Jonas Brothers Reflect on Dad Losing His Job as a Pastor Because the Band Wasn’t Only Singing Christian Music (Exclusive)

It’s been 20 years since the Jonas Brothers started their journey as a musical act, but things nearly unraveled for the trio before they’d tasted success.

Nick, Joe, and Kevin Jonas released their debut album, It’s About Time, in 2006 and the collection’s unremarkable performance led to them getting dropped by their first record label. The brothers’ parents’ financial investment in their talent meant they had a limited time to make it as a band.

“I definitely felt a lot of pressure,” Nick, 33, exclusively tells PEOPLE of the early days of their career at PEOPLE’s Best of 2025 cover shoot in October. “Our lives had changed so much. Our father also lost his job effectively because we weren’t making solely Christian music and he was a pastor. So our shift to singing about love and romance and heartbreak caused that to happen. ”

Kevin Jonas Sr. and Denise Jonas decided to focus their energy on their sons’ success and the brothers were determined to keep going.

“Financially we were in a really vulnerable position and we’d spent all this money that we kind of didn’t have,” Nick continues. “…It was bad. We either had to succeed or we had to shift and figure our stuff out.”

The Jonas family in turn relocated from New Jersey to Los Angeles in search of a new record label. It didn’t take long before the brothers signed with Hollywood Records and crafted their breakthrough second album in 2007, Jonas Brothers. Hit songs like “S.O.S.” and “When You Look Me In The Eyes” kicked off years of platinum albums and sold out world tours. The guys explain that the earlier hardships informed much of their songwriting at the time.

“The fact that these songs were written in those desperate moments and then we kind of found our voice, I think, was really special,” Kevin says, with Nick adding, “There’s some really big themes in here about tough times and even just a sense, an urgency, in the lyrics and in the music that I’m really proud of.”

Cut to 2025 and Jonas Brothers are busier than ever. August saw the release of their seventh album, Greetings From Your Hometown, and they’re still traveling the country on another massive tour. The trio are now reflecting on how far they’ve come as a band and what they’d say to their younger selves.

“Relax a little bit,” Joe says. “Hey, you’re still going to be doing this in a good amount of time, so you’re good…. Just stop, slow down and enjoy it.”

“When you’re 18, you think you know everything and then you’re 36 and you still don’t know everything, so you just have to go easy on yourself,” he adds. “Know that you might have figured out a few things or gotten better with certain things, but you’re still growing as a person and that’s what it’s about.”