The Jonas Brothers recently sat down with Kelly Clarkson on her show Songs & Stories to discuss some of their most meaningful songs, including When You Look Me in the Eyes. 

The song, which was released in 2008, holds a special place in the brothers’ hearts as it was co-written with their father, Kevin Jonas Sr.

Joe Jonas, 36, reminisced about recording the song in their native New Jersey. “I remember recording it in the basement in an office building in New Jersey and we had to be really quiet when we walked through the hallways,” he shared. 

Nick Jonas, 32, jokingly added that the studio “definitely wasn’t sanctioned.” Despite the unconventional recording location, the song has become one of the band’s favorites and a staple in their setlist.

Joe explained that When You Look Me in the Eyes reflects their experiences with young love, finding out who they are as people, and traveling the world. 

“It was really special to be able to create this song with our dad and years later still play it and all these fans come to our shows and sing it,” he said. 

“Honestly it’s one of the earlier songs we can think of that kind of reflects, I guess, young love, finding out who we are as people, traveling the world and this one we’ll play forever.”

The song’s significance was further highlighted during the Jonas Brothers’ recent tour, JONAS20: Greetings From Your Hometown Tour, where their family members joined them onstage to perform When You Look Me in the Eyes at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.