On a sweltering afternoon in New York City, a group of seven girls are standing on the sidewalk outside Le Parker Meridien, desperately hoping to catch a glimpse of the Jonas Brothers. Not allowed inside the hotel, the girls have been camped out on the street since mid-morning and although Nick, Joe and Kevin have yet to make an appearance, their fans show no sign of giving up and going home.
"They're amazing and they're nice people and they're so talented," gushes 14-year-old Jamie Cohn, who came over from Long Island for this.
"They're amazing singers," agrees Amanda Alexander, 16. "In a way, their songs are very unique. It gives this extra thing and when they sing it's kinda like, I dunno - it just touches me. It's weird. It's a really weird feeling."
The girls have somehow discovered which hotel the Jonas Brothers are staying at while in New York to promote Camp Rock, the new Disney Channel movie that is being heralded as the heir to the High School Musical throne. At the Camp Rock premiere the day before, the streets outside the Ziegfeld Theater were pure pandemonium with hundreds of screaming girls all hoping for a glimpse at their favourite boy band.
The Jonas Brothers' brand of catchy, teen-friendly pop music has helped make them Disney's answer to Hanson, and with Disney promoting an entire Camp Rock weekend on both ABC and the Disney Channel, the brothers' legion of overzealous fans will be multiplying exponentially over the next few days – a disquieting thought, considering how far their current fans will go just to see them.
"Girls will run alongside the bus or in front of the bus, wherever we're going," says Nick Jonas, the baby of the trio at 15.
"The last time we were in New York City, they had barricades," adds older brother Joe, 18, who looks as though he is trying to single-handedly bring back the Miami Vice look, with his brightly-coloured T-shirt underneath a blazer and both sleeves pushed up to his elbows. "We were at our hotel and they had barricades and there were police officers there. Our fans did not care. They broke down the barricades and ran and tried to get us. All you can do is enjoy it and laugh."
"It's kind of scary at the same time, too, though," adds Nick.
Although dressed like the love child of Danny Zuko and the Fonz, Nick is clearly uncomfortable being the centre of attention. He is especially familiar with the unwanted spotlight, as his breakup with Disney's other cash cow, Miley Cyrus, was covered heavily by the press; even now, he dodges questions about the relationship by bringing the focus back to Camp Rock. It's obvious, however, that Nick's glad to have only a supporting role in the movie.
"For me, at first, it was a little tough," he says of his movie role. "I was a little nervous. I wanted to make sure to not mess up any of my lines or mess up in front of any of the cast or things like that."
Nick, Joe and Kevin play Nate, Shane and Jason, the members of Connect 3, a similarly popular band who are facing some problems. Shane's rebellious antics have caused the cancellation of their tour and, as punishment, he is sent to Camp Rock to teach other young, relentlessly perky teenagers how to be rock stars. Joe is quick to point out that while his character is portrayed as quite the ladies' man, he himself was not so suave back in his summer camp days.
"I had this crush at camp and I thought it would be a smooth move to ask her to go on a canoe ride. And while I was out in the canoe, it actually flipped over," he laughs. "I don't know how it happened; I think one of my friends was teasing me because I was with a girl and she got up and got scared, so she fell in and I fell in. She never talked to me again. But that's OK. Maybe this movie will remind her of that."
Kevin, the oldest member of the band at 20, insists that he and his Camp Rock alter ego aren’t exactly alike, either.
"What's funny is, I'm not typically exactly like my character," he says as he strokes his carefully-cultivated sideburns. "I like to have a good time but I'm not as much... I'll say 'out-there' as my character is. But we love it and I love playing my role."
The brothers also had the rare luxury of having their characters tailored to their specific strengths. Disney initially only approached Joe to play the lead role but, learning that the boys are a package deal, quickly created parts for the other band members in order to bring in the whole family. It's a win-win situation – the Jonas Brothers get to take advantage of the Disney marketing machine to help promote their music and Disney gets the band's built-in fan base to tune in to Camp Rock on June 20.
"I think the fact that we can combine the music and the acting together was our favourite part about [Camp Rock] because we didn't lose who we were but we were able to expand it," says Kevin. "I think this will be a great way for our fans and people who didn't know us to see us in a new light. I think it's exciting."
At 5 p.m., the group of girls have yet to see the Jonas Brothers in any light. They beg anyone with a Camp Rock ID tag for information on their idols' whereabouts, and even when details are not forthcoming, they all agree to hunker down and wait it out.
"We know that they're going to acknowledge us and they're great to their fans and we love them," says 17-year-old Bridget Cohn. "Just a wave from them will make standing out here this long totally worth it."
"They're amazing singers and not to mention gorgeous," adds Jamie. "So why wouldn't we wait?"
Canadian viewers can watch Camp Rock on Family.ca, starting June 23 at 8 p.m. ET. The Jonas Brothers play the Molson Amphitheatre in Toronto on July 4.
© (c) CanWest MediaWorks Publications Inc.
