23/01/2024
January 22, 1949Steve Perry, the former frontman of the rock band Journey, was one of the vocalists on the 1985 fundraiser song “We Are the World” that benefited the “USA for Africa” charity.It’s birthday number 75 for STEVE PERRY, former lead singer of rock ‘n’ pop band JOURNEY. He was the group’s frontman during their most commercially successful periods from 1977 to 1987 and 1995 to 1998. Perry also enjoyed a successful solo career between the mid-‘80s to mid-'90s, and released his first album "Street Talk," which sold over 2 million copies and featured the singles "Oh Sherrie" and "Foolish Heart."
Born on January 22, 1949, in Hanford, California, to Portuguese parents, Perry grew up interested in making music a career (his father was co-owner of radio station KNGS). On his 12th birthday, Steve’s mother gifted him with an "eighth note" gold necklace, which he still wears today. Around this same time, Perry says he heard Sam Cooke's song "Cupid" on his mother's car radio, which inspired him even more to become a professional singer one day.
"Open Arms" is Steve Perry and Journey’s highest-charting song to date. Included on their No. 1 album Escape, the single peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and stayed stuck there for six weeks straight. The band also has the biggest-selling track in digital music history, 1981’s “Don't Stop Believin'." The song gained increased popularity in the late 2000s when it was featured on the popular television show "Glee.”
The group's signature song — cowritten by Perry — was the first artist “catalog” song to reach two million downloads. Even after its release decades ago, “Don't Stop Believin’” remains the best-selling digital track ever recorded in the 20th century. According to chartmasters.org, a service that provides raw streaming music data, the track has digital sales of over 13 million downloads as of 2019.
You may find it hard to believe, but Perry is earning a larger paycheck now from his old band, Journey, than he ever did when he was their original lead singer. Although he hasn’t sung with the band for over 25 years ago, he makes millions of dollars from albums released after he left, and even profits from the band’s current tours.
According to court filings, when Perry left the group in 1997 he and his bandmates Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain agreed to these terms: a lump sum payment to Perry of 50% of the net income due Schon or Cain, whichever is higher, from Journey’s first two post-Perry albums; after that, a 25% lump sum payment of the net income of the third post-Perry album; and then a 12.5% payment from every Journey album that follows, in perpetuity.
To put all that in perspective, since Steve left in 1998 Journey has released 15 albums, including five studio, four live, and six compilation releases. On top of those terms, Perry also received lump sum payments for each of Journey's tours without him, with the same percentages: 50% after the first two tours, 25% after the third, and 12.5% for the fourth and every tour afterwards.
Journey has sold over 100 million records worldwide, making them one of the world's best-selling bands of all time. Steve Perry, along with the original members of Journey, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017. - Chuck Halley, Classic Music/TV/Film blogger
Photos — Journey in 1981 (L-R: Ross Valory, Steve Perry, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain and Steve Smith (Credit: Chris Walter); (left inset) Perry (ca. 1987) (Credit: Steve Perry’s Facebook fan page); (right inset) Perry in 2014 (Credit: City of Hope / The Hollywood Reporter)
