Journey have cancelled their UK and Ireland tour (Picture: Brian Ach/Getty Images for Journey)
80s rock band Journey – responsible for huge hit Don’t Stop Believin’ – have cancelled their UK and Ireland tour, leaving fans with lots of unanswered questions.
The 50th Anniversary Freedom Tour was all set to kick off in Cardiff on October 30, but ticket-holders are reported to have received an email this morning with news of the cancellation.
After Wales, the band were scheduled to stop off in Nottingham, Glasgow, Belfast, Dublin, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Birmingham and Newcastle, ending in London’s O2 on November 17.
This would have been the first time in a decade the band – made up of founding member Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain, Jason Derlatka, Deen Castronovo, Todd Jensen, and Arnel Pineda – have played in the UK and Ireland.
So it’s been a long wait for fans, who got the news in their inbox via a statement which, according to multiple outlets, simply read: ‘Due to circumstances beyond the band’s control, Journey’s UK and Ireland tour is unfortunately cancelled. Refunds will be made from your point of purchase.’
Fans have taken to X with their disappointment, as @CryptidConn wrote: ‘I’ve been a fan practically my whole 31 years of life. Been waiting 10+ years for them to tour the UK again.
‘Finally they do. I got close to stage tickets for their final UK tour date on their 50th Anniversary and then it gets cancelled with ZERO explanation!? I’m bloody gutted.’
Jonathan Cain and Neal Schon are currently caught up in a legal battle (Picture: Getty)
The band formed in 1973 but rocketed to fame in the 80s on the release of Don’t Stop Believin’ (Picture: Chris Walter/WireImage)
‘I’m gutted about this :(‘ added user Nic, while @ivanb1964 said: ‘Had tickets to see them at the O2 with flights. NO EXPLANATION???? Don’t believe they care about their fans on this side of the pond.’
Mitch R added: ”I’m a ticket holder and all I got was an email saying cancelled. No explanation. Not good enough.’
This comes after Bloomberg, broke the news last week that Cain was suing Schon over claims the founding member exceeded the $1,500 (£1,177) per-night hotel fee cap, maxed out a $1million limited American Express card, chartered private jets, hired close friends as security and blocked debt repayment efforts during their 50th anniversary tour.
The court filing to Delaware’s Chancery Court was made public on July 29 and concerns Freedom 2020 Inc., the company founded in 2021 and reportedly equally headed by Cain and Schon to oversee the band’s touring-related asset.
The filing describes the dispute as ‘a very much public battle between petitioner and respondent and is impacting the band’s reputation throughout the music industry.’
It added that the ‘onstage performance’ aspect was safe from the impact and ‘has not suffered’.
The ‘far-reaching’ deadlock started to affect day-to-day operations, however, as it described one director will ‘terminate an employee or crew member’ only for the other to rehire them ‘hours or days later’.
The alleged ‘strains on cash flow’ could ‘pose a severe threat of harm to the company and to Journey’s storied history of musical greatness’, the lawsuit added.
The legendary music group formed in 1973 saw Cain, 74, join in 1980 just a year before the release of their greatest hit, Don’t Stop Believin’.
The band was eventually inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017.
Jonathan’s pro-Donald Trump allegiances have also caused issues between the pair, since he is married to the former President’s spiritual advisor Paula White-Cain.
Jonathan Cain talked to Metro.co.uk about their upcoming UK tour (Picture: Denise Truscello/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)
Cain discussed his pro-Trump politics, which have caused friction with the band over the years (Picture: Paras Griffin/Getty Images)
He performed Don’t Stop Believin’ to Trump at Mar-a-Lago and promptly received a cease-and-desist letter from Neal labelling the act ‘deleterious to the Journey brand as it polarises the band’s fans and outreach’.
Jonathan opened up about his pro-Trump politics in an interview with Metro.co.uk earlier this year.
When asked if he saw the former US president and convicted felon was an ‘innocent man’ he said: ‘Put it this way, there might have been some misdemeanours. Crimes, as they’re calling it. But yes, I do.’
Reflecting on Trump’s decision to bid for President in the upcoming US election, Jonathan added: ‘I think he’s a fighter. He has a chance. They can’t stop him legally. He can run for president from jail. It will make him a legend.’
‘It’s been a long time for Europe,’ Cain also said, explaining how they exploded in the UK in 1981 but didn’t get over here for concerts much.
The keyboardist said former lead singer Steve Perry was always worried ‘something would happen’ at a concert if they toured Europe back in the 80s.
‘There was some unrest in Europe, and especially over in Ireland. And I think that was what kept Steve Perry away was all the bombing and, you know, the unrest,’ he said.
‘He was always worried about something happening in one of our shows. I didn’t get that because we’re not political. We just come and play our hits, you know.
‘Don’t Stop Believin’, the one song that made it in the UK, was an escape route. That’s all we needed to do.’
Cain added: ‘But in the end I think we missed an opportunity that we could have showed up. There would have been no trouble, I don’t think at all. But he had to approve it. And he just said it wasn’t safe.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Journey’s representative for comment.
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