Watch: JOURNEY Guitarist NEAL SCHON Performs U.S. National Anthem For Game 1 Of NBA Finals

June 3, 2022

JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon performed the U.S. national anthem during the pregame festivities Thursday night (June 2) ahead of Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

The performance, which can be seen below, came minutes before the Golden State Warriors took on the Boston Celtics at Chase Center in San Francisco.

Admired as a trailblazer and inspiration to millions, the JOURNEY founder has long established his position as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, with some of the top all-time best-selling singles and albums, including multiple gold and platinum as well as two diamond certifications, over 100 million records sold, and over a billion Spotify streams.

Schon founded JOURNEY in 1972 and has been the only consistent member, having participated in every album and tour to date. He is not only the founding member of JOURNEY, but was a member of SANTANA at the age of 15 and has performed with a variety of other acts including BAD ENGLISH, JAN HAMMER and HSAS, and has released 11 solo albums, including his latest, "Universe".

Schon's guitar style has been described as soulful and melodic, admired by such fellow legends as Eric Clapton and Prince, who reportedly asked for Schon's blessing to release "Purple Rain", which echoed a similar sound to JOURNEY's "Faithfully".

JOURNEY's wide selection of chart-topping hits includes classics like "Don't Stop Believin'", "Open Arms", "Lights", "Faithfully" and "When You Love A Woman".

JOURNEY's new studio album, "Freedom", will be released on July 8. The 15-track collection came together while JOURNEY was off the road due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"During the pandemic, there wasn't much to do," Schon said. "I spent a lot of time in my little studio at home, learning how to play keyboards and looping. Some of those ideas ended up being songs. So it kind of came out of nowhere."

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