On June 12th, San Diego Filipino American City councilman Chris Cate presented Journey frontman Arnel Pineda with a proclamation in honor of Philippine Independence Day. The presentation was carried out via video conference call and can be viewed below. Some Filipino American journalists and community leaders from the San Diego Filipino community also took part in the presentation.

Pineda caught the attention of Journey guitarist / founder Neal Schon in 2007 when clips of his cover band, The Zoo, began appearing on YouTube. Schon contacted Noel Gomez, a longtime fan and friend of Pineda who had uploaded many of these videos, to ask for Pineda's contact information. He sent an e-mail to Pineda inviting him to audition for Journey. Pineda initially dismissed the e-mail as a hoax, but after being persuaded by Gomez, he finally replied to Schon's e-mail. Ten minutes later, Pineda received a phone call from Schon.

On August 12th, 2007, Pineda, along with his manager Bert de Leon, flew to Marin County, just north of San Francisco, for a week of auditioning. The star-struck Pineda was welcomed warmly but he described the audition as "nerve-wracking, tense". On December 5, 2007, Pineda was announced as the new lead singer of Journey.

Pineda made his debut as the lead singer of Journey on February 21st, 2008 at the Viña del Mar International Song Festival held at the Quinta Vergara Amphitheater in Viña del Mar, Chile.