Will Journey Play At Republican National Convention? RNC Says ‘Don’t Start Believing’ After Politico Report

Bad news for those who love singing “Don’t Stop Believing” after a long day of political deal brokering. The Republican National Committee is advising supporters that Journey won't play at the party’s national convention in July after Politico reported Thursday it would.

The original story was that the RNC had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to book Journey for its post-convention party. The committee has about $500,000 dedicated to the event, Politico reported, and the total cost of booking Journey is about $750,000.

While musicians have a long history of asking Republican candidates not to play their music, Journey — along with Kid Rock, the Zac Brown Band and others — played at the 2012 Republican National Convention.

However, shortly after Politico’s story was published, the RNC denied it had signed Journey. RNC Communications Director Sean Spicer tweeted about the report, calling it “another faux story” and telling fans, “Don’t start believing” Politico.

Other Republican officials disputed the report. “The RNC has not signed Journey,” Katie Walsh, the RNC's chief of staff, said in a statement. “This is 100 percent false.”

Journey has not commented on the story, and the band members’ social media accounts do not appear to reveal their thoughts on Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee. Still, Politico has stuck to its story. The concert was slated to take place at Cleveland’s State Theatre and would end the four-day convention where Trump is set to become the party’s nominee for president.

Some people on Twitter were not happy with even the tentative news that Journey might play at the Republican event.

Others also pointed out that this would be a significant expense for the committee as it tries to raise money for what is expected to be a tough general election fight. The RNC recently signed a joint fundraising agreement with Trump to raise large donations ahead of November and to help its state parties.

If Journey doesn’t perform, there are plenty of other bands and artists who have expressed Republican sympathies and could potentially be booked to help make the convention more entertaining, as Trump has promised it will be. They include Aaron Carter and Tila Tequila.