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I Am... (Beyoncé tour)

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I Am... Tour
World tour by Beyoncé
Location
  • North America
  • Europe
  • Asia
  • Oceania
  • Africa
  • South America
Associated albumI Am... Sasha Fierce
Start dateMarch 26, 2009
End dateFebruary 18, 2010
No. of shows104
Box office$119.5 million (108 shows)
Beyoncé concert chronology

I Am... Tour (also referred to as the I Am... World Tour) was the fourth concert tour by American performer and singer-songwriter Beyoncé Knowles, in support of her third studio album, I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008), consisting of 110 concerts across six continents. Two months of preparations for the tour began eight months prior to its commencement, with daily twelve-hour rehearsals. The tour was announced in October 2008, and began in March 2009 with five preliminary ’rehearsal’ shows in North America. Knowles has described the I Am... World Tour as her best and most theatrical of all of her tours.

The set list for the tour included songs from Knowles' previous three studio albums, several covers of songs by other artists, as well as a Destiny's Child medley. The central theme of the tour was to showcase the differences between Knowles' dual ‘personas’—her real, ‘Beyoncé’ self compared to her confident, sexier stage-persona, ‘Sasha Fierce’—a theme which was also explored on her then-album, the dual record I Am... Sasha Fierce. The show featured two stages – the primary performance stage and a smaller B-stage, which Knowles was transferred to during the middle of the show. She was backed by a ten-member, all-female band, The Sugar Mamas (also known as Suga Mama),[1] female background dancers, and a large LED video screen. Thierry Mugler collaborated with Knowles on the costumes and was given a creative-advisor role, further collaborating on choreography, lighting and production. Chris March made the costumes usable and wearable for the stage and helped in their construction. For the ballad performances, Knowles wore longer, glamorous dresses; for the performances of up-tempo songs, more make-up was applied and more revealing outfits were worn. The fashion, as well as Knowles' looks and overall physique, received notable praise from critics and fans. The show was directed and choreographed by Frank Gatson Jr.

I Am... received critical acclaim from music journalists and fans alike, with many praising Knowles' performance skills and calling her the “best” current female performer. A concert in Malaysia, however, was cancelled by Knowles herself, after several Muslim groups tried to ban it on the grounds of revealing costumes—despite it being a family-friendly show, and Beyoncé having originally agreed to tone-down her looks, as per the country's standards. Nevertheless, the entire tour was commercially successful, grossing $86.0 million from the first 93 shows in total. Separate and one-off performances of several songs were broadcast on different channels; two concerts were released as live albums, and the live performance at the I Am... Yours revue was released as a CD/DVD recording (2009). Footage of the tour was released on a similarly titled live album (2010).

Background

[edit]
Knowles performing "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" (left) and "Diva" (right) during the I Am... tour while being backed by dancers. Both songs were part of the Sasha Fierce disc on the double album I Am... Sasha Fierce which was dedicated to her eponymous alter ego.

In 2006, during an interview with MTV News, Beyoncé introduced an aggressive alter ego, Sasha Fierce, which also served as her stage persona. She added that the persona is a complete opposite of her when not performing by characterizing her as "aggressive... strong... fearless."[2] Beyoncé's third album I Am... Sasha Fierce introduced Sasha Fierce as her alter ego. she revealed that Sasha was born during the making of her single "Crazy in Love" (2003).[3] The plans for a 2009 tour in support of the album were announced in October 2008 by Billboard magazine.[4] The tour dates for the European leg were announced in December 2008. During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Beyoncé confirmed that she would be backed by the all-female band which had also accompanied her for her previous The Beyoncé Experience tour (2007). Rehearsals for the tour lasted eight months during which the set list for the shows was also constructed.[5] Beyoncé further revealed that the twelve-hour rehearsals for the tour included dancing the choreography in heels for two months before it commenced.[6] During an interview, Beyoncé emphasized how she needed to prepare to channel her alter ego for the performances.[6][7] According to Beyoncé, the shows were supposed to be a mixture of several of her musical preferences, including jazz, hip-hop, ballet and fashion.[8]

The tour kicked off in late-March 2009 with five rehearsal shows in North America. It officially commenced in late April 2009, at Arena Zagreb in Croatia later visiting six continents, namely the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia.[9][10] The six-week North American leg of the I Am... tour kicked off on June 21 with a show at Madison Square Garden in New York and finished with a four-night residency at Encore in the Wynn Las Vegas from July 30, 2009 to August 2, 2009.[11] The tour finished with a concert at Queen's Park Savannah in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, with 108 shows in total. Beyoncé and her organization, The Survivor Foundation, became the spokesperson for General Mills' Hamburger Helper campaign entitled, "Show Your Helping Hand".[12] The campaign's mission was to provide more than 3.5 million meals to local food banks in North America.[13] Knowles encouraged spectators to bring non-perishable foods to her North American concerts to be donated to the campaign.[12] According to the campaign's official website, nearly three millions meals and over $50,000 have been donated.

Development

[edit]
Knowles performing "Smash Into You" (left) and "Halo" (right) during a stop of the I Am... tour at The O2 Arena in London. The performances saw her singing the songs on a staircase which was the largest piece of equipment on stage.

Beyoncé revealed that the hardest aspect of coming up with the tour's set list was managing to fit her decade-long song catalogue in a two-hour show.[11] According to her, the tour was supposed to be more emotional than The Beyoncé Experience in order to reflect the "real[,] raw and more sensitive" nature of the I Am... portion of the double album.[11] Beyoncé expressed frustration that snippets of the show appeared online after the first shows on the opening leg, thus "ruining" the surprise factor of the concert experience; however she also appreciated the fact that it can act as a "little sneak peek" for fans to decide if they indeed want to attend.[11] French designer Thierry Mugler served as the creative advisor while also being responsible for Beyoncé's wardrobe. He contributed in the design of lighting, choreography, production and directed three sequences for the concert.[14] According to his creative vision, the shows were intended to represent mise-en-scène by incorporating technical aspects with fashion in order to capture the emotions behind the songs. He added, "There will be a lot of dramatization and metamorphosis on stage. Some very strong effects have been inspired directly by Beyoncé, and only she could make [them] happen on stage."[15][16]

Onstage, Beyoncé was backed by her ten-piece all-female band, Suga Mama, which included two drummers, two keyboardists, a percussionist, a horn section, three backup vocalists called the Mamas, and a lead guitarist.[17][18] The show featured two stages, namely a simple main stage with a pop-up set of stairs, an LED background screen, and glass risers for Suga Mama and The Mamas as well as a smaller B-stage in the midst of the audience for the later portions of the show. During the concerts, Beyoncé went through six costume changes; during the breaks, The Mamas harmonized.[19][20] The set list included songs from all of Beyoncé's three studio albums that had been published, a Destiny's Child medley and several covers of other artists.[21] Several critics noted that the songs on the set list were divided into ballads and more up-tempo songs to coincide with the central theme of I Am... Sasha Fierce – the dual personality of Beyoncé. Beyoncé's costumes were changed in order to coincide with the songs' nature; during performances of ballads, she wore longer white dresses while for the uptempo songs, she had more revealing outfits and make-up.[22]

Fashion

[edit]
Thierry Mugler design sketches for the wardrobe of the I Am... tour. The words "Feminine. Free. Warrior. Fierce" were used as inspiration for the look during the concerts.

Thierry Mugler served as the main costume designer for the tour. Beyoncé was acquainted to and enraptured by his work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala, titled "Superheroes, Fashion and Fantasy" (2008) where she saw several of his haute couture pieces that were on display.[14] Beyoncé discussed the possibility of using the costumes with Tina Knowles.[15] She met with Mugler in Paris in September of the same year and started exchanging ideas for costume designs and the following month he was contracted as the designer for the tour.[15][23] While designing, the main concept Mugler wanted to illustrate was the duality between "being a woman and a warrior" through his own creative perception; the words "Feminine. Free. Warrior. Fierce" were the overarching inspiration.[16] He felt, "Sasha Fierce is another aspect of Beyoncé's personality, she is Fierce on stage and Beyoncé in real life... Beyoncé is a very sophisticated 'stage animal', which means that she is truly instinctive. Beyoncé expresses herself through the two aspects of her personality."[15] Furthermore, the elaborate costumes were related to the meanings of the songs performed.[16]

A seventy one piece wardrobe was designed for Beyoncé and her dancers and band. For the shows, Beyoncé adopted ten different looks. American fashion designer Chris March also worked with Mugler ensuring the costumes were suitable for stage purposes. On July 23, 2009, March filed a lawsuit against Mugler for allegedly not paying him for the work he did on the wardrobe.[23][24] Metal pieces, fishnets, gloves, power shoulders and golden leotards were all incorporated in the costumes, the majority of which were form-fitting and exposed the singer's legs.[15][21] Michael Quintanilla of San Antonio Express-News thought the fashion was akin to a "high-tech Blade Runner world".[15] For the performance of several songs, Beyoncé also wore leopard-print pants and glow-in-the-dark bra with a blinking beacon affixed to her body.[25]

The fashion and Beyoncé's look during the shows received praise from critics. Randall King of the Winnipeg Free Press noted that the fashion was inspired by "1970s space movie" fashion by Bob Mackie.[17] Alice Jones of The Independent noted: "[the list of] 30 songs introduces us to any number of different Beyoncés – showgirl, balladeer, feminist, rock chick, gangster queen, cyborg – via off-stage costume changes and a leotard for every mood".[26] Kathy McCabe of The Daily Telegraph noted that the shows featured "some of the most elaborate and revealing costumes of her career" thus far.[27] A writer of the Evening Chronicle wrote that the sparkling outfits managed to capture the singer's personality with looks ranging from "NYPD cop to bride to Wonderwoman and beyond" all the while emphasizing her physique.[28] Holly Burnes of The Daily Telegraph also praised the fashion writing that the singer's look included "one incredible costume after another: from a Mad Max look... to an angelic wedding dress[29] Jay Hanna of The Sunday Times compared Beyoncé's look to a goddess, particularly with the costume she wore for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)".[30]

Concert synopsis

[edit]
Beyoncé pictured during the opening and the closing sequence of the show. During the beginning of the concert, she appeared on stage surrounded by smoke and struck a pose in silhouette (left). The final of the show saw Knowles on top of a staircase repeatedly saying "I am", awaiting the crowd to say it back (right).

The show started with Beyoncé's silhouette appearing on a smoky stage, walking towards the front while singing several lines of "Déjà Vu".[22][31] Dressed in a gold leotard and stilettos, she was quickly joined by two dancers in catsuits proceeding to perform "Crazy in Love"; during the performance of the song glitter and confetti were dropped on stage.[26][32] "Naughty Girl" was performed next as bright orange lights were displayed on stage.[22] For the performance of "Freakum Dress", Beyoncé was accompanied by a guitarist onstage, bending backwards during the song's bridge.[31] "Get Me Bodied" followed, for which the singer was engaging in elaborate dance routines with her background dancers.[20][33] Following a short break, Beyoncé proceeded singing songs from the I Am... portion of the album, dressed in a white leotard. "Smash Into You" was performed on top of a flight of stairs.[31] For "Ave Maria", her background dancers turned her white dress into a wedding gown by attaching a veil to her head.[34] Excerpts of Sarah McLachlan's "Angel" and Franz Schubert's Ave Maria" were performed at the end.[26][31] She continued on to sing "Broken-Hearted Girl" wearing a white bustier with a sheer, flowing wrap.[20] Outtakes from the music video of "If I Were a Boy" were Beyoncé appeared to perform the aforementioned song dressed as a cop wearing Ray-Bans and a leather breastplate.[20][26] Excerpts from Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know" and Tupac Shakur's "California Love" were incorporated in the middle of the song.[31][35] A video interlude directed by Melina Matsoukas was shown set to "Sweet Dreams".[35] The video showed a robotic Beyoncé interacting with a cheetah as a mechanical voice intoned Sasha Fierce.[31] Beyoncé then appeared on stage dressed in a leopard-print leotard to perform "Diva".[26][33] She appeared at the top of the staircase with her backup female dancers; a video interlude showing a five-year old Beyoncé singing and dancing was shown in the middle of the song.[31] She then sang "Radio" while the clip of her dancing as ac child was still projected on the screen.[33] "Me, Myself and I" was introduced with a brief speech about female empowerment.[31][33] "Ego" and "Hello" were performed afterwards.[33]

Knowles being lifted with a harness during the performance of "Baby Boy" (left) and transported to a B-stage where she performed several songs near the audience (right).

The show continued with a short medley performed by her backup singers, The Mamas, followed by another video interlude, featuring Sasha Fierce.[32] Beyoncé appeared on stage after a gong bang; she was lifted out of a 20-foot train by a harness and performed "Baby Boy" while high-stepping and front-flipping above the audience.[18][26] She was then lowered to the B-stage where she finished the song and continued with a cover Dawn Penn's "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)". A stripped-down version of "Irreplaceable" was sung afterwards with frequent crowd interactions.[31] Beyoncé then continued with "Check On It" and a medley of Destiny's Child hits including "Bootylicious", "Jumpin' Jumpin'", "Independent Women", "Bills, Bills, Bills" and "Survivor".[30][31] Performances of "Upgrade U" and "Video Phone" followed. For the performance of the two songs, Beyoncé was accompanied by two female dancers and three male dancers, one of whom recorded a live stream of her with a camera throughout the routine during the performance of the latter song.[33] This was followed by a rendition of "Say My Name" where she interacted with members of the audience, asking them to say her name.[35] The concert followed back at the main stage where for the penultimate section, Beyoncé appeared wearing a gown and singing "At Last". A footage of her performance of the song at Barack Obama's inauguration as President of the United States, video images of civil rights era footage and snippets from her performance of the song in the movie, Cadillac Records (2008) were shown on the screen behind here.[18][19][31] "Listen" was performed afterwards.[26] This was followed by a YouTube video interlude featuring imitations of the choreography of "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" performed by fans as well as Barack Obama and Justin Timberlake.[27][31] Beyoncé then performed the song's trademark choreography accompanied by two female back-up dancers.[18] For the finale, an extended version of "Halo" was performed while the singer descended from the stage to shake hands with fans in the front rows.[31][36] She then went to the top of the staircase and repeatedly said "I am", awaiting the crowd to say it back. The letters "I am... yours" were displayed on the screen as she exited the stage.[31][36]

Critical response

[edit]
Knowles performing "Ave María" (left) and "Scared of Lonely" (right)

Beyonce's entrance at the O2 makes the finale of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' seem like an exercise in tasteful understatement. As dry ice gusts wildly about the stage and Wagnerian horns blare, a statuesque silhouette appears, hand on hips, head tilted imperiously. Then the swelling intro to 'Crazy In Love' kicks in, the smoke clears, and there stands Beyonce, superhumanly buff and glamorous. You are left in no doubt that tonight you are in the presence of pop royalty ... There's so much glittering spectacle that you could be at a lavish Broadway musical or a presidential inauguration ... Pop music doesn't get any smarter, sassier or more spectacular.

—Nick Kelly, Irish Independent[25]

The tour received rave reviews from critics. Mike Ross of the website Jam! rated Beyoncé's performance with 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising the "high-production", the singer's wide vocal range and her "riveting presence".[37] Stephanie Classen of The Star Phoenix remarked, "Beyoncé doesn't really need the bells and whistles of a big stadium show, but it sure makes for an unforgettable concert."[38] Randall King of the Winnipeg Free Press graded the tour 4 stars out of 5 and praised the "back and forth" switch between the double persona throughout the show with the singer exhibiting both "raw energy" and "feeling"-induced ballads.[17] Alice Jones of The Independent emphasized how the singer managed to "sing her heart out" in various musical styles that characterize the show's songs while further praising the energetic choreography and the vocals that range from "caramel smooth to honeyed foghorn".[26] She concluded her review by saying, "Watching Beyoncé sing and strut her stuff can feel at best overawing, at worst, alienating".[26]

Ben Ratliff of The New York Times observed that the show would make spectators question themselves how the singer managed to put on a "dazzling show" both physically and organizationally; he further praised the singer's "hollering voice, her imperious movement, her costume changes and the show's crush of concepts with their long tails of reference".[18] Deborah Mcaleese and Lauren Mulvenny of The Belfast Telegraph described the show as "incredible... mind blowing... [and] electrifying".[39] A writer of Evening Chronicle wrote that the show's set abounded with "bling, glamour and, most importantly, enthusiasm", further praising her for the well-coordinated balance between "hit[ting] every note" and following elaborate choreographies.[28] Jay Hanna of The Sunday Times felt that the show's encore ("Halo") was the most memorable moment of the set. She also praised the singer's "enviable" dancing skills, "spectacular production and audio visuals" but noted that some songs "let down" the performance by being less melodic.[30] Jay Lustig of The Star-Ledger described the show as a "bona fide pop spectacle" with futuristic themes throughout.[32] Jim Farber from the Daily News viewed the tour as "a huge upgrade in charm, humor and chops" as compared to The Beyoncé Experience and added that "Beyoncé's presence punctuated her singing like an exclamation point".

Describing the show as simultaneously "spellbinding, exhausting to watch and hugely slick", Michael Cragg of musicOMH noted that the highlights included songs from the Sasha Fierce half of the album.[22] Caryn Ganz of Rolling Stone magazine praised the show, lauding the singer for her work ethic and the ability to execute singing, dancing and posing at the same time.[31] Jayson Rodriguez of MTV News, commented "Through six outfit changes, bombastic ballads, high-energy singles and a daring high-wire journey from the stage to the center of the arena, Beyoncé delivered over and over again."[20] A writer of Billboard magazine noted that Knowles "brought all the fierceness" on stage for the tour.[33] The Australian's Patrick Emery noted that Knowles showcased her self-assurance and professionalism in "full view".[36] Comparing her performance with Michael Jackson's live shows, Renee Michelle Harris of the South Florida Times writes, "[Knowles] owns the stage with her trademark swagger and intensity... showcasing her powerful vocals without missing a note, often while engaged in vigorous, perfectly executed dance moves".[19] Holly Burnes of The Daily Telegraph noted that the performance was almost inimitable and added "Whether crumping, sweeping across the stage in towering heels, or simply standing still, Beyonce was dynamite, blasting the benchmark for concert performers forever".[29]

Simon Colling from The West Australian described the performance as "powerhouse" and added, "Beyonce's high-energy, high-voltage mix of song (loud, commercial R&B) and dance recalled names like Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin and rapper Missy Elliott... [and] Mariah Carey". Joanna Horowitz of The Seattle Times noted that despite the inclusion of almost 10 different musical styles in the show's set list, the singer's "own [musical] signature" and focus were lacking. Nevertheless, Horowitz praised the singer's performing skills and summarized the concert as "a hip-hop Cirque du Soleil — sequins galore, dramatic dance numbers, and Beyoncé at one point soaring".[21] The Observer's Barbara Ellen wrote, "she is a force of nature – delivering one of the most enjoyable well-paced shows I've seen in years".[40] However, she noted that Knowles is "so steeped in professionalism that what should be magical can become mechanical."[40] Noting influences by Tina Turner and Barbra Streisand during the tour, Ann Powers of Los Angeles Times writes: "And she danced like only Beyonce can dance, with a combination of power, grace and smarts that fully unites Broadway choreography with urban street innovations ... Indeed, her production can be seen as a retelling of pop's history from a feminine viewpoint -- and as an argument for Beyonce as the ultimate realization of the female pop dream."[41]

Ben Ratliff of The New York Times summarized the tour's concept as "the duality of well-meaning good girl and rapacious animal-robot-dance-titan."[18] Jay Lustig of The Star-Ledger concluded that the album's split personality was reflected in the show naturally enough.[32] However, Barbara Ellen of The Observer wrote, "Another irritant is the much-trumpeted 'duality' nonsense with Sasha Fierce, Beyoncé's alter-ego for her latest album. All 'Sasha' does here is flail about in a video, no different from regular Beyoncé, except for a gold dress and a hairdo that veers dangerously towards Liberace."[40] Similarly, Ann Powers from the Los Angeles Times wrote that the only thing which was not fully realized was the show's "overarching" theme, "Beyonce meant to represent herself as a split personality, tender and open on the one hand, indomitable and rather scary on the other. But Beyonce has chosen the wrong dichotomy to represent herself."[41]

Commercial performance

[edit]

Tickets for the American leg of the tour were available for pre-sale for members of Knowles' fan club on April 20, 2008 and the official tickets went on sale to the general public through Ticketmaster on April 25. In late May 2009, Knowles' label announced through a press release that the singer decided to set aside 2,000 seats for each date on her then-forthcoming North American tour at a discounted price of $20.[42] After already selling 1,000 tickets per show for the special low price, the last 1,000 discounted seats for each show were made available to the public on May 29, 2009 through Ticketmaster (with the exception of the artist's four-night residency at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas).[43] Due to the big demand, Sony Music announced additional dates in England, Asia and South America.[11] In May 2009, Knowles' official website was peppered with requests by disappointed fans — from Boston; Anchorage, Alaska; Tampa, Florida; St. Louis and Montreal — who asked from her to come to their towns.[11] Knowles broke her record of concert attendees by selling out the Morumbi Stadium in São Paulo, Brazil, with over 60,000 tickets sold.[44] It was reported to Billboard that as of September 16, 2009, from the 53 shows, Knowles grossed $53.5 million and drawn 667,509 fans from the mostly 15,000-seat arenas.[45] In 2009, the tour was nominated for Eventful Fans' Choice Award at the 6th Annual Billboard Touring Awards.[46] The tour grossed $86 million from 93 concert shows[47][48] and 108 show total grossed $119,5 million.[49]

Controversy in Malaysia

[edit]
Knowles on tour. For the performances of "If I Were a Boy" (left) she wore futuristic designs and heralded the arrival of her onstage persona while a white dress was designed for the performances of "Broken-Hearted Girl" (right) and other ballads to show her emotional side.

In September 2009, it was announced by the Associated Press that Knowles would be bringing her tour to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with a show scheduled for 25 October. However, despite the singer’s largely "squeaky-clean", respectable reputation, some of Knowles' skimpier outfits and potentially suggestive dance moves would have to be slightly edited and changed to suit the conservative, predominantly Muslim, Southeast Asian country. This agreement came after Knowles received word of opposition, mainly from the Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party, which stated: "We are against Western sexy performances; we don't think our people need that."[50] However, a representative soon issued a comment on behalf of the tour's Malaysian promoter, stating that "all parties have reached an amicable understanding" about the standards.[50] He went on, saying that Knowles could be regarded as a suitable "role model", as she is the "embodiment of success", as well as her philanthropic work, including campaigns against poverty and domestic violence, and visiting ill and dying children in hospital, while in Asia.[50] The promoter further told the Associated Press: "We are confident that Beyoncé's concert will once and for all silence international critics and put Malaysia back on track and move up the ranks in presenting A-list international pop concerts in this region and further boost tourism."[51]

However, in early October 2009, it was suddenly announced that the concert had been delayed again, in the wake of new concerns (by Islamic conservatives) that the show would simply be too "immoral and unclean".[52] Malaysian promoter Marctensia said, in a statement, that the show had been "postponed to a future date", to be announced soon thereafter, adding that: "The postponement is solely [the] decision of the artist and has nothing to with other external reasons."[53] Another representative declined to comment on whether or not the show was postponed due to the heavy criticism it was receiving from religious leaders in the country.[50] The tour also faced oppositions by Islamic conservatives in Egypt, who branded it as an "insolent sex party" that threatens the Muslim nation's "social peace and stability", despite the singer being in love, and married, to Jay-Z, and overall a very private person.[54] Two years prior to this performance, in 2007, Knowles' a show in Malaysia but backed out due to similar protests regarding her performance.[55]

Recordings and broadcasts

[edit]
Knowles performing "Crazy in Love" with Jay-Z during the I Am... tour stop at The O2 arena in London
Main articles: I Am... Yours: An Intimate Performance at Wynn Las Vegas and I Am... World Tour (album)

While the singer was on tour, she was asked to perform a Las Vegas residency-type of show.[56] Knowles and her team produced the shows in seven days and entitled it I Am... Yours. She performed an unplugged, acoustic styled show different from the rest of her tour, at the Encore Theater in Las Vegas.[57] The show on August 2, 2009 was recorded and later released as a DVD, audio CD and television special in late November 2009 titled I Am... Yours: An Intimate Performance at Wynn Las Vegas.[9][58][59] The DVD was commercially successful peaking at number one on the Nielsen SoundScan Music DVD chart.[60] It was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[61] Another live CD/DVD of the tour was released as I Am... World Tour in late November 2010.[62] The album contained performances from different stops of the tour blended with personal footage of Knowles' backstage work and thoughts about the tour and her life.[63] It served as the directorial debut for Knowles.[64] The DVD was commercially successful becoming the best selling DVD in the world in 2010.[65]

Parts of the show in Vancouver on March 31, 2009 were recorded and have been used for commercial use, as well as photos from the show used in the official tour book and other promotional items.[66] "If I Were A Boy" and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" from the show in New Orleans were recorded and shown on TV One as a part of the Essence Music Festival in 2009.[67] A CD and DVD, released on June 15, 2010, featured her performance of "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)".[68] "Crazy In Love", "Freakum Dress", "Get Me Bodied", "Smash Into You" and "Broken-Hearted Girl" from the show in Donetsk, Ukraine, were recorded professionally and shown on TRK Ukraina as part of their footage of the Donbas Arena opening.[69] "Crazy In Love" and "Single Ladies" were professionally recorded at the Summer Sonic Festival in Osaka, Japan and used to promote Knowles' Japanese tour.[70] "Crazy In Love" and "Naughty Girl" were also professionally recorded at the 2009 Singapore Grand Prix F1 Rocks event in Singapore for Channel HD 5 Live coverage.[71] "Crazy In Love" was recorded professionally and shown on Frecuencia Latina from the show in Lima, Peru at the Explanada del Estadio Monumental.[72]

Opening acts

[edit]

Set list

[edit]

The following set list is not representative of all concerts for the duration of the tour.[31]

  1. "Crazy in Love" (contains elements of "Déjà Vu" and "I Just Wanna Love U")
  2. "Naughty Girl"
  3. "Freakum Dress"
  4. "Get Me Bodied"
  5. "Smash Into You"
  6. "Ave Maria" (contains elements of "Ellens dritter Gesang") / "Angel"
  7. "Broken-Hearted Girl"
  8. "If I Were a Boy" (contains excerpts of "You Oughta Know" and "California Love")
  9. "Diva"
  10. "Radio"
  11. "Me, Myself and I"
  12. "Ego"
  13. "Hello"
  14. "Baby Boy" / "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)"
  15. "Irreplaceable"
  16. "Check on It"
  17. Destiny's Child Medley: "Bootylicious" / "Bug a Boo" / "Jumpin', Jumpin'" (contains elements of "Independent Women Part I", "Survivor" and "Bills, Bills, Bills")
  18. "Upgrade U"
  19. "Video Phone"
  20. "Say My Name"
  21. "At Last"
  22. "Listen"
  23. "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"
  24. "Halo"

Notes

[edit]
  • As the grand opening of Donetsk's new sporting arena, the Donbas Arena drew near, it was announced by local organizers that Knowles' will perform as part of her tour. The ceremony involved a dance production dedicated to Ukraine's miners. Local artists Natal'ya Mogilevskaya, Svetlana Loboda and Aliona Vinnitskaya performed Queen's "We Will Rock You". Afterwards, a speech by Victor Yushchenko, president of Ukraine was given. Knowles performed audience of nearly 45,000.[89][90]
  • On June 9, 2009, Knowles was joined by George Michael on stage for the performance of "If I Were a Boy".[91]
  • On June 22, 2009, Jay-Z appeared on stage with Knowles in the middle of "Crazy in Love" and rapped a verse from his song "I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)".[18][20]
  • On July 3, 2009, during the Essence Music Festival, Knowles dedicated the performance to Michael Jackson following his death. A video of Knowles at the age five was projected on the screen showing her doing an impression of the artist. Knowles said, "That's when I decided who I wanted to be", stating that Jackson was responsible for the inspiration. She went on to sing "Halo" dedicating the lyrics to Jackson.[92]
  • On July 16, 2009, Solange Knowles appeared as a special guest during the show which was aimed to benefit the Charles & Phyllis Newman Foundation and Knowles' charitable organization, The Survivor Foundation.[93]
  • On November 15, 2009, Knowles was joined on stage by Kanye West who performed "Ego", and Jay-Z who rapped his verse on "Crazy in Love".[94]

Shows

[edit]
List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue, opening act, attendance and gross revenue[95][96][97][98][99][100][101][102][103][104][89][105][106][107][108][109][110][111][112]
Date City Country Venue Attendance Revenue
March 26, 2009 Edmonton Canada Rexall Place 6,618 / 10,596 $570,147
March 27, 2009 Saskatoon Credit Union Centre 5,280 / 9,847 $373,817
March 28, 2009 Winnipeg MTS Centre 8,971 / 8,971 $378,530
March 31, 2009 Vancouver General Motors Place 12,595 / 12,595 $869,402
April 1, 2009 Seattle United States KeyArena 10,579 / 10,579 $1,565,289
April 26, 2009 Zagreb Croatia Arena Zagreb 16,599 / 17,190 $821,482
April 28, 2009 Vienna Austria Wiener Stadthalle 4,150 / 5,100 $389,427
April 29, 2009 Budapest Hungary Budapest Sports Arena 9,000 / 9,000 $846,703
April 30, 2009 Prague Czech Republic O2 Arena 16,500 / 16,500 $1,612,045
May 2, 2009 Rotterdam Netherlands Sportpaleis van Ahoy 20,297 / 20,297 $1,410,944
May 3, 2009
May 5, 2009 Paris France Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy 16,149 / 16,149 $1,139,204
May 6, 2009 Strasbourg Zénith de Strasbourg 9,969 / 10,300 $855,004
May 7, 2009 Antwerp Belgium Sportpaleis 15,780 / 15,836 $1,031,961
May 8, 2009 Berlin Germany O2 World 10,039 / 12,477 $602,785
May 10, 2009 Herning Denmark Hall M 7,222 / 7,222 $514,196
May 11, 2009 Gothenburg Sweden Scandinavium 8,500 / 8,500 $882,782
May 13, 2009 Stockholm Ericsson Globe 10,640 / 10,640 $707,602
May 15, 2009 Oberhausen Germany König-Pilsener Arena 10,037 / 10,037 $958,070
May 16, 2009 Zürich Switzerland Hallenstadion 12,240 / 12,240 $1,280,043
May 18, 2009 Lisbon Portugal Pavilhão Atlântico 18,649 / 18,649 $1,180,524
May 19, 2009 Madrid Spain WiZink Center 15,061 / 15,061 $903,901
May 20, 2009 Barcelona Palau Sant Jordi 15,013 / 15,013 $958,351
May 22, 2009 Newcastle England Metro Radio Arena 10,446 / 11,153 $801,884
May 23, 2009 Birmingham National Indoor Arena 11,256 / 11,256 $837,761
May 25, 2009 London The O2 Arena 61,030 / 69,520 $4,546,510
May 26, 2009
May 27, 2009 Manchester Manchester Evening News Arena 14,592 / 14,830 $1,086,717
May 29, 2009 Dublin Ireland The O2 50,606 / 50,606 $4,504,426
May 30, 2009
May 31, 2009 Belfast Northern Ireland Odyssey Arena 19,600 / 19,600 $1,588,267
June 1, 2009
June 3, 2009 Dublin Ireland The O2 [a] [a]
June 4, 2009
June 6, 2009 Liverpool England Echo Arena Liverpool 10,730/ 10,730 $913,026
June 7, 2009 Sheffield Sheffield Arena 11,049 / 11,049 $901,750
June 8, 2009 London The O2 Arena [b] [b]
June 9, 2009
June 21, 2009 New York City United States Madison Square Garden 27,580 / 27,580 $3,526,375
June 22, 2009
June 23, 2009 Baltimore 1st Mariner Arena 8,619 / 8,619 $683,904
June 24, 2009 Washington, D.C. Verizon Center 12,993 / 12,993 $1,390,421
June 26, 2009 Philadelphia Wachovia Center 14,971 / 14,971 $1,377,995
June 27, 2009 Greensboro Greensboro Coliseum 10,600 / 10,600 $779,424
June 29, 2009 Sunrise BankAtlantic Center 11,711 / 13,209 $1,043,162
July 1, 2009 Atlanta Philips Arena 15,709 / 15,709 $1,281,632
July 3, 2009[c] New Orleans Louisiana Superdome — —
July 4, 2009 Houston Toyota Center 12,431 / 12,431 $1,158,361
July 5, 2009 Dallas American Airlines Center 11,319 / 11,906 $981,124
July 7, 2009 Phoenix US Airways Center 8,831 / 12,727 $483,805
July 9, 2009 Sacramento ARCO Arena 7,770 / 11,214 $583,801
July 10, 2009 Oakland Oracle Arena 10,250 / 11,653 $1,016,012
July 11, 2009 Anaheim Honda Center 9,924 / 12,287 $937,185
July 13, 2009 Los Angeles Staples Center 12,738 / 14,217 $1,437,146
July 16, 2009 Minneapolis Target Center 6,856 / 8,404 $633,501
July 17, 2009 Chicago United Center 13,852 / 14,773 $1,359,250
July 18, 2009 Auburn Hills The Palace of Auburn Hills 13,540 / 13,540 $860,250
July 20, 2009 Toronto Canada Molson Amphitheatre 16,000 / 16,000 $1,407,811
July 21, 2009 Montreal Bell Centre 10,630 / 10,630 $1,149,946
July 23, 2009 Uncasville United States Mohegan Sun Arena 4,444 / 4,450 $572,150
July 24, 2009 East Rutherford Izod Center 10,435 / 13,702 $968,245
August 7, 2009[d] Osaka Japan Maishima Sports Island — —
August 9, 2009[d] Chiba Chiba Marine Stadium
August 29, 2009[e] Donetsk Ukraine Donbas Arena — —
September 15, 2009 Melbourne Australia Rod Laver Arena 24,548 / 24,548 $2,988,575
September 16, 2009
September 18, 2009 Sydney Acer Arena 29,584 / 29,584 $3,541,073
September 19, 2009
September 20, 2009[f] Brisbane Brisbane Entertainment Centre 11,462 / 11,741 $1,537,052
September 22, 2009 Adelaide Adelaide Entertainment Centre 7,301 / 7,301 $936,951
September 24, 2009 Perth Burswood Dome 18,216 / 18,216 $2,271,739
September 26, 2009[g] Singapore Fort Canning — —
October 12, 2009 Kobe Japan World Memorial Hall 15,500 / 15,500 $1,491,274
October 13, 2009 Osaka Osaka-Jo Hall 8,500 / 8,500 $1,099,184
October 15, 2009 Nagoya Nippon Gaishi Hall 9,700 / 9,700 $1,011,452
October 17, 2009 Saitama Saitama Super Arena 30,000 / 30,000 $3,085,520
October 18, 2009
October 20, 2009 Seoul South Korea Olympic Gymnastics Arena 22,000 / 22,000 $3,061,631
October 21, 2009
October 23, 2009 Beijing China Wukesong Indoor Stadium 9,952 / 9,952 $1,010,745
October 29, 2009[h] Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates Du Arena — —
November 2, 2009 Moscow Russia Olimpiysky 16,900 / 16,900 $1,873,500
November 6, 2009 Marsa Alam Egypt The Island at Port Ghalib — —
November 8, 2009 Athens Greece O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall 15,279 / 15,279 $1,836,942
November 11, 2009 Liverpool England Echo Arena Liverpool 10,876 / 10,876 $1,029,875
November 12, 2009 Birmingham National Indoor Arena 11,164 / 11,164 $997,111
November 14, 2009 London The O2 Arena 34,600 / 34,600 $3,490,327
November 16, 2009
November 18, 2009 Manchester Manchester Evening News Arena 14,718 / 14,780 $1,223,034
November 19, 2009 Newcastle Metro Radio Arena 11,465 / 11,465 $1,046,547
November 20, 2009 Nottingham Trent FM Arena Nottingham 9,670 / 9,670 $940,571
November 22, 2009 Dublin Ireland 3Arena 25,094 / 25,158 $2,471,351
November 23, 2009
November 24, 2009 Belfast Northern Ireland Odyssey Arena 9,756 / 9,756 $876,653
February 4, 2010 Florianópolis Brazil Parque do Planeta Atlântida 20,362 / 20,362 $2,389,778
February 6, 2010 São Paulo Estádio do Morumbi 52,757 / 52,757 $4,286,984
February 7, 2010 Rio de Janeiro HSBC Arena 24,686 / 24,686 $2,960,140
February 8, 2010
February 10, 2010 Salvador Parque de Exposições 28,776 / 28,776 $2,661,909
February 12, 2010 Buenos Aires Argentina Hipódromo de San Isidro 8,467 / 8,467 $618,442
February 14, 2010 Santiago Chile Movistar Arena 8,914 / 8,914 $858,906
February 16, 2010 Lima Peru Explanada del Estadio Monumental 11,476 / 11,476 $1,182,769
February 18, 2010[i] Port of Spain Trinidad and Tobago Queen's Park Savannah 12,719 / 12,719 $2,232,071
Total 1,214,842 / 1,248,015 (97,3%) $113,646,156

Cancelled shows

[edit]
List of cancelled concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and reason for cancellation
Date City Country Venue Reason
July 22, 2009 Mansfield United States Comcast Center Production and logistical issues[121]
September 20, 2009 Sydney Australia Acer Arena Unforeseen change in international schedule[117]
October 25, 2009 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Bukit Jalil National Stadium Opposition from Islamist party[53]
October 28, 2009 Istanbul Turkey Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium Unsettling events in Turkey[122]
October 31, 2009 Addis Ababa Ethiopia Millennium Hall Disagreement over live broadcasting rights of the concert[123]
February 20, 2010 San Juan Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum Unknown[124]
March 20, 2010 Santo Domingo Dominican Republic Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez

Personnel

[edit]

Personnel adapted as per the I Am... concert booklet and live performance DVD.[66][125]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b The score data is representative of the six shows in Dublin, Ireland at the O2 on May 29, May 30, June 3, June 4, November 22, and November 23 respectively.[113]
  2. ^ a b The score data is representative of the seven shows in London, England at the O2 Arena on May 25, May 26, June 8, June 9, November 14, November 15, and November 16 respectively.[114]
  3. ^ The July 3, 2009 concert in New Orleans, Louisiana at the Louisiana Superdome was a part of the Essence Music Festival.[115]
  4. ^ a b The August 7, 2009 concert in Osaka, Japan at the Maishima Sports Island and the August 9, 2009 concert in Chiba, Japan at the Chiba Marine Stadium were a part of the Summer Sonic Festival.[116]
  5. ^ The August 29, 2009 concert in Donetsk, Ukraine at the Donbas Arena was a part of the venue's opening event.[89]
  6. ^ The September 20, 2009 concert in Brisbane, Australia at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre was originally planned to take place on September 13 but was rescheduled due to an unforeseen change in the international schedule.[117]
  7. ^ The September 26, 2009 concert in Central Area, Singapore at the Fort Canning Park was a part of the F1 Rocks Singapore Festival.[118]
  8. ^ The October 29, 2009 concert in Abu Dhabi, UAE at the Yas Arena was a part of the Yasalam After-Race Concerts.[119]
  9. ^ The February 18, 2010 concert in the Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago was originally planned to take place at the Queen's Park Oval but was moved to the Queen's Park Savannah[110][120]

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  102. ^ Sources about the North American leg of the I Am... World Tour:
  103. ^ Box office score data leg 3
  104. ^ Basor, Philip (August 14, 2009). "Summer Sonic: 10 years zoom by". Japan Times. Nifco. Archived from the original on July 21, 2012. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  105. ^ "Beyoncé 'I Am... ' Tour". Live Guide. Archived from the original on August 12, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  106. ^ Box office score data leg 4
  107. ^ Sources about tour dates for the Asian leg of the I Am... World Tour:
  108. ^ "Beyonce to kick off Red Sea resort party". Trade Arabia. Al Hilal Publishing & Marketing Group. October 13, 2009. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  109. ^ Box office score data leg 5
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  111. ^ Bland, Bridget (December 17, 2009). "Beyoncé: Heading to South America". Black Voices Newswire. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved January 26, 2010.
  112. ^ "Billboard Boxscore". Billboard. New York City. June 19, 2010. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  113. ^ Box office score data
  114. ^ Box office score data
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  125. ^ Music World Entertainment (2010) Beyoncé – I Am... World Tour (Liner Notes) Columbia Records.
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