Neal Schon of Journey discussed the band’s upcoming Final Frontier farewell tour in a recent Rolling Stone interview, providing some clarity about his future with the band and beyond.

According to Schon, the reason for the farewell tour was keyboardist Jonathan Cain’s wish to leave the band after one last road trip, which Cain confirmed last month.

“Well, Jonathan had mentioned that he wanted to say goodbye at the end of this tour,” Schon said. “At that time, we had a manager, which we don’t anymore … the old story of that. It always manages to come back to the beginning, which is with me here and sort of running things … The legacy and the heart of the band I have within myself … I’ve been here since day one, and wherever I go, the heart and soul of the band will go with me. Journey goes on.”

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What Are Journey’s Farewell Tour Plans?

So, how exactly will it continue? Schon made it clear that he wants to keep performing after Journey concludes. He might use the “Journey Beyond” name, which he’s been teasing on social media for some time — but he also might not.

“Well, who knows? Nothing is set in stone right now until I actually get there,” he said. “There are quite a few names that I’ve gotten trademarks on so I can sort of pivot to what I’m thinking and feeling at that time.”

In the meantime, Schon is eager to revive some deep cuts from Journey on the Final Frontier tour. “We’re doing ‘An Evening with Journey,’ two full sets with an intermission,” he explained. “There’ll be no opener. It’s all Journey. So we’re going to be digging into songs we haven’t performed in decades, along with the anthems that everyone loves.”

The guitarist is also open to reuniting with Steve Perry in some capacity on the upcoming tour. “I would welcome him, and I’m sure everybody else would too,” he said. “If he wanted to just walk on and say hi, this would be the tour to do it, or if he wanted to come on and sing anything or if he just wanted to be a part of it, period.”

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Is Journey Ending or Not?

To clarify: Do Schon and his bandmates plan to retire the Journey name after the Final Frontier tour?

It’s still unclear.

“I can’t really speculate at this point. I’m kind of ready to move on,” Schon said. “For one, there are so many tribute bands out there right now playing whatever show we do. That’s why I’m really glad that we’re going to change things up here and throw in a lot of surprises that people don’t expect because there are so many tribute bands out there doing exactly the same show we’re doing.

“Every time I see something that everybody jumps on, I want to do exactly the opposite. I don’t want to do a nostalgia show after this is over. I want to be creative. I want to bring something completely fresh that is a new version of what Journey was.”

And might that new version be called Journey Beyond?

“Possibly, I don’t know,” Schon said. “I might come up with a better name.”

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