Unbreakable World Tour (Janet Jackson tour)

Unbreakable World Tour
Tour by Janet Jackson
Promotional poster for the tour
Associated albumUnbreakable
Start dateAugust 31, 2015 (2015-08-31)
End dateMarch 26, 2016 (2016-03-26)
Legs2
No. of shows37
Attendance179,340
Box officeUS$15 million ($19.28 million in 2023 dollars[1])
Janet Jackson concert chronology

The Unbreakable World Tour was the seventh concert tour by American recording artist Janet Jackson. It was in support of her eleventh studio album Unbreakable (2015). In addition to Live Nation and Rhythm Nation, the tour is also sponsored by Nederlander Concerts, Jam Productions, Another Planet Entertainment, Bamp and Tommy Meharey.[2] When the tour was announced in June 2015, multiple legs were planned for North America, Asia and Europe. However, in December 2015, Jackson announced that tour dates beginning in 2016 would be postponed due to surgery and in April 2016 announced the summer dates would be rescheduled due to her pregnancy. In May 2017, she announced the tour would resume beginning in September, renamed as the State of the World Tour.

Background

In August 2014, producer and engineer Ian Cross, who worked on her last three studio albums, confirmed to Barefoot Sound[3] that he was working on Jackson's new album, stating they worked in recording studios in Qatar, Paris and Middle East. After his declarations, Jackson herself responded to the rumor, neither confirming nor denying the works: "If there is a new project, you'll hear it from my lips", she tweeted.[4][5] On April 22, 2015, she tweeted, "Letting go doesn't mean you stop", after a fan created a mock Missing Persons poster of Jackson, which had begun circulating the internet, prompting Jackson to retweet it herself, adding to further speculation of a new album.[6]

On May 15, 2015, Jackson announced a new album and world tour.[7] She will release her forthcoming eleventh album in the fall of 2015 through her own record label, Rhythm Nation, distributed by BMG Rights Management.[8] Later in June 2015, the first 36 dates of the Unbreakable World Tour in North America were announced.[9] Pre-sale tickets were made available exclusively to American Express and Citibank cardholders prior to general admission tickets going on sale on June 22, 2015.[10] Jackson's forthcoming album was also made available for pre-order, along with vinyl copies of the album's lead single "No Sleeep."[11]

Jackson enlisted designer Giuseppe Zanotti to create custom shoes for the tour. In an interview with Women's Wear Daily Zanotti stated that "Janet will be dancing a lot on stage as well as singing, so I wanted her to be very comfortable and able to move around easily ... The shoe has to be light but practical and provide support to her feet."[12] Zanotti also noted Unbreakable will be the first tour in which he makes custom designs for the entire cast.[12]

Commercial reception

According to Forbes, Jackson's absence since her previous tour coupled with the social media campaign to have her return to recording music and performing generated high ticket prices, averaging $167.20 on the secondary market.[10] The most expensive shows for the first leg of the tour include The Forum in Inglewood, California and the Chicago Theatre, while the Delta Classic Chastain Park Amphitheater in Atlanta will host the least expensive show on the tour.[10]

According to sales reports from Live Nation, "88 percent of the tickets on the trek's first leg (Aug. 31 to Nov. 15) were purchased two weeks after going on sale; nearly 80 percent of the tickets for the second leg (Jan. 12 to March 9) were gone in two days."[13] Due to immediate sell-outs, additional concert dates were added to the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu and at the Chicago Theatre.[14][15] The tour also set a record for the fastest sell-out in the history of Sands Bethlehem Event Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, selling 2,400 tickets within 30 minutes.[16]

According to StubHub, a ticket resale site, the Unbreakable World Tour ranked the tenth most popular concert tour of the fall of 2015.[17]

At the end of 2015, the tour placed at number 74 on Pollstar's "2015 Year-End Top 200 North American Tours" list, grossing $15.0 million from 33 shows with a total attendance of 179,340.[18]

Critical reception

Writing for E!, Zach Johnson wrote that "Janet Jackson made a welcome return to the stage" for the tour's opening concert at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia. She started the concert with a new song, "Burn It Up", featuring rapper Missy Elliott. The remainder of the setlist included new material from Unbreakable as well as numerous classic songs from her catalog.[19] Jon Pareles of The New York Times observed that songs on the setlist were arranged by "persona and tempo. She was the woman taking charge (funk), the joyfully loyal lover (upbeat pop), the ballad singer, the woman left lonely (midtempo R&B), the party girl (dance-club beats), the rocker (with guitar up front) and, in the end, the idealist." He complimented her vocal technique, stating it was "never as delicate as she could make it sound. The rock songs included "Scream" as a duet with the voice of Michael Jackson; she belted it with a raw urgency." He noted that as the concert neared its end, Jackson focused the show on socially conscious messages, including "Rhythm Nation" and a new song from Unbreakable, "a ballad that marched its way toward an anthem, part U2 and part trance music ... It was the virtuous Janet Jackson, the one that was always there."[20] Fish Griwkowsky of the Edmonton Journal said the show "was a dazzling concert, an energetic temple of love with few hits left unturned", adding that "Jackson is ready for the world again".[21]

Postponement

In December 2015, Jackson announced that the upcoming second North American leg of the tour that was set to start in January 2016 would be postponed due to needing surgery. All dates were rescheduled except for one date in Lexington, Kentucky, as the venue would go through renovations.

In March 2016, the European leg of the tour was postponed. On April 6, 2016, Jackson announced that due to family planning, she is postponing all remaining dates of the tour. She stated: "Please, if you can try and understand that it's important that I do this now. I have to rest up, doctor's orders. But I have not forgotten about you. I will continue the tour as soon as I possibly can."[22] According to concert promoter Live Nation, the tour will resume in 2017 and tickets will be honored with rescheduled dates; refunds will also be available.[23][24]

State of the World Tour

Main article: State of the World Tour

On May 1, 2017, Jackson announced she would resume the tour, now known as the State of the World Tour; the tour kicked off on September 7, 2017.[25]

Set list

This set list is representative of the show on August 31, 2015 in Vancouver, Canada. It does not represent all shows during the tour.[26][27][28]

  1. "Video Introduction" (contains elements from "Funny How Time Flies (When You're Having Fun)", "Nasty", "Rock with U", "Every Time", "Rhythm Nation", and "Scream")
  2. "BURNITUP!" (contains elements of "Lose Control")
  3. "Nasty" (contains elements of "I Don't Fuck with You")
  4. "Feedback"
  5. "Miss You Much" / "Alright" / "You Want This"
  6. "Control" / "What Have You Done for Me Lately" / "The Pleasure Principle"
  7. "Escapade"
  8. "When I Think of You" / "All for You"
  9. "All Nite (Don't Stop)"
  10. "Love Will Never Do (Without You)"
  11. "After You Fall"
  12. "Again" / "Come Back to Me" / "Let's Wait Awhile"
  13. "I Get Lonely"
  14. "Any Time, Any Place" (contains elements of "Poetic Justice")
  15. "No Sleeep"
  16. "Got 'til It's Gone"
  17. "That's the Way Love Goes" (contains elements of "Classic Man")
  18. "Together Again" (DJ Premier 100 in a 50 Remix)
  19. "The Best Things in Life Are Free"
  20. "Throb"
  21. "Black Cat"
  22. "If"
  23. "Scream" / "Rhythm Nation"
Encore
  2. "Shoulda Known Better"
  3. "Unbreakable"
Notes
  • "Night" was added to the set list, starting with the third night in Honolulu.[29]

Shows

List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue, tickets sold, number of available tickets and amount of gross revenue
Date City Country Venue Attendance Revenue
North America[30][31][32][33][34]
August 31, 2015 Vancouver Canada Rogers Arena — —
September 2, 2015 Calgary Scotiabank Saddledome
September 4, 2015 Edmonton Rexall Place 6,549 / 8,205 (80%) $429,480
September 5, 2015 Grande Prairie Revolution Place — —
September 7, 2015 Saskatoon SaskTel Centre 3,488 / 3,500 (99%) $264,346
September 8, 2015 Winnipeg MTS Centre — —
September 11, 2015 Grand Rapids United States Van Andel Arena 8,621 / 9,102 (95%) $568,915
September 12, 2015 Cincinnati PNC Pavilion 4,100 / 4,100 (100%) $270,862
September 15, 2015 Toronto Canada Air Canada Centre 13,239 / 13,239 (100%) $772,816
September 17, 2015 Raleigh United States Walnut Creek Amphitheatre — —
September 18, 2015 Charlotte PNC Music Pavilion
September 20, 2015 Miami American Airlines Arena 10,796 / 10,796 (100%) $704,244
September 23, 2015 Orlando Amway Center 8,906 / 9,067 (98%) $736,342
September 24, 2015 Tampa Amalie Arena 7,702 / 8,811 (87%) $689,610
September 26, 2015 Atlanta Delta Classic Chastain Park Amphitheater — —
September 27, 2015 Nashville Ascend Amphitheater
September 29, 2015 Memphis FedExForum
September 30, 2015 New Orleans Smoothie King Center 12,516 / 12,787 (98%) $720,281
October 13, 2015 San Francisco Bill Graham Civic Auditorium 10,172 / 10,172 (100%) $1,131,847
October 14, 2015
October 16, 2015 Inglewood The Forum 12,676 / 12,676 (100%) $1,410,660
October 17, 2015 San Diego Viejas Arena — —
October 19, 2015 Phoenix Comerica Theatre
October 21, 2015 Santa Barbara Santa Barbara Bowl 8,839 / 8,839 (100%) $849,456
October 22, 2015
October 30, 2015 Omaha CenturyLink Center Omaha 6,671 / 6,675 (99%) $385,690
November 1, 2015 Minneapolis Target Center 8,879 / 10,395 (85%) $466,275
November 3, 2015 Chicago Chicago Theatre 10,451 / 10,451 (100%) $1,436,172
November 4, 2015
November 6, 2015
Oceania
November 12, 2015 Honolulu United States Blaisdell Arena — —
November 13, 2015
November 15, 2015
Asia[35][36][37]
November 19, 2015 Osaka Japan Intex Osaka — —
November 21, 2015 Saitama Saitama Super Arena
November 22, 2015
March 26, 2016[a] Dubai United Arab Emirates Meydan Racecourse
Total 131,604 / 138,815
(97%) 		$10,839,789

Cancelled shows

List of cancelled concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and reason for cancellation
Date City Country Venue Reason
March 30, 2016 Birmingham England Barclaycard Arena Pregnancy
March 31, 2016 London The O2 Arena
April 2, 2016 Dublin Ireland 3Arena
April 4, 2016 Glasgow Scotland The SSE Hydro
April 5, 2016 Manchester England Manchester Arena
April 10, 2016 Paris France AccorHotels Arena
April 11, 2016 Zürich Switzerland Hallenstadion
April 13, 2016 Hamburg Germany Barclaycard Arena
April 14, 2016 Frankfurt Festhalle Frankfurt
April 16, 2016 Düsseldorf Mitsubishi Electric Halle
April 18, 2016 Berlin Max-Schmeling-Halle
April 20, 2016 Prague Czech Republic O2 Arena
April 22, 2016 Kaunas Lithuania Žalgirio Arena
April 23, 2016 Tallinn Estonia Saku Suurhall
April 25, 2016 Helsinki Finland Hartwall Arena
April 27, 2016 Stockholm Sweden Hovet
April 28, 2016 Oslo Norway Oslo Spektrum
April 30, 2016 Copenhagen Denmark Forum Copenhagen
May 2, 2016 Amsterdam Netherlands Ziggo Dome
May 3, 2016 Antwerp Belgium Sportpaleis
May 23, 2016 Tucson United States Tucson Arena
June 14, 2016 Hershey Giant Center
June 15, 2016 Rochester Blue Cross Arena
June 17, 2016 Montreal Canada Bell Centre
June 18, 2016 London Budweiser Gardens
June 24, 2016 Holmdel United States PNC Bank Arts Center
June 25, 2016 Wantagh Nikon at Jones Beach Theater
August 10, 2016 Winston-Salem LJVM Coliseum
August 21, 2016 Hartford XL Center

References

Notes

  1. ^ The March 26, 2016, concert in Dubai, United Arab Emirates at Meydan Racecourse is a part of Dubai World Cup.[37]

Citations

  1. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  2. ^ Hampp, Andrew (June 15, 2015). "Janet Jackson Announces Unbreakable World Tour". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 17, 2015. Retrieved June 15, 2015.
  3. ^ Mr. Bonzai (July 30, 2014). "A Conversation with Producer/Engineer Ian Cross". Barefoot Sound. Archived from the original on March 27, 2016. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
  4. ^ Boursiquot, Sherley (August 1, 2014). "Janet Jackson Addresses New Album". The Source. The NorthStar Group. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  5. ^ Erin Strecker (August 2, 2015). "Janet Jackson Addresses New Album Report". Billboard.
  6. ^ "Janet Jackson Calls Fan's Mock Missing-Person Flyer Too Funny, Too Sweet: Cue the Fans Who Want More Music!". E!. April 22, 2015. Archived from the original on March 1, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2015.
  7. ^ Geffen, Sasha (May 16, 2015). "Finally! Janet Jackson Has Announced A New Album And World Tour". MTV News. Archived from the original on May 21, 2015. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  8. ^ Coscarelli, Joe (June 3, 2015). "Janet Jackson to Release First Album in Seven Years". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 6, 2023. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  9. ^ Renner-Brown, Eric (June 15, 2015). "Janet Jackson announces first leg of Unbreakable World Tour". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  10. ^ a b c Jesse Lawrence (June 18, 2015). "With 'Unbreakable' Presale Underway, Janet Jackson Tickets Nearing $200 Average on Resale Market". Forbes. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  11. ^ Spanos, Brittany (June 15, 2015). "Janet Jackson Announces 'Unbreakable' World Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 19, 2015.
  12. ^ a b Lauren McCarthy (August 11, 2015). "Giuseppe Zanotti Designs Janet Jackson Tour Shoes". Women's Wear Daily. Archived from the original on August 12, 2015. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
  13. ^ Melinda Newman, Gail Mitchell (July 23, 2015). "Inside Janet Jackson's Comeback Gamble and the Hurdle of the 'Aging Diva' Stereotype". Billboard. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  14. ^ "Live Nation, Rhythm Nation, Producer Tommy Meharey And Bamp Project Present Janet Jackson 'Unbreakable World Tour' At Neal S. Blaisdell Arena" (Press release). PR Newswire. June 29, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015.
  15. ^ Tracy Swartz (July 13, 2015), "Janet Jackson adds third Chicago show to Unbreakable tour", Chicago Tribune, archived from the original on July 17, 2015, retrieved July 23, 2015
  16. ^ John J. Moser (July 20, 2015), "Janet Jackson sets record for fastest sellout at Sands Bethlehem Event Center", The Morning Call, archived from the original on July 22, 2015, retrieved July 23, 2015
  17. ^ Ashleigh Schmitz Morley (September 29, 2015). "From Taylor Swift to Luke Bryan: The Top 10 Fall Concert Tours of 2015". Parade. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  18. ^ "Pollstar 2015 Year-End Top 200 North American Tours" (PDF). Pollstar. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 2, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
  19. ^ Zach Johnson (September 1, 2015). "Janet Jackson Kicks Off Unbreakable World Tour in Vancouver, Performs Everything From "Nasty" to "No Sleeep"". E!. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  20. ^ Jon Pareles (September 1, 2015). "Review: Janet Jackson, in Vancouver on Unbreakable World Tour, Shows Off Her Demure Side". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  21. ^ Fish Griwkowsky. "Review: Energetic Jackson in control of dazzling set". www.edmontonjournal.com. Archived from the original on June 4, 2016. Retrieved January 27, 2019.
  22. ^ Melonyce McAfee (April 6, 2016). "Janet Jackson postpones tour for family planning". CNN. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved April 7, 2016.
  23. ^ "Evenko says Janet Jackson tickets will be honoured, refunds available". Montreal Gazette. April 8, 2016. Archived from the original on April 9, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  24. ^ JOI-MARIE MCKENZIE (April 10, 2016). "Janet Jackson's 'Unbreakable World Tour' Delayed Until 2017". ABC News. Archived from the original on April 10, 2016. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  25. ^ Kreps, Daniel (May 1, 2017). "Janet Jackson Announces State of the World Tour". Rolling Stone. United States. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
  26. ^ Lewis Corner (September 1, 2015). "Janet Jackson kicks off world tour in Vancouver with all the hits". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  27. ^ Pareles, Jon (September 1, 2015). "Review: Janet Jackson, on Unbreakable Tour, Shows Off Her Demure Side". The New York Times. United States. Archived from the original on September 1, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2015.
  28. ^ Blistein, Jon (September 1, 2015). "Janet Jackson Opens World Tour With New Song Featuring Missy Elliott". Rolling Stone. United States. Wenner Media LLC. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  29. ^ "News – Janet Jackson Debuts New Song 'Night' During Hawaii Stop of 'Unbreakable' Tour – Singersroom.com". Singersroom. Archived from the original on November 20, 2015. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  30. ^ "With the whole lining up, North America to be 1st continent on Janet Jackson's "Unbreakable World Tour"". Janet Jackson.com. June 15, 2015. Archived from the original on March 28, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2015.
  31. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. October 13, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  32. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. October 27, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  33. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. November 10, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  34. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. November 10, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  35. ^ "ジャネット・ジャクソン、14年ぶりの来日公演が決定！「JANET JACKSON UNBREAKABLE WORLD TOUR」". Spice. August 13, 2015. Archived from the original on August 16, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  36. ^ Sarah Marie Pittman (August 11, 2015). "Janet Jackson In Japan". Pollstar. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  37. ^ a b Gail Mitchell (February 23, 2016). "Janet Jackson Brings 'Unbreakable' Tour To Dubai World Cup". Billboard. Retrieved February 23, 2016.