Kevin & Frankie Jonas Dish on Everything to Expect on ‘Claim to Fame’ Season 2 & More

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Kevin Jonas and Frankie Jonas are coming back for an even bigger season of Claim to Fame. The new season premieres Monday (June 26) on ABC at 8 p.m. ET, and the next day on Hulu and streaming services that offer ABC.

The two co-hosts have a new slew of celebrity relatives ready to compete at a chance for fame and fortune all while trying to conceal the identity of their famous family members. The brothers took the lessons they learned from the first season when putting together season two. Some aspects of the first season will remain the same, but they’ve upped the ante this season with new challenges, clues and surprises for contestants and the audience.

“I think we learned so much, whether it be from the challenges [or] from the contestants,” Frankie tells Billboard. “I mean, we got some really crazy big names this season, and I think a lot of that has to do with how well the first season was received.”

One of the biggest changes viewers can expect this season? No one will know the identities of the contestants.

“When you’re watching the show, the play-along is going to be much bigger this time around, which is awesome,” Kevin shares. “Just like what me and Franklin deal with every single day on set. We’re trying to figure it out, too, so it’s really fun.”

The cast for season two will include 12 new contestants, including Carly, JR, Gabriel, Chris, Hugo, Karsyn, Cole, Jane, Monay, Olivia, Shane and Travis. Each player will have to rely on strategy and wits to determine who the other contestants’ famous relatives could be while keeping their own on lockdown.

Get your magnifying glasses and notebooks ready, as the clue board will make an appearance assisting the players and the audience in uncovering everyone’s identities.

Catch season two of Claim to Fame on June 26 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, or the next day on Hulu.

Kevin and Frankie also spoke with Billboard on how it is working together, the upcoming Jonas Brothers tour and Frankie’s upcoming EP.

Looking back on season one, who do you think was the most surprising reveal?

Kevin: I’ll say L.C. [Loreal Chanel Palmer, sister of Keke Palmer]. I really didn’t see who she was related to ’til really close to the end.

Frankie: Yeah, I mean with L.C., I think it was right around the costume show that we did that I was like, ‘All right, I think I have an idea [of] who they’re related to.’ But then the next week, I got a curveball. They really knew how to play the game, and there’s a reason they won and it showed.

What is the best part of working together as co-hosts?

Kevin: We obviously live very independent lives outside of this show that we do together. Franklin is very busy doing his music career now, which is incredible, and I’m in this other band. But we’re just so happy that we finally get to spend some time together in this component. We’re 13 years apart, so I started living life a little sooner and out of the house when he was younger. It was nice for both of us to be able to be refocus our energy and actually spend this quality time together — and it never feels like work when you’re working with Franklin.

Frankie: That’s really sweet, Kevin — and same. We just have a lot of fun on set and our relationship as brothers has really gotten so close because of this show. Out of all the family members, I’ve really only worked with Kevin, which is crazy. Whether it’s Camp Rock 2 or our dynamic, it’s really fitted well for this sort of work together — and I just have so much fun. I’m so grateful that I got to do it with Kevin because [there’s] no one else on the planet I would want to do the show with.

Do you find yourself rooting for specific contestants and getting a sibling rivalry going on?

Kevin: There’s definitely some rivalry, I’ll say that. There’s definitely some you’re pulling in, rooting for side bets going on. But on this season, everyone was surprising. I think they watched the first season and really [had] a good understanding of how to play the game a little bit better than the first time around because it was brand new. They know what to expect a little bit, but then we definitely throw them some curveballs. I won’t give anything away, but it’s worth the watch. The contestants are super fun and really intense. They should be the stars in their family with as much drama as they brought.

Kevin, you have the upcoming tour. How do you feel about it and revisiting old songs?

Kevin: It’s really exciting! Five albums in one night. It is the biggest thing we’ve ever tried to put together. I’m not trying to hype it up. It really is a lot. It’s three hours and 42 minutes of music that we’ve got to figure out how to play in maybe two and a half to three — so we’re going to be on stage for a very long time. … But to see where we were back then and hear those songs now, sung when I’m 36 years old is pretty special.

How does it feel to rehearse with your brothers again?

Kevin: It all feels like one day now at this point, [but] this is going to be a little different. The music rehearsals are fun because this is where we really get to build out what this is going to be. We have not had the same set list in the last three years, which is really great. It’s really opened up our ability to play almost everything in our catalog, but at the same time be able to mix and match where we want to put things. So we’ve had some time to play around with what ideas, what works where. To start the tour at Yankee Stadium is going to be insane (Aug. 12-13). And then we’re off to the races and there’s more to come as well. I won’t give everything away, but these are not the only dates on our calendar. My next year looks very full.

Frankie, you have an EP coming out. How do you feel about it?

Frankie: I’m excited! It’s been a long, long journey debating whether I was going to go down this path or not, but I’ve always loved music and I’ve always loved making music. It got to a point where the demos on my laptop of these crazy, wacky samples of Coldplay chords got too much for me not to do something with … I grew up watching some of the greats and to now be doing everything I can, every day to remember everything I’ve learned from watching them my whole life, it’s special — and it’s the family business.

What’s your creative process look like?

Frankie: It changes [from] song to song — I think most of the time I start with a sample. I started making music by making trap beats in college, and that continued into eventually me making my own style of music. But, now that I’ve been doing it for more and more, I now write a lot more composition, which is something newer to me.

Did you seek out any advice from your brothers?

Kevin: I’m going to be honest, Franklin really knew what he wanted to do. I think we understand what it feels like when an outside source comes and tries to give you advice unsolicited — and we do our best to not do that to each other. He was always going to do his own thing, so we were just waiting in the wings, waiting to see what he was going to accomplish [and] “Hoboken” is one of my favorite songs of the last year to actually come out.

Is there one song in particular you’re excited for people to hear?

Frankie: I’m excited for people to hear one song in particular because there’s a sample of Kevin as a kid — Kevin and Joe actually — from a children’s choir from a very long time ago that it makes its way onto the album and the EP.

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