and fans immediately jumped to the conclusion that we kicked her off the 2010 tour, and they just hated on us for it.”
Smoking With Miley And Demi
For a period of time Miley Cyrus, Demi and the Jonas Brothers were the most popular faces of the Disney channel, so it’s no surprise they would get together outside of work. It’s what they were doing that may come as a surprise to some fans.
“The first time I smoked weed was with Demi and Miley. I must have been 17 or 18. They kept saying, ‘Try it! Try it!’ so I gave it a shot, and it was all right. I don’t even smoke weed that often anymore,” Joe said. “I was caught drinking when I was 16 or 17, and I thought the world was going to collapse.
But I was in another country, and it was legal there. My 21st birthday, I fell down a flight of stairs. I was unconscious that time, and my whole team was scared to death that somebody was going to get a picture. Now I appreciate wine or a vodka-soda at the end of the day every once in a while.”
On Those Purity Rings
A major talking point around the Jonas Brothers during their teenage years revolved around their purity rings, which displayed that they’d wait until marriage to have sex. Joe revealed they were a topic they eventually “couldn’t escape,” and in some ways, they hurt the creative direction of the group.
“Because of our age, because of Disney, because of those rings, there were so many things throughout our career that we had to sugarcoat,” Joe said. “If a lyric was slightly sexual, someone at the record company would tell us we had to change it. It could be the most innocent reference, like “I’m alone in a room with you,” and it would have to go. It felt like we couldn’t be creative, so we stopped listening to them and just started handing shit in.”
Eventually the rings came off and Joe lost his virginity at the age of 20, but admits that he “waited for the right person,” which may have been “Twilight” star Ashley Greene, who he dated at that age and said in the essay that she was his first serious relationship.
Joe Has Dated Fans
While Joe admits that he’s in a relationship with someone he really cares about, he does reveal that he “did date a lot,” sneaking out to hook up with a girl in her car and having a steamy encounter with a fan.
“I can’t say that I’ve never put a foot in that world; there were times when I definitely took advantage of the opportunities I had. I remember I invited a fan to a movie, and we just made out the entire time,” Joe said. “I don’t even remember what the movie was about. I must have been 16 or so.
Afterward, I was kind of freaking out, because I thought she’d go public and the whole world would find out. Luckily, she never did, I think because she assumed there’d be another meet-up down the road.”
He’s Not the Next Justin Timberlake
When the Jonas Brothers were taking a break in 2011, Joe decide to venture out on his own, but it resulted in one of his “biggest career disappointments.” Joe had recorded songs that had a Hall & Oates type of vibe, but when they were presented to Hollywood Records, they weren’t onboard with the direction of the sound. Joe then went on to record his album Fastlife, which sold 18,000 copies in its first week.
“I think there were a lot of cooks in the kitchen, and I think it was rushed, and I couldn’t speak up because I was scared to,” Joe said. “They wanted me to be this Justin Timberlake clone. Even one of the heads of Hollywood Records said, “He’s the new Justin Timberlake!”
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