Arnel Pineda’s journey of a lifetime

LOS ANGELES — Arnel Pineda, the 40-year-old former band member who did stints in Manila, Quezon City, Makati, Olongapo and Hong Kong, is fulfilling a dream by being the new front man of the iconic American band Journey, the same band whose music he loves to sing. The boyish-looking, shoulder-length haired singer who was discovered by no less than Journey’s guitarist Neal Schon while surfing YouTube, talks with a Filipino accent but when he starts singing Journey’s “Faithfully," “Open Arms" or “Don’t Stop Believing," you wouldn’t believe the singer is an Asian guy.  According to Flora Ramos, former Manila recording executive now based in Los Angeles, “Arnel will always be compared to Steve Perry (the former Journey front man) until he establishes himself as Arnel Pineda, with a look and sound that is his and not just a cover of Perry."  She adds, “I have seen his performances on YouTube and they are okay. I guess I have heard other unknown bands in Manila doing the same thing in some forgettable pubs somewhere there."  Pineda’s Manila-based band, Zoo, is known for doing songs of Journey, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Kenny Loggins, Bon Jovi, Survivor, Air Supply and many others.  Just like pop singer Sean Kingston, 17, who secured a deal with Sony Records after he posted his song “Beautiful Girls" in MySpace and contestant winner Charice Pempengco, 15, for getting noticed by TV host Ellen DeGeneres, David Foster and Clive Davis after her performance of the Dreamgirls’ hit “And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going" was posted on YouTube, Pineda is another talent who made it to Hollywood via the Internet. It seems to be the shortcut to fame these days.  Ramos explains, “Yes the internet is changing the music industry. I love the fact that there are other venues for talents to show off their wares minus the dictates and control of record companies who used to dominate the music scene."  She believes that more Filipino talents will ultimately be discovered via the Internet and she highly recommends it to aspiring singers who want to break in to Hollywood. But a word of caution, though, she stresses, “Please do not try to sound like someone else. Be yourself and be proud of your roots. We have a unique sound that needs to be heard."  And that is exactly what Pineda is trying to do – to bring his Original Pinoy Sound to the classic rock group Journey. He said on the Journey website, “I am actually looking forward to the scrutiny I’ll get from the hardcore Journey fans. I know they will expect me to sound exactly like Steve Perry but that will never happen. I know there’s only one Steve Perry in this world."  Since Perry left Journey a decade ago, there were a couple of replacements --- Jeff Scott Soto who was reportedly fired after a brief stint and Steve Augeri who dropped out in 2006 after eight years with the band due to voice problems.  Enter Pinoy guy and former engineering student, Arnel Pineda, who did stints in various pubs in Quezon City, Makati, Manila, Olongapo and Hong Kong.  Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain in an interview said that he actually liked the idea of Pineda joining them since now they are not just an American band but also a “world band. We are international now. We are not about one color. I kind of like the whole idea of having a singer like him. It’s exotic."  He added, “Arnel brings a soulful and passionate voice to Journey. His personality is well suited to our music. He is a sincere, authentic person with a great smile and a big heart. I think fans are really going to love him. With Arnel’s soaring tenor, Journey returns to our heritage sound."  Schon narrated that he could not believe what he was seeing and hearing on YouTube when he saw Pineda performing “Faithfully." He said in an interview, “After watching the videos over and over again, I had to walk away from the computer and let what I’d heard sink in because it sounded too good to be true."  So Schon emailed Pineda who, at first, thought it was a hoax until he was finally convinced it was the real Neal Schon of Journey. After an exchange of emails, Journey flew Pineda in to San Francisco together with his manager, TV director Bert de Leon, last August where Pineda auditioned with the band in Marin.  The band – composed of Schon (guitar), Cain (keyboards), Ross Valory (bass) and Deen Castronovo (drums) -- announced Pineda was in as front man on December 5 and Pineda recorded 11 new songs with Journey for an album that will be released this spring or summer.  Journey producer Kevin Shirley in his online diary described Pineda as “a monster vocalist. He is the real deal. Just phenomenal. For the record, I think Arnel is ‘the business!’ The guy can really sing! He handles the ballads with so much heart, and belts the rockers as hard, and melodically, as anyone I have heard."  From the Journey website, Pineda revealed, “It’s so exciting to sing with one of the best bands in the world. It will be a lot of hard work on my part."  Although he confessed in an interview that it is so hard to leave his Zoo band since they just recently recorded their debut album, he admitted that he had to do what he had to do. “I can always go back to The Zoo but joining Journey is once in a lifetime. I am just being realistic."  His Journey stint, in fact, will take him around the world this year with a performance at the Festival de Vina del Mar at Quinta Vergara Arena in Chile on February 21, a performance at Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo in Santiago on February 23, at Grand Hotel and Casino of Vina del Mar both in Chile on February 24, and then at a private convention at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on March 6.  Indeed, Arnel Pineda’s journey to international fame has just begun.  - Philippine News