Spaceman

Album: Spaceman (2021)
Charted: 124
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Nick Jonas wrote his third solo album, Spaceman, while locked down during the COVID-19 pandemic. During its title track, he reflects on his fear of isolation and feeling disconnected from the world.

    And I'm talking to you
    But it never feels like it comes through
    Out on my own, I'm a spaceman


    Jonas is mourning how communication during the Coranavirus era is done through a screen instead of human interaction. He compares his feelings of being separated in body from his fellow humans to an astronaut thousands of miles away in space.
  • The uptempo ballad is also an homage to Jonas' Bollywood actress wife, Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Because of professional commitments and the COVID travel restrictions, the couple could not be together during much of 2020, and the singer is lamenting their separation.

    Jonas explained to Apple Music's Zane Lowe that most of the songs on the album are love letters to his wife. "When I can't articulate the way I feel with my words with no music, I go to the studio," he explained. "And I'm grateful to have that because it makes her happy, and that's most important."
  • Jonas wrote the cosmic rhythmic song with Detroit singer-songwriter Maureen "Mozella" McDonald (Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball") and the track's producer, Greg Kurstin (Kelly Clarkson's "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)," Adele's "Hello," Sia's "Cheap Thrills").

    Jonas, Mozella and Kurstin together wrote four of the tracks on the Jonas Brothers 2019 album, Happiness Begins.
  • Jonas performed the song for the first time when he pulled double duty on the February 27, 2020 episode of Saturday Night Live. It marked his hosting debut and second solo musical guest appearance on the show.
  • Speaking on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Nick Jonas said he started writing the song in July 2020 when Priyanka Chopra was in Germany working on the fourth Matrix movie. "I was like, 'You know, I feel very disconnected from the world, first of all, and, now, my person,'" he said. "And I just dug in writing it."

    That writing session inspired a complete album. "Within a couple of days, I was like, 'Oh, this is a solo album,'" he divulged. "Then a few days later, I was like, 'This is a, kind of like, themed album!'"
  • The otherworldly video follows Jonas as he struggles with isolation on another planet. Jonas navigates the new world while yearning to return home and be reunited with Priyanka Chopra Jonas, who makes an appearance in hologram form.

    Director Anthony Mandler shot the clip in Barstow, California.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Yacht Rock Quiz

Yacht Rock QuizFact or Fiction

Christopher Cross with Deep Purple? Kenny Loggins in Caddyshack? A Fact or Fiction all about yacht rock and those who made it.

00s Music Quiz 1

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Michael Schenker

Michael SchenkerSongwriter Interviews

The Scorpions and UFO guitarist is also a very prolific songwriter - he explains how he writes with his various groups, and why he was so keen to get out of Germany and into England.

Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk: Rock vs. Televangelists

Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk: Rock vs. TelevangelistsSong Writing

When televangelists like Jimmy Swaggart took on rockers like Ozzy Osbourne and Metallica, the rockers retaliated. Bono could even be seen mocking the preachers.

Incongruent Opening Acts

Incongruent Opening ActsSong Writing

Here's what happens when an opening act is really out of place with the headliner, like when Beastie Boys opened for Madonna.

John Parr

John ParrSongwriter Interviews

John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.