The Sweetener World Tour was the fourth
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 and to associate a specific to ...
and third arena tour by American singer, songwriter and actress
Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...
in support of her fourth and fifth studio albums, ''
Sweetener
{{Wiktionary, sweetener
A sweetener is a substance added to food or drink to impart the flavor of sweetness, either because it contains a type of sugar, or because it contains a sweet-tasting sugar substitute. Many artificial sweeteners have been ...
'' (2018) and ''
Thank U, Next
''Thank U, Next'' is the fifth studio album by American singer Ariana Grande, released on February 8, 2019, by Republic Records. It was released six months after her fourth studio album '' Sweetener'' (2018), conceived in the midst of Grande ...
'' (2019). Led by
Live Nation Entertainment
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. is an American global entertainment company and monopoly that was founded in 2010 following the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The company promotes, operates, and manages ticket sales for live entertainme ...
, the tour was officially announced on October 25, 2018. It began on March 18, 2019, at the
Times Union Center
The MVP Arena (originally Knickerbocker Arena, and then the Pepsi Arena and Times Union Center) is an indoor arena located in Albany, New York. It is configurable and can accommodate from 6,000 to 17,500 people, with a maximum seating capacity ...
in Albany, New York, and concluded on December 22, 2019, in Inglewood, California at
The Forum, visiting cities in North America and Europe throughout 101 dates. Frequent collaborators and backup dancers of Grande, Brian and Scott Nicholson who were enlisted by her, served as creative directors and LeRoy Bennett was enlisted as production designer.
The tour was a commercial and critical success - it received positive reviews from critics and fans, who complimented the stage design and Grande's ethereal vocals. The Sweetener World Tour was attended by 1.3 million people and grossed $146.6 million from 97 shows, surpassing her previous concert tour, the
Dangerous Woman Tour
The Dangerous Woman Tour was the third concert tour and the second arena tour by American singer Ariana Grande in support of her third studio album, ''Dangerous Woman'' (2016). It traveled across North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia and Oc ...
, as her highest-grossing tour to date.
Throughout the tour, Grande partnered with nonprofit organization
HeadCount to register new voters ahead of the
2020 United States presidential election
The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala Ha ...
, breaking its all-time voter registration record with 33,381 registrations.
Multiple shows across the tour were recorded for the live concert tour album, ''
K Bye for Now (SWT Live)
''K Bye for Now (SWT Live)'' is the debut live album by American singer Ariana Grande. It was released on December 23, 2019, featuring Grande's setlist from her Sweetener World Tour in 2019, which contains guest appearances from Big Sean, Childi ...
.'' It was released on December 23, 2019, following the final show of the tour in Inglewood, California on December 22, 2019. A concert film documenting the tour entitled ''
Ariana Grande: Excuse Me, I Love You'', was released on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
on December 21, 2020, one day prior to the one year anniversary of the final show.
Background
On May 6, 2018, Grande finally hinted a tour via her official Twitter account, shortly after announcing the title for her upcoming album on ''
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...
''. Three months later, she announced that there were plans for a tour, stating that her team were "workin
icon it all now". Grande embarked on a promotional concert tour for ''Sweetener'',
The Sweetener Sessions, which began on August 20, 2018, in New York City and ended on September 4, 2018, in London, United Kingdom. Tour passes were also made available via her official website shortly after. Grande announced the title of the tour as the "Sweetener World Tour" on October 24, 2018, announcing its North American dates a day later.
The first leg of the tour had 50 shows across North America and visited 45 cities, beginning on March 18, 2019, in Albany and concluding on August 4, 2019, at
Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...
.
Pre-sale for the tickets for the first leg of the tour took place between November 1 and November 3, 2018.
On November 5, 2018, tickets were opened to the general public, and Grande announced
Normani
Normani Kordei Hamilton ( ; born May 31, 1996) is an American singer and dancer. She auditioned as a solo act for the American television series ''The X Factor'' in 2012, after which she became a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which wen ...
and
Social House
Social House is an American musical duo from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As of 2020, the duo has released five singles and an EP.
History
Michael "Mikey" Foster and Charles "Scootie" Anderson formed Social House in 2015 after moving to Los Ange ...
as her opening acts. On December 10, 2018, due to popular demand, second shows were added in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Brooklyn, New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, Philadelphia, and Toronto. On January 14, 2019, the shows in Chicago, Indianapolis, Columbus, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Saint Paul, Denver and Salt Lake City were rescheduled and the shows in Omaha and Raleigh were cancelled due to Grande headlining the
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...
on April 14 and April 21, 2019, and a new show was added in Las Vegas.
On May 28, 2019, the shows in Tampa and Orlando were cancelled and rescheduled due to illness.
![191201 Normani at 93](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/191201_Normani_at_93.3_FLZ_Jingle_Ball_%282%29.png)
On December 14, 2018, Grande announced the European dates for the tour. A special show was being planned in Manchester. The second leg of the tour had 30 shows and visited 19 cities across Europe, beginning on August 17, 2019, in London and concluded on October 16, 2019, in London. Pre-sale for the tickets for the second leg of the tour took place between December 19 and December 21, 2018, for the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, and between December 18 and December 20, 2018, for all other dates. On December 20, 2018, tickets were opened to the general public (excluding the United Kingdom), and due to popular demand, additional shows were added in Amsterdam, Paris and Dublin.
On December 21, 2018, tickets were opened to the general public in the United Kingdom, and due to popular demand, additional shows were added in London and Birmingham. On February 25, 2019, due to popular demand, additional shows were added in Hamburg and Dublin. On March 5, 2019, Grande announced that
Ella Mai
Ella Mai Howell (born 3 November 1994) is an English singer-songwriter. Her musical career began at London's British and Irish Modern Music Institute in 2014, during which time she auditioned as part of a trio on the 11th season of ''The X Fa ...
would be the opening act for the European leg of the tour. On June 11, 2019, due to popular demand, additional shows were added in London.
On August 9, 2019, the first show in Hamburg and the show in Prague were rescheduled, and the show in Kraków was cancelled.
On June 20, 2019, Grande announced another North American leg of the tour. The third leg of the tour visited 18 cities and had 20 shows across the United States, including the rescheduled Tampa and Orlando shows, beginning on November 9, 2019, in Uniondale and concluding on December 22, 2019, in Inglewood. Pre-sale for the tickets for the third leg of the tour took place between June 26 and June 30, 2019. On July 1, 2019, tickets were opened to the general public.
On July 11, 2019, due to popular and high demand, additional shows were added in San Francisco and Inglewood.
Grande announced she would be partnering with nonprofit voter registration group
HeadCount to register new voters ahead of the 2020 presidential election in March via Instagram. She encouraged fans to "use your voice and get your 'thank u, next gen' sticker." In July, it was reported that HeadCount registered twice as many voters in partnership with Grande than any other tour over the last three years and that the Sweetener World Tour was the most successful artist tour for voter registration HeadCount has seen since 2008. In December, it was announced that the tour broke the organization's all-time record, with 33,381 voter registrations and actions.
Stage and aesthetic
Grande wore costumes from
Versace
Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978 known for flashy prints and bright colors. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as w ...
and Michael Ngo on stage. She enlisted Brian and Scott Nicholson as creative directors, LeRoy Bennett as production designer, and Jason Baeri as lighting director. Designed based on the idea of a
sphere
A sphere () is a Geometry, geometrical object that is a solid geometry, three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the Locus (mathematics), set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three ...
, the tour stage was intended to deliver an abstract and "ethereal" aesthetic. It included a semicircular runway that looped around an audience pit, a large screen at the back with a hemisphere-like projection, and a large orb—nicknamed "the moon" by fans and Grande herself—that descended briefly as Grande sang on the
B-stage
A B-stage is a small, secondary stage, featured at pop and rock concerts held in arenas and stadiums, and is usually located in the middle of the concert floor, connected to the main stage by a walkway.
Origins
Although its origins trace ba ...
in the middle of the pit. The moon and the projection screen were both inflatable, requiring a set-up period of six to eight hours, although Grande's team assembled everything in 45 minutes for her Coachella set. Bennett likened the show's feel more to a play than to a pop show: "Usually you are trying to appropriately match the energy of a song with action and accent to tell a story along with the music and lyrics; the language of this show was different in that we were striving to create static tableaus and grand gestures as an environment for her to play in front of, much like a unit set in a play."
Critical reception
The tour has received positive reviews from critics. Brittany Spanos from ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' gave the opening night at Albany a positive review, stating that "Grande's new world tour is full of emotional drama, iconic looks, and undeniable hits". Spanos also commented on Grande's looks, stating that "fewer and fewer young stars today have the kind of distinctive aesthetic that can be reproduced en masse by fans, but Grande has dedicated years to perfecting how she has presented herself. In 2019, it seems the world has finally caught up to her. Or, as her frequent collaborator and friend
Nicki Minaj
Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...
predicted on “
Side to Side
"Side To Side" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande, featuring Nicki Minaj, from Grande's third studio album, ''Dangerous Woman'' (2016). Grande co-wrote the song with Savan Kotecha, Alexander Kronlund, and Minaj along with its producers M ...
” three years ago: “Ariana run pop." Chris Richards of the ''
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' gave a positive review to Grande's show in Washington D.C, stating that "Ariana Grande reached the height of her fame by making heavy feel light". He praised her vocals stating that "Grande's voice is equal parts breathy and acrobatic, and she knows how to hit a big note like she's whispering it". Chris Willman of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' praised Grande's two night show at the
Staples Center
Crypto.com Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999; it was ...
in Los Angeles, calling the show "giddy, splendorous, beautifully designed, expertly performed and almost a little bit avant-garde in its staging". He also stated that it was "much more than at Coachella, her visually experimental Staples stop was revealed as a thing of inventive beauty, not to mention expertly sung fun."
The second leg of the tour in Europe has also received positive reviews. Adam White of ''The Telegraph'' gave the show a 5 out of 5 stars, stating that the show was "a night of magic and melancholy from the most exciting young star in pop". Cydney Yeates of ''Metro'' gave the show 4 out of 5 stars, stating that "there's nothing more to say now besides God*is*a woman and her name is Ariana Grande." Hannah Mylrea of ''NME'' noted that "the production was fairly understated, putting the full focus on her impressive vocals, but there were moments of impressive choreography".
Grande's headlining performance at the 2019 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was praised by critics, with many praising her vocals, visuals, and guest appearances, particularly the appearance of
NSYNC
NSYNC (, ; also stylized as *NSYNC or 'N Sync) was an American boy band formed by Chris Kirkpatrick in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich. Their self-titled debut album was successfully released to European ...
. Shad Powers of ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'' stated that "Grande closed out Weekend One of Coachella in style, putting together a set that included special guests, stunning visuals, and of course her undeniable voice." Rhian Daly of ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' called her set "a breathtaking moment of light in a dark world". She also stated that, after the end of the set, "the feeling was already mutual long before Grande took to the stage but
..its foundations are more solid than ever". In another positive review, Ben Beaumont-Thomas of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' stated that "with her headline set surveying her entire career,
rande'swork forms a fascinating, still-unfolding pop Bildungsroman: every sexual epiphany and personal milestone sketched out in real time, resulting in a uniquely involving opus. You can see why she is such an icon to a generation who also tell their own stories in public, via
Snapchat
Snapchat is an American multimedia instant messaging app and service developed by Snap Inc., originally Snapchat Inc. One of the principal features of Snapchat is that pictures and messages are usually only available for a short time before the ...
and
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
." Claire Shaffer from ''Rolling Stone'' stated that "Grande gave a star-studded headlining performance", naming NSYNC's guest appearance as one of the best moments of the 2019 Coachella. Suzy Exposito continued, "Grande became one of the boys that night, claiming Timberlake’s verses from the center stage and whipping her lustrous, anime pony like a boss." Lyndsey Havens of ''
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 advertise ...
'' called Grande's set "epic" and stated that she "continues to rewrite the rule book for pop stardom and admittedly fosters a new relationship with herself." She praised Grande's collaboration with NSYNC, stating "all together with Grande, they delivered well-practiced choreography, sang the track she samples with her filling in for Timberlake and finally ended with "Tearin' Up My Heart."
Commercial performance
The Sweetener World Tour grossed over $146.4 million with 1.3 million tickets sold. It surpassed her previous tour, the Dangerous Woman Tour (which grossed $71.1) as her best-grossing and biggest tour to date. The tour grossed $106.9 million in the U.S. and Canada and $39.5 million in Europe. Overall, Grande's total tour figures extend to $243.5 million with 2.7 million tickets sold from 229 shows. Due to high demand, seconds shows were added in Boston, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Toronto, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Dallas, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville, Brooklyn (another show would be added later on), New York City, London (4 more shows were added later on), Amsterdam (another show would be added), Paris, Birmingham, Hamburg, Dublin (two more shows would be added), San Francisco, and Inglewood.
Set list
This set list is representative of the first show in Albany, performed in March 18, 2019.
It does not represent all concerts for the duration of the tour.
#"Raindrops (An Angel Cried)"
#"
God Is a Woman"
#"
Bad Idea”
#"
Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored
"Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored" (stylized in all lowercase) is a song by American singer Ariana Grande from her fifth studio album, ''Thank U, Next'' (2019). The song was written by Grande, Savan Kotecha, Kandi Burruss, Kevin Briggs ...
"
#"
R.E.M.
R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternative ...
"
#"
Be Alright"
#"
Sweetener
{{Wiktionary, sweetener
A sweetener is a substance added to food or drink to impart the flavor of sweetness, either because it contains a type of sugar, or because it contains a sweet-tasting sugar substitute. Many artificial sweeteners have been ...
"
#"Successful"
#"
Side to Side
"Side To Side" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande, featuring Nicki Minaj, from Grande's third studio album, ''Dangerous Woman'' (2016). Grande co-wrote the song with Savan Kotecha, Alexander Kronlund, and Minaj along with its producers M ...
"
#"
Bloodline
Heredity, also called inheritance or biological inheritance, is the passing on of traits from parents to their offspring; either through asexual reproduction or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or organisms acquire the genetic inform ...
"
#"
7 Rings
"7 Rings" (stylised in all lowercase) is a song by American singer Ariana Grande, from her fifth studio album ''Thank U, Next''. It was released as the album's second single on January 18, 2019, through Republic Records. The song was written by ...
"
#"
Love Me Harder
"Love Me Harder" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande and Canadian singer the Weeknd from Grande's second studio album, '' My Everything'' (2014). It was written by the Weeknd, Max Martin, Savan Kotecha, Peter Svensson, Ali Payami and Belly ...
"
#"
Breathin
"Breathin" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande and the third, final single from her fourth studio album ''Sweetener'' (2018). It was sent to contemporary hit radio stations in the United States on September 18, 2018. Produced by Ilya S ...
"
#"
Needy"
#"Fake Smile"
#"Make Up"
#"
Right There"
#"
You'll Never Know
"You'll Never Know", sometimes referred to as "''You'll Never Know (Just How Much I Love You)''" in later years, is a popular song with music written by Harry Warren and the lyrics by Mack Gordon. The song is based on a poem written by a young ...
"
#"
Break Your Heart Right Back"
#"
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...
"
#"Goodnight n Go"/"Tattooed heart" /"Honeymoon Avenue"/"Get Well soon"/"Only 1"
#"
Everytime
"Everytime" is a song by American singer Britney Spears from her fourth studio album, ''In the Zone'' (2003). It was released as the third single from ''In the Zone'' on May 10, 2004, by Jive Records. After her relationship with Justin Timberl ...
"
#"
One Last Time"
#"
The Light Is Coming
"The Light Is Coming" is a song by American singer Ariana Grande, featuring American rapper Nicki Minaj, released on June 20, 2018 as a promotional single of Grande's fourth studio album ''Sweetener''. Nicki Minaj wrote her intro while Ariana G ...
"
#"
Into You"
#"
Dangerous Woman
''Dangerous Woman'' is the third studio album by American singer Ariana Grande. It was released through Republic Records on May 20, 2016. Grande began work on the album shortly after the release of her second studio album '' My Everything'' (2 ...
"
#"
Break Free"
#"
No Tears Left to Cry"
#"
Thank U, Next
''Thank U, Next'' is the fifth studio album by American singer Ariana Grande, released on February 8, 2019, by Republic Records. It was released six months after her fourth studio album '' Sweetener'' (2018), conceived in the midst of Grande ...
"
Shows
Cancelled shows
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Ariana Grande
2019 concert tours
Ariana Grande concert tours