2021 Billboard Music Awards - Show© GettyImages

Kevin Jonas remembers being abandoned in the ‘middle of nowhere’ by an angry bus driver

“If you don’t pay me what you owe me soon, I’m gonna kick them out of the bus and leave them on the side of the highway”


JUNE 8, 2021 2:56 PM EDT

 Kevin Jonas  just shared a story from the early days of The Jonas Brothers, which doubles as an excerpt from the band’s upcoming memoir, Blood: A Memoir by the Jonas Brothers.

Fans of the band have been waiting for the release of their memoir-- which the brothers co-authored with Neil Strauss--for years now. Finally, the book is set to be published by Dey Street Books on November 9.

In preparation for the memoir’s release, the brothers shared some information about the book in a press release.

“This book is intense! I think I overshared,”  Joe Jonas  said.

“We all did. That’s what memoirs are about,” Kevin added. “Telling your truth.”

“But what if your truth is different than mine…?” Nick Jonas asked.

It’s safe to say they’re having fun with it.

Check out the excerpt, via PEOPLE, down below:

“In Idaho, we accepted a gig on Super Bowl Sunday at a bar that didn‘t allow anyone under twenty-one to enter. We had to wait in the bus until it was our turn to perform. Then we ran in, played a set that everyone hated because we were responsible for the sound being turned off on the game, and then immediately left the premises.

In case it’s not completely obvious, these shows did not pay well, when they paid at all. At first, the label supported us, but over the past couple of months, there had been a lot of behind-the-scenes instability there. And someone, somewhere, made a decision that they’d spent enough money on us. So, they stopped covering our costs while we toured, which wasn’t a good sign for the album that was supposed to be their number-one priority.

Undeterred, my father financed our travels himself. This was no small expense, especially since he was responsible for the food, hotel, and salary of the entire band. We worked just as hard as before, but now there was a cost to each new fan. Yet Dad never complained about it. As generous as ever, even as the expenses began to pile up, he continued to keep his promise to take care of Kiyoko and her daughter Maya.

As we pressed on, though, the cracks started to show. First, checks for the backing band and the support crew kept getting delayed as Dad scrambled to gather the funds. One time, as we were driving through the Midwest, the bus driver pulled over to the shoulder of the road. He called Dad and told him, ‘If you don‘t pay me what you owe me soon, I’m gonna kick them out of the bus and leave them on the side of the highway, and that will be goddamn that.’

And true to his word, he pulled over one day on the side of the highway, said the bus had broken down, and left us in the middle of nowhere for more than twelve hours until my dad paid him.”