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Journey bandmates in legal fight over Donald Trump’s performance | The music

December 22, 2022

A member of the progressive rock band Journey served a bandmate with a cease and desist order to perform their hit Don’t Stop Believin’ with several top Republicans for Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago on last month, calling the performance “harmful” to the band.

Keyboardist Jonathan Cain, guitarist Neal Schon and vocalist Steve Perry co-wrote the 1981 song, which returned to public consciousness 30 years later when it was used on the final episode of The Sopranos.

Cain, 71, is part of Trump’s inner circle because his wife, televangelist Paula White-Cain, is the former US president’s spiritual advisor.

In November, Cain performed Don’t Stop Believin’ with Republicans Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Kari Lake for Trump at his Florida resort. On Wednesday, it was revealed by Variety that Schon’s attorney sent a cease and desist letter to Cain regarding the representation.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, Kimberly Guilfoyle and Kari Lake performed “Don’t Stop Believin'” with Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain at a recent event with Trump at Mar-a-Lago. pic.twitter.com/dvSp1z62BX

— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) November 23, 2022

In the letter, Schon’s attorney noted, “While Mr. Cain is free to express his personal beliefs and associations, when doing so on behalf of Journey or for the group, such conduct is extremely harmful to the Journey brand because it polarizes the band’s fans and awareness.Journey is not, and should not be, political.

“Mr. Cain’s unauthorized affiliation with Journey to Donald Trump politics has upset fans of the group, as seen in a sample of the attached emails and Twitter comments. This has caused, and continues to cause, irreparable harm to the Journey brand, its fan base and its earning potential, especially in light of the upcoming tour.

“Mr. Cain is prohibited from using Journey for political purposes…he should not capitalize on the Journey brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the group,” the letter continues, calling the performance a ‘harmful use of the mark’. ”.

The letter also states that Schon’s decision is not intended “to add further to the animosity that currently plagues the band and the relationship between Mr. Schon and Mr. Cain.”

The pair are currently squabbling over access to the band’s finances, with Schon’s lawyers claiming last month that he was denied access to the band’s financial records and the use of his American Express card. Cain’s lawyers responded by alleging that Schon was denied access to the card after using it for “inappropriate personal expenses” worth more than $1 million.

Schon did not respond to Cain’s counterclaim, writing that he “will take my attorney’s advice and not talk until we get to court where I have no problems. That’s how it is. “

The Guardian contacted Cain about the cease and desist. In response to the claims, a spokesperson for Cain told Variety on Wednesday, “Schon is just frustrated about losing in court and now falsely claims the song was used at political rallies.”

Schon and Perry have previously expressed their displeasure with the airing of Don’t Stop Believin’ at Trump campaign rallies, joining a long list of individuals and groups who have spoken out against Trump’s use of their music. including Neil Young, REM, Queen, Earth, Wind and Fire, the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Tom Petty and the widow of Luciano Pavarotti,

In 2017, Schon posted several furious tweets after three members of the group went to the White House and posed for photos with the then president.

“I said how I felt about mixing religion and politics and how our music is not of one religion – Democrat or Republican. That is and has been an issue with myself, Ms. Cain and his wife,” Schon wrote in a post that he later deleted.