Journey’s lead guitarist, Neal Schon, has responded to rumors regarding the potential departure of band members Arnel Pineda and Jonathan Cain. Schon addressed fans’ queries on Twitter and made it clear that he does not expect Pineda or Cain to leave the band after their current tour.

Tensions between Schon and his bandmates have been brewing for some time. In November of last year, Schon sued Cain for not informing him about Journey’s finances and setting up an AMEX card without his knowledge. The dispute arose from a company called Nomota, which the two had set up to handle the band’s finances. Schon argued that he should have access to the credit card statements, while Cain accused Schon of wanting to increase his spending limit due to his extravagant lifestyle. Cain also counter-sued Schon for spending over $1 million on the shared AMEX card.

Pineda’s conflict with Schon stemmed from comments made by Schon’s wife, Michaele, on Facebook. Michaele defended Journey’s reunion with founding member Gregg Rolie, noting that Cain and Pineda should know their places since Neal recruited them both. Michaele also suggested that both band members should learn some spirituality. In response, Pineda said that if the band was tired of him, they could fire him anytime and asserted that he needed no lectures on spirituality.

Despite the ongoing tension, Schon remains optimistic about the future of Journey. When a fan asked him about the possibility of Pineda and Cain leaving the band after the tour, Schon responded confidently, stating that it “won’t happen.” Another fan downplayed the significance of their potential departure, suggesting that they were “nobodies” and that their leaving would simply open up a “lot of positive space” for Schon and the band.

Schon seemed to agree with this sentiment, noting the drama brought by the two bandmates and calling them “narcissists and pathological liars.” It appears that Neal is more focused on distancing himself from the negative energy surrounding the situation. However, another fan came to the defense of Pineda and Cain, highlighting their contributions to Journey. The fan pointed out that around 90% of the current tour’s setlist was written or co-written by Cain and former member Steve Perry, and that Schon handpicked Pineda for his vocal similarity to Perry. Schon acknowledged the contributions of both Arnel and Jonathan, replying that their significance stemmed from their association with Journey.

A fan initially asked:

“Neal, So this is the question of the year: What is the way forward with Journey when AP [Arnel Pineda] & JC [Jonathan Cain] walk? Which myself and a lot of people fully expect to happen after the tour.”

To which Schon replied:

“Won’t happen.”

Then another fan said:

“Things always work out the way they’re supposed to. We don’t get to know how; we just have to trust. If they leave and take their toxins with them, it opens up a lot of positive space. Anything can happen. Let them go. Is Neal Schon beholden to them? Not a chance. They’re nobodies.”

The guitarist’s response was:

“Exactly. Too much drama from them, but they are true narcissists and pathological liars and will ultimately try to rope you in. Nope.”

A fan chimed in and wrote:

“Well, given that about 90+ percent of the current tours set list was written or co-written by Cain and Perry, I wouldn’t say he is nobody. And Arnel was picked by Schon because he sounded like Perry. He isn’t a nobody either.”

“Because of Journey.”

After Arnel Pineda came across Neal Schon’s comments, he repeated his initial ultimatum, saying that Journey could fire him whenever they wanted. Shortly afterward, Neal responded with a lengthy explanation, saying that by ‘nobodies,’ he was referring to the internet trolls trying to create drama between the Journey members.

He then went on to explain what he meant when he wrote that Arnel and Jonathan had become successful thanks to Journey. Schon stressed that he has the utmost respect for Pineda’s vocal talents and is sure he would become successful even without the band. However, he noted that he meant Arnel wouldn’t be ‘as successful as he is now’ if Neal had not ‘found his links’ and brought him to Journey.

Arnel tweeted:

“He may be right… Like I said, if they’re tired of this nobody, I’m just a phone call away.”

Schon responded to Arnel’s tweet by saying:

“Totally bullsh*t to twist things to create drama and problems if things are going well. I have the utmost respect for Arnel, and I obviously knew how talented he was when I heard his voice singing in many other styles. No way was I saying he wouldn’t be successful. What I was saying is if I had not found his links, maybe he would not be as successful as he is now in Journey. Make sense?”