It’s concert season one more time. Touring is always a great opportunity to see our favorite artists perform live. The live music industry has been alive and well with over 16 tours grossing over the $100 million mark despite a stark 37% increase in ticket price following the post-pandemic desolation. Touring alone from the Top 100 concerts accounted for US$6.28B in 2022, growing from 13% in 2019 (pre-pandemic) as per Pollster. Powerhouses such as Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, and company have playing a huge part in that being on the road throughout the year. With major artists embarking on hitting the road once more this year after long stints off the rails, Remixd Mag puts the lens on touring once more, with a short synopsis of who to see, why, where and when.
Beyoncé – RENAISSANCE WORLD TOUR 2023
Queen Bey is back outside. To imagine her last tour was the enormous joint On The Run II Tour in 2018 with husband Jay-Z (the tour grossed US$253.5 million), the “Cozy” singer is going on her ninth world tour and sixth solo embargo with it billed as an all-stadium tour. Bey, who has come to be known as one of the most electric performers will go on a 47-stop tour as fans have been anticipating this moment since Bey last took to the stage. Her exclusive performance and residency during the opening of luxury Dubai hotel Atlantis the Royal earlier this year where she reportedly earned $24m (according to Fortune), gave fans a sneak peak into her show this time round. Identical with grandiose attires, mind-blowing pyro, cinematic appeal, thematic experiences, Bey’s shows are always one of the most thrilling and once-in-a-lifetime moments.
Drake & 21 Savage – It’s All A Blur Tour
For Canadian rap phenomenon Aubrey, the excitement is through the roof as his first tour since 2018 has been made official since his unexpected announcement on Monday. Much like with Aubrey, anything he touches is gold. Tapping Atlanta trap artist, 21 Savage for his first ever tour since the pandemic standstill, Drake will be supporting his 2022 albums Her Loss, a collaboration between himself and his co-headliner, Honestly, Never Mind, 2021’s Certified Lover Boy and his entire catalog. The last Aubrey tour was the record-breaking Aubrey & The Three Migos Tour that landed US$79m per Forbes. Drake is known to cater to a wider core of different fans from Hip-Hop, R&B, Afrobeats, and Grime lovers. 21 Savage will be on his second co-headliner outing after a successful arena campaign with J. Cole for the 2021-22 Off-Season tour.
SZA – SOS Tour
Endorsing headliner status for the first time in her career, SZA is filling up arenas belting out her smash hits. Since The Championship tour by TDE, SZA has developed the popstar gene effectively. A No.1 album for 10 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 surpassing Adele & Taylor Swift respectively who had the longest rein atop the charts with 9 weeks with 25 and 1989 respectively. Following this newfound sense of proliferation, SZA will be churning out Top 10 hits such as “I Hate U”, “Kiss Me More”, “Good Days” to deeper cuts in “Drew Barrymore”, “Broken Clocks” and more.
Future – One Big Party Tour
Straddling through North America for a big party, on his first headlining arena tour, Grammy-Award winner Future isn’t letting up. Tapping Mariah The Scientist, Don Toliver, G Herbo, Dess Dior, EST Gee, Lil Jarimy, and Doe Boy is further implication of Future’s ballooning status in the music business. As a co-headliner on The Summer Sixteen tour with Champagne Papi, Drake, Future helped Drake to one of the most successful tours by a rapper in history. Now, a couple Grammy’s in, 2 No. 1 Billboard hits, 10 Top 10 hits, 160 songs charted, Future is the shot-caller. For some rap cuts, and street-tinged odes, this is the tour you need to be at.
Nav – NEVER SLEEP Tour
Multi-hyphenate and Canadian hit-maker Nav is part of the new generation rappers that broods bravado, yet still maintains an enigma that his fans devour. On road again, Nav teams up with SoFaygo and RealestK to join him as he promotes his Demons Protected By Angels LP. As a special guest Bryson Tiller will pop out on select dates. Knowing Nav’s association to rap collectives such as YSL, Cactus Jack, Free Bandz, expect some interesting developments such as superstar pop outs from his enthralling rap friends such as Lil Baby, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Durk, Baby Face Ray and more.
Wizkid
Capitalizing on his and Afrobeats notoriety in the US, “Essence” superstar Wizkid Ayo will take on much weightier tour in the States. Having played iconic venues such as The Wiltern, the RCA Records signee has notably toured the States on two previous occasions; in 2018 for his US breakout album Sounds From The Other Side that featured 13 states, and in 2021 with Made In Lagos which went on 19 stops. At this particular juncture, Wizkid will go on a 17-stop tour that will feature two consecutive nights in Miami, and he will play in a UK stadium with a capacity of over 60,000.
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