ROCK

Neal Schon Feuding With Journey Bandmates Over Trump Visit

8/7/2017 by Gil Kaufman

Neal Schon of Journey
Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Neal Schon of Journey speaks during the 32nd Annual Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony at Barclays Center on April 7, 2017 in New York City.

Founding Journey guitarist Neal Schon is feuding with his bandmates over a subject that has divided plenty of households this year. Schon has been tweeting up a storm about his anger over a White House visit and meeting with Pres. Trump last week by band members singer Arnel Pineda, keyboardist Jonathan Cain and bassist Ross Valory.

Schon came out swinging on Thursday (Aug. 3) when he posted a strongly worded note on Facebook about the visit, which he said he had no idea about before it happened. "I will remain strong and consistent with the belief we've always shared and agreed upon - Journey should never be used and exploited by anyone , especially band members for politics or any one religion," he wrote. "I've been here since 1972 and this has always been our belief. This was with intent to exploit the brand and use the name. Journey was not there - 3 individual members were Cain Valory and Pineda whom I found ... Tours are done all the time but it could have been privately."

The only remaining original member of the "Don't Stop Believin'" group who's been in the band since its foundation in 1973 and appeared on all their albums said the trio who met with the president "know my position and the way we've always been until now." Referring to former lead singer Steve Perry, himself and the rest of the band, Schon said the Journey credo has always been that the music the band creates is for "Everyone," adding that he had no prior knowledge of the meeting from his band mates or management. "This clearly shows no respect or Unity... just Divide."

Schon denied that he's leaving the group in a tweet on Monday morning (Aug. 7) -- though he hinted that tensions have been running high for "close to 2 years" -- a continuation of a Twitter conversation with fans in which he vented some of his frustrations. A spokesperson for the band, who came together to celebrate their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this year, could not be reached for comment at press time.

 

Keyboardist Cain is married to Trump's spiritual advisor, Pastor Paula White, one of the religious leaders who participated in Trump's January inauguration. The two men have reportedly been at odds over Cain's increasingly religious bent, but Schon seemed more annoyed as well with singer Pineda, who joined the band in 2007 -- leading to a series of tweets in which Schon has waxed nostalgic about reuniting with longtime Journey singer Perry. 

Schon, who did appear at points during his tweetstorm to suggest that he might be reforming a new version of hte band, stressed in another tweet that the rift is not about Trump or politics, telling one skeptical fan that the group had been invited to the White House several times, including during the Obama administration.

THE BILLBOARD BIZ
SUBSCRIBER EXPERIENCE

The Biz premium subscriber content has moved to Billboard.com/business.


To simplify subscriber access, we have temporarily disabled the password requirement.