"Don't Stop Believin" is a song by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band Journey. It was released in October 1981 as the second single from the group's seventh studio album, '' Escape'' (1981), released through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

. "Don't Stop Believin shares writing credits between the band's vocalist

Steve Perry Stephen Ray Perry (born January 22, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and frontman of the rock band Journey during their most successful years from 1977 to 1987, and again from 1995 to 1998. He wrote/co-wrote ...

, guitarist

Neal Schon Neal Joseph Schon (born February 27, 1954) is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the co-founder and lead guitarist for the rock band Journey. He is the last original member to remain throughout the group's history. He was a memb ...

, and keyboardist

Jonathan Cain Jonathan Leonard Friga (born February 26, 1950), known professionally as Jonathan Cain, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the keyboardist and rhythm guitarist for Journey. He has also worked with the Babys an ...

. It is a mid-tempo rock

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to sho ...

and

power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner. Balla ...

. At the dawn of the 1980s, Journey was becoming one of the most successful rock acts of the era. The band added Cain on keyboards before entering the studio to record ''Escape''. Cain had kept the song title from encouragement his father gave him as a struggling musician living on Los Angeles'

Sunset Boulevard Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, United States, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway (California), Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles, Pacific Palisad ...

. The song is unusual in that its

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

does not arrive until the song is nearly finished; its structure consists of two

pre-chorus Song structure is the arrangement of a song, and is a part of the songwriting process. It is typically section (music), sectional, which uses repeating forms in songs. Common piece-level musical forms for vocal music include bar form, thirty-two-ba ...

es and three verses before it arrives at its central hook. The band recorded the song in one take at

Fantasy Studios Fantasy Studios was a music recording studio in Berkeley, California, United States, at the Zaentz Media Center, known for its recording of award-winning albums including Journey (band), Journey's ''Escape (Journey album), Escape'' and Green Day's ...

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

. A top-10 worldwide hit in 1981, "Don't Stop Believin became the group's

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

and has continued to endure over the years. Decades after its release, in 2012 it became the best-selling digital track from the twentieth century, with over seven million

download In computer networks, download means to ''receive'' data from a remote system, typically a server such as a web server, an FTP server, an email server, or other similar systems. This contrasts with uploading, where data is ''sent to'' a remote ...

s by 2017. Critics acclaimed its anthemic qualities; music magazine ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' ranked it among its

500 Greatest Songs of All Time "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" is a recurring song ranking compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and industry figures. The first list was published in December 2 ...

. In 2022, the single was selected by the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

for preservation in the United States

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Cover versions have included the cast of the American comedy-drama ''

Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...

'' in 2009, which outperformed the original internationally.

Background

By 1980, the Californian rock outfit Journey was on its way to becoming one of the most successful acts of the era. After discarding its roots in

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

, the group hired vocalist

and smoothed out its sound. The band had notched several domestic top-25 hits with " Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin" and "

Any Way You Want It "Any Way You Want It" is a song by American rock band Journey, released in February 1980 as the lead single from the band's sixth album '' Departure'' (1980). Written by lead singer Steve Perry and guitarist Neal Schon, it peaked at number 23 on ...

". Original keyboardist

Gregg Rolie Gregg Alan Rolie (born June 17, 1947) is an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter. Rolie served as lead singer of the bands Santana (band), Santana and Journey (band), Journey – both of which he co-founded. He also helmed rock group The ...

, with the group since its progressive days, amicably departed in 1980, leaving the foursome without one of its signature elements. Rolie recommended the band invite

of British rockers the Babys to be his permanent replacement, who accepted and joined the band as it prepared to record its next album, '' Escape'' (1981). To prepare for writing its next effort, Journey rented a warehouse in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, where they worked daily to complete arrangements and develop new ideas. Cain came up with the song's title and hook; it stemmed from something his father frequently told him when he was a struggling musician living on

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Cain was unsuccessful and ready to give up, and each time he would call home in despair, his father would tell him, "Don't stop believing or you're done, dude." Guitarist Neal Schon invented the song's distinctive bass line, and Perry suggested Cain write a driving

synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

piece to complement that bass line. Drummer Steve Smith added a standard rock backbeat behind that, and instructed Schon to play 16th note

arpeggio An arpeggio () is a type of Chord (music), chord in which the Musical note, notes that compose a chord are individually sounded in a progressive rising or descending order. Arpeggios on keyboard instruments may be called rolled chords. Arpe ...

s over the rest of the instrumentation, as though he were a "train" guiding the song in its direction. JonathanCain

This motif lyrically inspired the song as well. Cain and Perry thought the imagery brought to mind a story of two people leaving behind past lives in their hometown and boarding a midnight train to anywhere else. Perry liked the concept that the characters be a girl from a small town and a boy raised in the city. "We felt that every young person has a dream and sometimes where you grow up isn't where you're destined to be," Cain said. They copied the day's progress to

cassette tape The Compact Cassette, also commonly called a cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog audio, analog magnetic tape recording format for Sound recording and reproduction, audio recording and playback. Invented by L ...

s and took them home for further review. Smith felt a regular rock beat wouldn't suit the entire song, so he supplemented it with melodic, syncopated additions on the

tom-tom A tom drum (also known as a tom-tom) is a cylindrical drum with no snares, named from the Anglo-Indian and Sinhala language. It was added to the drum kit in the early part of the 20th century. Most toms range in size between in diameter, thoug ...

s and

ride cymbal The ride cymbal is a cymbal of material sustain used to maintain a beat (music), beat in music.Schroedl, Scott (2001). ''Play Drums Today!'', p.7. Hal Leonard. . A standard in most drum kit, drum kits, the ride's function is to maintain a steady ...

bell, increasing its complexity as the song builds. The song was built backwards, as the title hook were the only lyrics the band had developed initially. The band recorded the song at

. Perry had a

cold Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjectivity, subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute t ...

on the day of recording and was unable to make it, so its instrumental was tracked without him. The musicians found the song's tempo and varying sections difficult to record, especially Cain and bassist Ross Valory's intro. Co-producer Mike Stone turned on a verbal

click track A click track is a series of audio cues used to synchronize sound recordings, sometimes for synchronization to a Film, moving image. The click track originated in early sound movies, where optical marks were made on the film to indicate precise ...

for the group to practise to; after about twenty minutes, they turned the machine off and recorded the song live in one take. Perry rejoined Journey the next week and also completed his vocals mainly in one take. Altogether, the song and its corresponding album came together under its budget and in about two months. Cain was grateful that Perry gave his ideas equal weight given his status as a new member of the band.

Composition

While a majority of songs have a refrain that is repeated several times throughout the song, the true chorus to "Don't Stop Believin (as well as the first mention of its title) is not heard until the end of the song, with only 0:50 left. The song's writers designated the musically similar sections before the chorus as the "pre-chorus". The song's structure is: #

Introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

(instrumental) (0:00–0:17) # Verse 1 (0:17–0:49) #Instrumental (0:49–1:05) #Verse 2 (half-length) (1:05–1:20) #

Pre-chorus Song structure is the arrangement of a song, and is a part of the songwriting process. It is typically section (music), sectional, which uses repeating forms in songs. Common piece-level musical forms for vocal music include bar form, thirty-two-ba ...

1 (1:20–1:54) #Instrumental (1:54–2:01) #Verse 3 (2:01–2:33) #Pre-chorus 2 (2:33–3:05) #Instrumental (chorus) (3:05–3:21) #

Chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

until fade (3:21–4:11) The song is played in the key of

E major E major is a major scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps. Its relative minor is C-sharp minor and its parallel minor is E minor. Its enharmonic equivalent, F-flat maj ...

at a tempo of 118 beats per minute. The vocal range is E₄–C#₅. The chord progression, played by the piano in the introduction and continued throughout most of the song, is eight chords long, following a I–V–vi–IV– I– V– iii– IV progression. While the lyrics mention being "born and raised in south Detroit", there is no place in the

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

area commonly called "South Detroit". The city lies mainly on the north bank of the

Detroit River The Detroit River is an List of international river borders, international river in North America. The river, which forms part of the border between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ont ...

, and directly south of its downtown area lies the Canadian city of

Windsor, Ontario Windsor ( ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is situated on the south bank of the Detroit River directly across from the U.S city of Detroit, Detroit, Michigan. Geographically located within but administratively independent of Esse ...

. Steve Perry has said, "I tried north Detroit, I tried east and west and it didn't sing, but south Detroit sounded so beautiful. I loved the way it sounded, only to find out later it's actually Canada." Detroit residents often refer to the "east side" and "west side" of the city, but only rarely "north" (sometimes called "8 Mile", after the boundary road of the same name) or "south" (instead referred to as " Downriver" or " Mexicantown"). The lyric "streetlight people living just to find emotion" came from Perry watching people walking in the streets of Detroit at night after a show. Jon Cain said of writing the song, "... the “South Detroit” thing I got a lot of flack for. Because there was no South Detroit. And I said, “Because it’s a mystical place, it doesn’t exist!” It's the city of possibilities in your mind. That's what South Detroit is. So, leave it alone."

Personnel

''Escape'' version *

– lead vocals * Ross Valory – bass guitar, backing vocals *

– piano,

ARP Omni The ARP Omni was a polyphonic analog synthesizer manufactured by ARP Instruments, Inc. Overview The Omni featured preset, electronically generated Orchestral ensemble String voices including polyphonic Violin and Viola sounds as well as mon ...

, backing vocals *

– electric guitars, backing vocals * Steve Smith – drums ''

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

'' live version * Arnel Pineda – lead vocals *Ross Valory – bass, background vocals *Jonathan Cain – keyboards, background vocals *Neal Schon – guitars, background vocals * Deen Castronovo – drums and percussion, background vocals

Reception

The song was a commercial success and is known for its widespread use, but the song (along with '' Escape'' by Journey), initially received poor critical reviews (being criticized for its slick, inauthentic and derivative nature in both the musical and lyrical areas), but it has been retrospectively acknowledged as a staple of

classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

radio and 1980s rock music; for instance, ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' called it an "uptempo, melodic track" and praised the "fluid guitar and vocal." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that the "piano intro anticipates a powerful rock chorus for maximum airplay." Mike DeGagne of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

has described "Don't Stop Believin as a "perfect rock song" and an "anthem", featuring "one of the best opening keyboard

riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...

s in rock." In 2021, it was ranked No. 133 on ''Rolling Stone''s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2012 it was the best-selling digital track from the 20th century, with over seven million copies sold in the United States by 2017. In 2021, the song received the

Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...

award.

In popular culture

The song gained press coverage and a sharp growth in popularity for its use for The

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

2005 World Series The 2005 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2005 season. The 101st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Chicago White Sox and the National ...

championship and in 2007, the famous final scene of

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

's ''

The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...

series finale A series finale is the final installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, ...

" Made in America". Steve Perry was initially hesitant to allow the song to be used in ''The Sopranos'' but later agreed. Digital downloads of the song soared following the episode's airing and the exposure motivated the band members to overcome the struggles they were having at the time and find a replacement lead singer after former lead singer Steve Augeri's departure. The song has for years been commonly played at

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

home games. During the last minutes of playoff victories, the volume is lowered during the "born and raised in south Detroit" line, which is instead sung by home fans. It was played at the closing ceremony of the Red Wings long-time home

Joe Louis Arena Joe Louis Arena was an arena in Downtown Detroit. Completed in 1979 at a cost of US$57 million as a replacement for Olympia Stadium, it sat adjacent to Cobo Center on the bank of the Detroit River and was accessible by the Joe Louis Arena ...

in 2017. It is also used at other Detroit sporting events. The song is played during the 8th inning of every San Francisco Giants home game. Steve Perry is a Giants season ticket holder and memorably led the crowd in the song during a game in the World Series in 2014. In addition, after the Giants won the

2010 World Series The 2010 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2010 Major League Baseball season, 2010 season. The 106th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American L ...

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...

used the song to close out their postgame coverage of the fifth and deciding game of the series. The song got a boost when it was used as the closing number in '' Rock of Ages'', a jukebox musical featuring hits of the '80s. The show ran on Broadway from 2009 to 2015, and in 2012 was made into a movie starring Tom Cruise. The song is used in

professional wrestling Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to Real life, real- ...

by Silas Young as his

entrance music The use of music at sporting events is a practice that is thousands of years old, but has recently had a resurgence as a noted phenomenon. Some sports have specific traditions with respect to pieces of music played at particular intervals. Others ...

on the

independent circuit In professional wrestling, the independent circuit (often shortened to the indie circuit or the indies) is the collective name of independently owned promotions which are deemed to be smaller and more regionalized than major national promotions. ...

, though due to music rights issues he's used in-house music commissioned by

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011; the promotion was subs ...

when wrestling for that promotion. In 2020, the song was used in a

Toyota Hilux The , stylised as HiLux and historically as Hi-Lux, is a series of pickup trucks produced and marketed by the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. The majority of these vehicles are sold as a pickup truck or cab chassis, although they coul ...

commercial. In the commercial, With the help of his Hilux, a dad retraces his steps on an epic journey to help his daughter find her lost toy. In ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...

'', the character

Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...

is seen singing the song in the episode " Tsst" while plugging in his

video game console A video game console is an electronic device that Input/output, outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can typically be played with a game controller. These may be home video game console, home consoles, which are generally ...

, moments after disobeying his nanny. In the ''

Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...

'' episode “Don’t Make Me Over” (season 4, episode 4), characters

Peter Griffin Peter Löwenbräu Griffin Sr. ( né Justin Peter Griffin) is a fictional character and the protagonist of the American animated sitcom ''Family Guy''. He is voiced by the series' creator, Seth MacFarlane, and first appeared on television, a ...

, Cleveland Brown, Glenn Quagmire, and Joe Swanson perform the song at karaoke. The song would be used again in the season 23 episode "Dog is My Co-Pilot." A cutaway gag recreates the final scene of The Sopranos, replacing certain characters with

Caillou ''Caillou'' ( ; , stylized in lowercase) is an animated educational children's television series that aired on Teletoon (both English and French versions) with the first episode airing on the former channel on September 15, 1997 until the fou ...

and Arthur Read. The song is one of the possible songs that can be heard at the exit path after the ride in Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. The song was used as the soundtrack in the last scenes of the episode "Schadenfreude" (S 2, Ep 17) of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Cold Case ''Cold Case'' is an American police procedural crime drama television series. It ran on CBS from September 28, 2003, to May 2, 2010. The series revolved around a fictionalized Philadelphia Police Department division that specializes in invest ...

'', aired March 20, 2005. The song saw a resurgence in popularity in 2009 after being featured prominently in the pilot episode of ''

''. It would be performed a total of seven times in the show, as well as live on tour between 2010 and 2011. It would also be featured in '' Glee: The 3D Concert Movie'', a live recording of the concert featuring the cast performing in character both onstage and off. In 2024, the song was sung by Richard Goodall in ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is an American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distributed by) and ...

''; he won the Golden Buzzer for his performance. It was even heard in the trailers of

Harold and the Purple Crayon ''Harold and the Purple Crayon'' is a 1955 Children's literature, children's picture book written and illustrated by Crockett Johnson. Published by HarperCollins Publishers, it is Johnson's most popular book, and has led to a series of other rel ...

and Spellbound.

Chart performance

The song reached number eight on ''

s Mainstream Rock chart, and number nine on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It sold over a million copies in vinyl. It is the number one paid digital download song originally released in the 20th century, and was also the 72nd most downloaded song of 2008, and 84th most downloaded song of 2009 in the store, over 27 years after its release. On August 31, 2009, the song topped the 3 million mark in paid downloads. It is the best-selling digital song from a pre-digital-era, and it was also the best-selling rock song in digital history until it was overtaken by

Imagine Dragons Imagine Dragons are an American pop rock band formed in 2008, based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The band currently consists of lead singer Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, and bassist Ben McKee. They first gained exposure with the release of ...

' "

Radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is conside ...

" in January 2014. It was placed just outside the top twenty best selling digital songs of all time in September 2010. It has sold over 7 million digital units in the US as of July 2017, and was certified eighteen-times Platinum by RIAA. "Don't Stop Believin has entered other charts across the world in recent years, following a gain in popularity. In Ireland, the song peaked at number 4, at 25 in Sweden after many chart runs, and at number 50 in the Dutch charts. The

is one of the most popular rock tracks in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and continues to remain in the top ten most downloaded songs.

UK chart success

The song was released in the United Kingdom in December 1981 and peaked only at number 62. "Don't Stop Believin, never re-released as a physical single in the UK, retained a cult following and re-entered the UK Singles Chart in February 2009 at number 94 due to digital downloads. On November 1, 2009, following a performance on ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

'', "Don't Stop Believin re-entered the chart peaking at number 52, and it rose to number 19 a week later. The song stayed in the charts for three weeks, before dropping out of the top 40. On December 20 that year, "Don't Stop Believin re-entered the chart at number nine after the song was performed again on ''The X Factor''. The song remained in the top 10 for another seven weeks in 2010, hitting a peak of number six in the process. In early 2010, it was announced that the song had been the 65th best-selling single of 2009, this nearly three decades after its initial release. "Don't Stop Believin spent a total of 21 non-consecutive weeks in the top 40 during its November 2009 – April 2010 run. "Don't Stop Believin was the 25th best-selling track of 2010, selling just over 435,000 copies. It re-entered the charts in 2011, 2012 and 2013 and to date has spent 95 weeks in the top 100. In September 2014, the Official Charts Company listed the song as having sold a million copies in the UK.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

''Glee'' cast version

"Don't Stop Believin was recorded by the cast of American television series, ''

''. It was performed, in whole or in part, in six different episodes of the series, ranging from the first episode to the 120th (second last) episode. The song was performed to close out the first episode, "

Pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

" (May 2009) by principal cast members Cory Monteith (

Finn Hudson Finn Christopher Hudson is a fictional character from the Fox musical comedy-drama series ''Glee''. The character was portrayed by Cory Monteith and first appeared on television when ''Glee'' premiered its pilot episode on Fox on May 19, 2009. ...

Lea Michele Lea Michele Sarfati ( ; born August 29, 1986) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She began her career as a child actress on Broadway, appearing in productions of ''Les Misérables'' (1995–1996), ''Ragtime'' (1997–1999), ''Fid ...

(

Rachel Berry Rachel Barbra Berry is a fictional character and one of the two main protagonists, alongside Mr. Schue in the Fox musical comedy-drama series ''Glee''. The character is portrayed by actress Lea Michele, and appears in ''Glee'' from its pilot ep ...

Chris Colfer Christopher Paul Colfer (born May 27, 1990) is an American actor, singer, and author. He gained international recognition for his portrayal of Kurt Hummel on the television musical ''Glee'' (2009–2015). Colfer's portrayal of Kurt received crit ...

( Kurt Hummel), Amber Riley ( Mercedes Jones), Kevin McHale ( Artie Abrams) and

Jenna Ushkowitz Jenna Noelle Ushkowitz (; born April 28, 1986), Korean given name Min Ji (), is an American actress, singer, producer and podcast host. She is known for her performances in Broadway musicals such as ''The King and I'' and ''Waitress'' and in th ...

( Tina Cohen-Chang). This arrangement, which became the first single released from the soundtrack of the series, '' Glee: The Music, Volume 1'', was adapted from Petra Haden's version. A portion of the song was performed again in the first season's fifth episode, " The Rhodes Not Taken" (September 2009), with Monteith and

Dianna Agron Dianna Elise Agron ( ; born April 30, 1986) is an American actress and singer. List of Dianna Agron performances, Her work spans screen and stage, and her accolades include a Screen Actors Guild Award and nomination for a Brit Award. Agron bega ...

as soloists. A second version was performed by the cast in the first season's finale episode, " Journey to Regionals" (June 2010), for the glee club's Regionals competition; this version is included in the EP soundtrack, '' Glee: The Music, Journey to Regionals''. This version, performed by Monteith, Michele, Colfer, Riley, McHale, Ushkowitz, Mark Salling and Naya Rivera, earned a nomination in December 2010 for the 2011 Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals – the only song from ''Glee'' ever nominated for a Grammy. A third version was performed by

in the nineteenth episode of the fourth season of the show, " Sweet Dreams" (April 2013), joined (in her imagination) by the rest of the original six, making it the last new musical performance by

, as actor Cory Monteith died three months later; this version was released as a single April 23, 2013. A fourth version was performed, by ten of the original twelve members (missing Monteith as Finn Hudson and Dijon Talton as Matt Rutherford), seven more current members and Mr. Schuester, in the thirteenth episode of the fifth season, " New Directions" (March 2014). A reprise of the six-member "Pilot" version is featured in the second last episode of the series, "

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

" (March 2015). Released as a digital download on June 2, 2009, the song performed well in the United States, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Australia, where it charted within the top five of their national charts. The cast performance of "Don't Stop Believin was certified gold in the US in October 2009 and platinum in March 2011, achieving over 1,000,000 digital sales, and platinum in Australia, with sales of over 70,000. It remains the most popular recording in the show's history, having sold 1,422,000 copies in the United States alone. "Don't Stop Believin was put on the

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

and

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

playlists in the UK in January 2010.

Critical reception

Aly Semigan of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' praised the song stating " Fox's ''

'' put the ultimate

earworm An earworm or brainworm, also described as sticky music or stuck song syndrome, is a Catchiness, catchy or memorable piece of music or saying that continuously occupies a person's mind even after it is no longer being played or spoken about. In ...

back in its rightful place." She also stated: "even if you aren't one for show choirs (which, is quite frankly, shocking), it's pretty damn hard to resist." Semigan also compared it to the original version stating "it sounds slightly different in this ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near ...

'' meets ''

High School Musical ''High School Musical'' is a 2006 American Musical film, musical television film produced by and aired on Disney Channel as part of the network's List of Disney Channel original films, slate of original television films. The first installmen ...

'' pilot, but it's a good kind of different."

Chart performance

In the United States, the song debuted at No. 4 on the '' ''Billboard'' Hot 100'' on the week dated June 6, 2009 with sales of 177,000 copies in its first week, behind

Black Eyed Peas The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...

's "

Boom Boom Pow "Boom Boom Pow" is a song recorded by American group the Black Eyed Peas for their fifth studio album '' The E.N.D.'' (2009). It was written by group members will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie, being produced by will.i.am. The song featur ...

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

's " Poker Face" and

Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...

's " Blame It", respectively the number one, number two and number three on the chart. The song received certification Platinum by

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

for more 1.4 million copies of digital sold, which is also their best-selling song to date.

Track listings

*Digital download # "Don't Stop Believin – 3:50 *German CD single # "Don't Stop Believin – 3:52 # "Rehab" – 3:26

Charts

Certifications

LadBaby version

In December 2020, English blogger couple

LadBaby Mark Ian Hoyle (born 12 April 1987), known professionally as LadBaby, is an English YouTuber, musician, and blogger. His content focuses on his experiences as a father and is usually filmed in collaboration with his wife, Roxanne. The couple ga ...

released a comedy version of the song titled "Don't Stop Me Eatin with a

sausage roll A sausage roll is a savoury dish, popular in current and former Commonwealth nations, consisting of sausage meat wrapped in puff pastry. Although variations are known throughout Europe and in other regions, the sausage roll is most closely assoc ...

theme as a charity single whose proceeds go to The Trussell Trust. It was released as a single on December 18, 2020. It was officially announced as the Christmas number one on December 25, 2020, becoming LadBaby's third consecutive Christmas number one in the UK.

Version with Ronan Keating

A separate alternate version was recorded by

Ronan Keating Ronan Patrick John Keating (born 3 March 1977) is an Irish singer, songwriter, actor and presenter. He debuted in 1993 alongside Keith Duffy, Michael Graham, Shane Lynch, and Stephen Gately, as the co-lead singer (with Gately) of Irish pop g ...

and was credited to LadBaby and Ronan Keating, but actually the vocals were by Keating and LadBaby's wife Roxanne.

Background

In December 2020, LadBaby announced their bid for the Official Christmas number one for the third time. As with their previous two singles, "

We Built This City "We Built This City" is the debut single by American rock band Starship, from their 1985 debut album '' Knee Deep in the Hoopla''. It was written by English musicians Martin Page and Bernie Taupin, who were both living in Los Angeles at the time ...

" and " I Love Sausage Rolls", all proceeds from the single went to The Trussell Trust.

Charts

Other versions

Joe McElderry version

In 2009,

Joe McElderry Joseph McElderry (; born 16 June 1991) is an English singer and songwriter. He won the The X Factor (British series 6), sixth series of ''The X Factor (British TV series), The X Factor'' in 2009. His first single "The Climb (Joe McElderry song), ...

performed the song on the 6th UK series of ''

'' on week 4, and again in the finals. This helped the original version get back in the UK charts in the second half of 2009. The song was one of the choices to be the series' winner single, but Journey did not like the arrangement of ''The X Factor'' version. " The Climb" by

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( , born Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and director. Regarded as a contemporary pop icon, Cyrus has been recognized for her evolving artistry and image reinventions. She is ...

was eventually chosen. McElderry still frequently performs the song in his live shows, occasionally changing the lyrics, "born and raised in South Detroit" to "born and raised in

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England; it is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. The town was once known in Roman Britain, Roman times as ''Arbeia'' and as ''Caer Urfa'' by the Early Middle Ag ...

George Lamond version

In 2008, after a hiatus from recording, a producer-friend, Giuseppe D, presented

George Lamond George Lamond (born George Garcia, February 25, 1967), sometimes styled George LaMond, is an American freestyle music and salsa music singer. LaMond has released seven albums (five via Sony Music) between 1989 and 2014. Best known for his 198 ...

the idea to release a dance-pop cover of the song. Released on Robbins Entertainment, Lamond's cover reached No. 1 on New York's 103.5 KTU. The release also found success on other U.S. radio stations, especially in the Northeast and Canada.

WKTU WKTU (103.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a rhythmic adult contemporary formatted radio station city of license, licensed to Lake Success, New York, a suburb of New York City. WKTU is owned by iHeartMedia and broadcasts from studios at 125 West 55th ...

presented Lamond with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

''Big Brother 2010''

The housemates of '' Big Brother 2010'' recorded a version of the song, coached by Andrew Stone of

Pineapple Dance Studios Pineapple Dance Studios is a dance studio complex, performing arts school, and associated dancewear, clothing, and eyewear brand, based in London, England. Origin Pineapple Studios was founded by former model Debbie Moore, who had started dan ...

, in July 2010. Stone also choreographed and shot a video of the performance. According to

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...

, the video "almost out-Glees ''Glee''"

Steve Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form ( hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen. Notable people A–D * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Abel (born 1970), New Zealand politician * Steve Adams (disambiguation) ...

and

Rachel Rachel () was a Bible, Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph (Genesis), Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban (Bible), Laban. Her older siste ...

sang the lead vocals.

UNICEF benefit version

In 2020, Journey recorded a new version of the song to promote

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

's "Won't Stop" campaign, which was created to raise funds to buy personal protective equipment for medical frontline workers and provide for the needs of impoverished children. The performance aired on MSNBC and featured longtime members Arnel Pineda, Neal Schon, and Jonathan Cain, along with returning bass player

Randy Jackson Randall Darius Jackson (born June 23, 1956) is an American record executive, television presenter and musician, best known as a judge on ''American Idol'' from 2002 to 2013. Jackson began his career in the 1980s as a session musician playing b ...

(who was previously Journey's session and touring bassist from 1986 to 1987), new keyboard player Jason Derlatka, and new drummer

Narada Michael Walden Narada Michael Walden ( ; Michael Walden; born April 23, 1952) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He acquired the nickname Narada from Sri Chinmoy. He began his career as a drummer, working primarily in the jazz ...

References

{{authority control 1981 songs 1981 singles Journey (band) songs Pop ballads Rock ballads Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Songs written by Steve Perry Songs written by Jonathan Cain Songs written by Neal Schon 2009 singles 2010 singles Song recordings produced by Mike Stone (record producer) Steel Panther songs Columbia Records singles Songs about trains Songs about Detroit Detroit Red Wings San Francisco Giants 1981 quotations United States National Recording Registry recordings

Background

Composition

Personnel

Reception

In popular culture

Chart performance

UK chart success

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

''Glee'' cast version

Critical reception

Chart performance

Track listings

Charts

Certifications

LadBaby version

Version with Ronan Keating

Background

Charts

Other versions

Joe McElderry version

George Lamond version

''Big Brother 2010''

UNICEF benefit version

See also

References