Journey fans were forced to stop believin’ that the band would return to the stage when their Friday performance at the Houston Rodeo was cut short due to an “electrical fire” under the stage.
You can see video of the truncated performance below.
The rockers had the plug pulled on them in the middle of “Don’t Stop Believin’,” the fourth song of their set at Houston’s NRG Stadium. The power on the stage cut out just as the band was approaching the song’s first chorus. Singer Arnel Pineda led the audience in a singalong before the group left the stage.
“Due to an electrical fire, the show cannot continue,” an announcer told the audience, according to the Houston Chronicle. The lights came up to signal the end of the show, leaving roughly 72,000 concertgoers to evacuate the venue.
There have been no reports of injuries.
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Journey and Houston Rodeo Comment on Concert Cancellation
The Houston Rodeo issued a statement following the end of Journey’s performance. “Due to an unforeseen electrical incident under the stage area, we regretfully announce the cancellation of tonight’s Journey concert,” the organization said. “We sincerely apologize to all fans for this disappointment. Our team is working diligently to assess the situation, and we will provide updates regarding rescheduling options and/or refunds as soon as possible.”
Journey drummer Deen Castronovo also commented on the mishap in an Instagram post, which you can see below. “Hey, Houston! An act of God tonight! Fire broke out underneath the stage—right under my drum riser!” he wrote. “I was literally on fire for four and a half songs, all the power cables melted, and the show was a BUST! That doesn’t mean we won’t be back soon, because we love you all—and WE WILL RETURN! #dontstopbelievin God bless you all!”
Guitarist Neal Schon commented on the concert mishap on Saturday morning. “Last night at Houston TX Rodeo we had an amazing overly packed house of 79-80 thousand fans that showed up to see us!!” he wrote on social media (also shown below). “The only unfortunate thing was that after getting off to a slamming start the Rodeo had an electrical failure and fire broke out under the stage. Thank you Houston for singing ‘Don’t Stop Believin’’ before we were rushed off the stage because of an electrical fire and were not able to return. I felt terrible for our fans and offered to play tonight and make it up to y’all but they were not able to make it happen so until next time – Love and Respect.”
Journey is set to return to the stage on Sunday at the Yaamava’ Theater in Highland, California.
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Gallery Credit: UCR Staff