![Sticky And Sweet Tour 2008 Santiago Chile](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/Sticky_And_Sweet_Tour_2008_Santiago_Chile.JPG)
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of
concert
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variety a ...
s by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific tour with a particular album or product. Especially in the popular music world, such tours can become large-scale enterprises that last for several months or even years, are seen by hundreds of thousands or millions of people, and bring in millions of dollars in ticket revenues. A performer who embarks on a concert tour is called a touring artist.
Different segments of longer concert tours are known as "legs". The different legs of a tour are denoted in different ways, dependent on the artist and type of tour, but the most common means of separating legs are dates (especially if there is a long break at some point), countries and/or continents, or different opening acts. In the largest concert tours it has become more common for different legs to employ separate touring production crews and equipment, local to each geographical region. Concert tours are often administered on the local level by concert promoters or by
performing arts presenters Performing arts presenting organizations facilitate exchanges between artists and audiences through creative, educational, and performance opportunities. The work that these artists perform is produced outside of the presenting organization. ...
. Usually, small concert tours are managed by a
road manager
In the music industry, a road manager is a person who works with small to mid-size tours (in terms of personnel involved, based on the size of the production). Job responsibilities include (but are not limited to):
*advancing show dates
*making t ...
whereas large concert tours are managed by a
tour manager
A tour manager (or concert tour manager) is the person who helps to organize the administration for a schedule of appearances of a musical group (band) or artist at a sequence of venues (a concert tour). In general, road managers handle tour deta ...
.
Logistics
![CelineDion concert](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/CelineDion_concert.jpg)
The main challenge in concert tours is how to move the performance's logistics from one venue to another venue, especially for a transcontinental tour. Tour logistics should be very organized and everything has to happen on time and in the right order as planned.
''
Autoweek
''Autoweek'' is a car culture publication based in Detroit, Michigan. It was first published in 1958 and in 1977 the publication was purchased by Crain Communications Inc, its current parent company. The magazine was published weekly and focused ...
'' magazine estimated 30 to 50 trucks were required by
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...
's
1989 World Tour
The 1989 World Tour was the fourth concert tour by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, in support of her fifth studio album, '' 1989'' (2014). Swift announced the tour's first dates in North America, Europe, Japan, and Oceania in November a ...
to bring all the stage, sound equipment, instruments, props, and clothes. When
Beyoncé
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
visited the United Kingdom with her 2016
Formation World Tour
The Formation World Tour was the seventh concert tour by American singer Beyoncé in support of her sixth studio album, ''Lemonade'' (2016). The all-stadium tour was announced following her guest appearance at the Super Bowl 50 halftime show. T ...
, it took seven
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022.
After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
air freighters and a fleet of more than 70 trucks to get her stage set and other gear to the venues. The logistics phase of that tour didn't include transportation of the backstage staff, musicians, performers, and the singer herself.
Themes
The majority of concert tours are part of promotional campaign to support an album release. Hence, new songs from the respective album are included on its tour's setlist. Some tours are known as "greatest hits tours" or "reunion tour" without any new material or specific album release, such as
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...
's 2009
Unleashed
Unleashed may refer to:
Art and entertainment Film and television
* ''Unleashed'' (2001 film), a film featuring Jeff Anderson
* ''Unleashed'' (2005 film), a 2005 martial arts film starring Jet Li
* ''Unleashed'' (2016 film), a film starring ...
tour and
No Doubt
No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, they ...
's
2009 Summer Tour. In another case, artists embark on a concert tour to celebrate the anniversary of their past albums, such as
U2's
2017 tour to mark the 30th anniversary of ''
The Joshua Tree
''The Joshua Tree'' is the fifth studio album by Irish rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 9 March 1987 on Island Records. In contrast to the ambient experimentation of their 1984 release, ''T ...
'' (1987) and
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...
's
2019 tour to commemorate the 30th anniversary of ''
Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
''Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814'' is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Janet Jackson, released on September 19, 1989, by A&M Records. Although label executives wanted material similar to her previous album, ''Control'' (19 ...
'' (1989).
Farewell tour
A farewell tour is a concert tour intended to signal the retirement of a singer, a disbanding of a band, or the end of a show's run. Many of the tours end up not being the last tour, with frequent regroupings, or revivals of shows.
Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...
's 2004 tour and
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Ray Rogers (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particularly popular with country audiences but also charted mo ...
's 2015–2017 tour are examples of farewell tours which were the last to be staged before their death.
Revenue
, the highest-grossing concert tour of all time is
Ed Sheeran
Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
's
÷ Tour
The ÷ Tour (pronounced "Divide Tour") was the third world concert tour by English singer and songwriter Ed Sheeran, in support of his third studio album, '' ÷'' (2017) (pronounced "divide"). Comprising 260 shows, it officially began on 16 March ...
, supporting the album of the same name, which ran from 2017 to 2019 had gross revenues of $775.6 million. In second place is the
U2 360° Tour
The U2 360° Tour was a worldwide concert tour by rock band U2. Staged in support of the group's 2009 album ''No Line on the Horizon'', the tour visited stadiums from 2009 through 2011. The concerts featured the band playing "in the round" ...
, with a gross of $736,137,344.
The third-highest-grossing concert tour of all time is
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
'
A Bigger Bang Tour
A Bigger Bang was a worldwide concert tour by the Rolling Stones which took place between August 2005 and August 2007, in support of their album '' A Bigger Bang''. At the time, it was the highest grossing tour of all time, earning $558,255,52 ...
, which earned approximately $558 million between 2005 and 2007.
Madonna's
Sticky & Sweet Tour, which earned $408 million in 2008 and 2009 was the highest-earning tour by a female artist.
According to the 2014 report from
''Billboard'' Boxscore, five acts having made over US$1 billion in touring since 1990 were The Rolling Stones, U2,
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...
, Madonna and
Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 1983 in Sayreville, New Jersey. It consists of singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, guitarist Phil X, and bassist Hugh McDonald (American musician), Hugh McD ...
.
Global touring revenue reported to ''Billboard'' Boxscore exceeded $5.5 billion in 2016. Due to the collapse of
record sales
Record sales or music sales are activities related to selling music recordings (albums, single (music), singles, or music video#Commercial release, music videos) through physical record shops or digital music store. Record sales reached the peak ...
in the 21st century, concert tours have become a major income for recording artists. Besides the tickets, touring also generates money from the sales of
merchandise
Merchandising is any practice which contributes to the sale of products to a retail consumer. At a retail in-store level, merchandising refers to displaying products that are for sale in a creative way that entices customers to purchase more i ...
and meet-and-greet packages. However, the touring business
suffered in the early 2020s due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
. ''
Pollstar
''Pollstar'' is a trade publication for the concert and live music industry. The publication was purchased by Oak View Group, a venue consultancy founded by Tim Leiweke and Irving Azoff, in July 2017.
History and profile
Founded in 1981 in Fre ...
'' estimated the total lost revenue for the industry in 2020 at more than $30 billion.
Response
The mobility of concert tours requires a lot of costs, time, and energy. It is very common for musicians to not see family members for over a year during their touring. British singer
Adele
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...
expressed her unhappiness of concert tours, saying "Touring is a peculiar thing, it doesn't suit me particularly well. I'm a real homebody and I get so much joy in the small things." A
concert residency
A concert residency (also known as musical residency or simply residency) is a series of concerts, similar to a concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countrie ...
concept is offered as an alternative to performers who just need to stay in one venue and the fans come to see them. The concept has been revitalized in the 21st century by Canadian superstar
Céline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
with the success of her
A New Day... residency (2003–2007). Her residency introduced a new form of theatrical entertainment, a fusion of song, performance art, innovative stage craft, and state-of-the-art technology. She managed to popularize the Las Vegas residency as a desirable way for top artists to essentially tour in place, letting their fans come to them. American singer
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
, who cancelled the 2018 European leg of her
Joanne World Tour
The Joanne World Tour was the fifth headlining concert tour by American singer Lady Gaga, in support of her fifth studio album, '' Joanne'' (2016). It began on August 1, 2017, in Vancouver, Canada and ended on February 1, 2018, in Birmingham, Eng ...
, signed for a Las Vegas residency to help manage her
fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia (FM) is a medical condition defined by the presence of chronic widespread pain, fatigue, waking unrefreshed, cognitive symptoms, lower abdominal pain or cramps, and depression. Other symptoms include insomnia and a general hyp ...
illness, which can be exacerbated by touring.
The 2015 study by charity
Help Musicians UK found that over 60% of musicians suffered from depression or other psychological issues, with touring an issue for 71% of respondents.
See also
*
Lists of concert tours Pages which list concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist ...
References
External links
''Billboard'' Touring News
{{Music industry
Music performance