YOUTUBE GENERATION

Found this a rather interesting read --- a reposting from Dennis Posadas' BusinessWorld column. What exciting times we live in --- an era when uploading personal YouTube videos flattens the playing field of being discovered!

Subject	[BusinessWorld 15 July] Arnel Pineda's Incredible YouTube Journey
From	Dennis Posadas
To
Sent	Tuesday, July 15, 2008 8:50 AM

http://www.bworld. com.ph/BW071508/ content.php? id=096

Arnel Pineda's Incredible YouTube journey
by Dennis Posadas | BusinessWorld | 15 July 2008

Until Steve Perry left the All-American superband Journey a few years ago because of a hip injury, songs like "Don't Stop Believing," "Separate Ways" and "Open Arms" filled the airwaves even here in Manila during the '80s. I was still in college then, and during the days of stonewashed denim and analog LP records, having a copy of Journey's albums was de rigeur for serious music lovers. My last album that I recall having bought was Raised on Radio from a few years back. It's the kind of music that you listen to when you've broken up with someone, or just won a basketball game. It's really soulful rock.

Flashforward to 2008. The last episode of the series The Sopranos was capped by Journey's signature song, "Don't Stop Believing," which led many to ask whatever happened to Journey. But there was more to come. Journey's new lead singer, it turned out, was none other than Filipino Arnel Pineda, formerly of the local band Zoo.

As legendary Journey guitarist Neal Schon put it in his interview for CBS Sunday Morning, he was looking for the "legacy sound, a tenor voice." Frustrated by an inability to go on tour because they had no lead singer, and Perry wouldn't even return his calls, Schon hit the Internet, looking at YouTube videos until he found what he was looking for. Fortunately for Pineda, he had uploaded his videos on YouTube. Schon was blown away by what he heard, first clearing his head by riding on a motorcycle, then decided to call his keyboard player to check out Pineda on YouTube. Even though his keyboardist had imbibed a couple of glasses of wine, Schon told him to go to the computer immediately.

Eventually, Schon called Pineda here. At first Pineda was stupefied to receive a call from his idol. "Are you really Neal Schon?" asked a dumbfounded Pineda. "Can I see you on a webcam?" Pineda added. Eventually, Pineda got over his shock and was asked to go to the US to audition.

Little did Pineda know that he would also need to audition for the US immigration officer. Taken aback by his reason that he was going to the US, the immigration officer said, "Really? Journey, as in Journey the band?" The officer then asked Pineda if he knew the song "Wheel in the Sky" to which Pineda immediately belted out in a loud voice, "Wheel in the sky keeps on turning," much to the surprise of the other applicants. Needless to say, he got his visa.

The choice was difficult, because Steve Perry was a rock tenor. Anybody who has heard Journey knows that Perry would not just sing "feeling!," but instead belt out "feeleyiyenng! " with an incredible vocal range. The past two replacements for Perry simply didn't pan out.

Pineda's mother died when he was five, and he ended up sleeping on the streets of Manila, trying to make a living by selling metal scraps. In an interview with CBS Sunday Morning, he tearfully recounted the gift of singing that his late mother gave him, the only gift she could give, but in the end the one that counted. It is this inner pain that Journey believes gives him not just the talent, but the soul and emotion to carry on the tradition of this great band.

A recent Time article on Journey and Pineda says that not all die-hard Journey fans are happy with the choice, saying that some had left death threats on someone who had set up a fansite for Arnel. But most of these fans have not really heard Arnel, and those who have heard him say that he is actually better than Steve Perry. Critics say he is possibly the man who can take this classic band to new heights. Journey's new album with Pineda, "Revelation, " has been climbing up the charts, and they are now kicking off a world tour.

As Arnel put it, "Just don't give up. Don't stop believing!"

Now that makes you wonder if Mick Jagger is looking at some videos on YouTube these days.

Comments

[Clarence Yu]

Very nice article. Mr. Posadas captures the whole story with precision. Thank you for posting this...