Arnel Pineda shared his gratitude to his Journey bandmates on social media.
The singer posted pictures of the band in a video format across his social media accounts. He wrote in the caption: “Happy Thanksgiving to this very amazing band. Their immortal music indeed has helped me and my family, as well as millions of fans who have loved them from day one to get through loads of challenging times and moments.. thank you so much Journey and thank you so much to the fans and friends who’s kept the band going all these years.”
“Happy Thanksgiving to our amazing brother Arnel,” Neal Schon replied.
What stood out was that Pineda shared pictures from the band’s earlier days, so he was not in any of the photos. Some fans thought it was unfair that he was missing from the pictures. “You forgot your picture bro. You have been there the longest of any singer,” one user commented under the post.
Another said, “You are part of this beautiful story, God bless you immensely, you are a good person, you deserve all the success you have achieved over all these years with Journey.”
“You forgot about yourself Arnel! You are part of this band! Thankful for you and the shows I’ve seen with you being a huge part of it,” said another fan.
Perry left Journey after a short break due to his degenerative bone condition and hip replacement surgery. Steve Augeri replaced him as lead vocalist the following year, but he was replaced by Jeff Scott Soto in 2006.
In 2007, Arnel Pineda became the lead singer and has stayed with the band ever since. However, Pineda has often been compared to Perry.
“To the fans, thank you for having me in your life despite the fact that I’m not him and it’s just hard to let go of someone who’s as beautiful as Mr. Steve Perry, the one and only, boys,” Pineda said in another social media post addressing the comparisons. He added, “I love him, to tell you honestly. So, I have no ill feelings to the people who still can’t accept me being with the band. Anyway. It’s okay. Just peace and peace and peace. Any peace out there, alright?”
Journey has released three studio albums with Pineda, the latest being ‘Freedom’ in 2022.
