Journey's legal problems have been, well, a journey. In 2022, the band's guitarist Neal Schon sued keyboardist Jonathan Cain for access to the corporate Amex. The following year, Cain countersued. Now, Cain is suing Schon again for lavish spending at the group's expense.
According to Bloomberg, a court filing made public Monday claims that Schon has exceeded a $1,500-per-night hotel fee cap, maxed out an American Express card with a $1 million limit, unilaterally chartered private jets, hired a close friend as unnecessary extra security, and blocked efforts to pay Journey's debts.
Luckily, the fans aren't suffering; the lawsuit says, “The band’s actual onstage performance is, at the moment, one of the only aspects of the business that has not suffered.” They are currently on a North American tour with Def Leppard. However, the court filing continues that the overindulgent spending and tense relationships with vendors has caused “unforeseen strains on cash flow” that “pose a severe threat of harm to the company and to Journey’s storied history of musical greatness.”
Aside from credit card complications, Schon hit Cain with a cease-and-desist in 2022 when Cain performed “Don’t Stop Believin'” at a Trump gala and Schon argued that Cain "should not be capitalizing on Journey’s brand to promote his personal political or religious agenda to the detriment of the band."
