Verizon Ladies First Tour

Verzion Ladies First tour
Promotional ad for 2004 tour
Tour by Missy Elliott, Alicia Keys and Beyoncé Knowles
Associated album	This Is Not a Test! The Diary of Alicia Keys Dangerously in Love
Start date	March 12, 2004 (2004-03-12)
End date	April 21, 2004 (2004-04-21)
Legs	1
Shows	30 in North America
Missy Elliott tour chronology Lilith Fair (1998) Verizon Ladies First Tour (2004) European Tour (2010) Alicia Keys tour chronology Songs In A Minor Tour (2001) Verizon Ladies First Tour (2004) The Diary Tour (2005) Beyoncé Knowles tour chronology Dangerously in Love Tour (2004) Verizon Ladies First Tour (2004) The Beyoncé Experience (2007)

The Verizon Ladies First Tour was a co-headlining concert tour by American recording artists Missy Elliott, Alicia Keys and Beyoncé Knowles. Canadian artist Tamia was featured as a special guest. The tour, dubbed the "urban Lilith Fair" supported Elliot's fifth studio album, This Is Not a Test!; Keys' second studio album, The Diary of Alicia Keys and Knowles' first studio album, Dangerously in Love. The trek visited the United States performing in over twenty cities in March and April. The outing was the first three-act show to feature three female R&B artist in a headlining role. It became one of the biggest tours in 2004, placing 34th on Pollstar's "Top Tours of 2004"—earning over 20 million dollars. The success of the tour promoted a 2005 leg but the plans were scrapped and Verzion focused on creating the Verizon VIP Tour.

Background

The tour was announced by various media outlets in January 2004. Conceived by Verizon Communications, the tour was sponsored by Steve Madden and L'Oréal. Hayman Entertainment and Clear Channel Entertainment served as tour promoters. Costumes were designed by Dolce & Gabbana. When the tour was announced, Knowles dispelled any conflict while touring. She says all three acts are good friends and there will be no competitiveness. All three acts expressed their interest in performing in a tour of this nature. It became the first tour highlighting women in the urban music scene. Knowles stated:

"Even before I started putting my album together last year, I wanted to get together a tour with other women. I know that you have a lot of types of tours with other types of artists, but not just strictly hip-hop and R&B women".

Opening act

• Tamia (select dates)
• Michelle Williams (Houston)

Setlist

Missy Elliot

1. "Untitled" (contains elements of "Gossip Folks" and "Emerald City Sequence")
2. "Let Me Fix My Weave"
3. "I'm Really Hot"
4. "Get Ur Freak On"
5. "Pass That Dutch"
6. "Work It"
7. "One Minute Man"
8. "Hot Boyz"
9. Medley:
   1. "Hit Em wit da Hee"
   2. "Beep Me 911"
   3. "Sock It 2 Me"
   4. "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)"

Alicia Keys

1. "Harlem's Nocturne" (Instrumental Introduction)
2. "Karma"
3. "Heartburn"
4. "A Woman's Worth"
5. "Venetian Boat Song" (Instrumental Interlude)
6. "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
7. Medley:
   1. "Never Felt This Way (Interlude)"
   2. "Butterflyz"
   3. "Goodbye"
   4. "Never Can Say Goodbye"
   5. "Night And Day"
8. "If I Ain't Got You"
9. "So Simple"
10. "Slow Down" (contains elements of "Coming Home to You")
11. "Diary"
12. "Fallin'"
13. "You Don't Know My Name"

Beyoncé Knowles

1. "Untitled" (Instrumental Introduction)
2. "Baby Boy"
3. "Naughty Girl (contains excerpts from "Nasty Girl")
4. "Me, Myself and I"
5. "Say My Name"
6. Medley:
   1. "Independent Women, Pt. 1"
   2. "Bootylicious"
   3. "'03 Bonnie & Clyde"
   4. "Jumpin', Jumpin'"
   5. "Survivor"
7. "DJ Set" (Instrumental Interlude)
8. "Hip Hop Star" (contains elements of "La Di Da Di")
9. "Gift from Virgo"
10. "Be with You"
11. "Speechless"
12. "Summertime"
13. "Dangerously in Love 2"

Encore

14. "Crazy in Love"

Additional notes

• Elliot and Keys did not perform during the concert at Reliant Stadium. Destiny's Child member Michelle Williams replaced Tamia as the opening act.
• Keys did not perform during the concert at the American Airlines Center.
• During the April 10th concert at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Jay-Z joined Knowles onstage to perform "Crazy in Love". He also made appearances during the concerts at the MCI Center and Madison Square Garden.
• During the concert at Madison Square Garden, Fabolous joined Tamia onstage to perform "I'm Into You". During the same concert, Knowles as joined by Big Boi to perform "Hip Hop Star". Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams joined Knowles to perform "Survivor".
• During the April 18th concert at The Arena in Oakland, Carlos Santana joined Keys onstage to perform "A Woman's Worth".

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue
North America
March 12, 2004	Sunrise	United States	Office Depot Center
March 14, 2004	New Orleans		New Orleans Arena
March 15, 2004	Dallas		American Airlines Center
March 17, 2004	San Antonio		SBC Center
March 18, 2004	Houston		Reliant Stadium
March 21, 2004	Greensboro		Greensboro Coliseum
March 23, 2004	Philadelphia		Wachovia Center
March 24, 2004	Boston		FleetCenter
March 25, 2004	Uniondale		Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
March 26, 2004	Hampton		Hampton Coliseum
March 27, 2004	Charlotte		Charlotte Coliseum
March 28, 2004	Atlanta		Philips Arena
March 29, 2004	Cleveland		Gund Arena
March 30, 2004	Indianapolis		Conseco Fieldhouse
April 1, 2004	Minneapolis		Target Center
April 2, 2004	Rosemont		Allstate Arena
April 3, 2004	Auburn Hills		The Palace of Auburn Hills
April 5, 2004	East Rutherford		Continental Airlines Arena
April 6, 2004	Philadelphia		Wachovia Center
April 7, 2004	Washington, D.C.		MCI Center
April 9, 2004	Hartford		Hartford Civic Center
April 10, 2004	Uniondale		Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
April 11, 2004	Washington, D.C.		MCI Center
April 12, 2004	New York City		Madison Square Garden
April 15, 2004	Phoenix		America West Arena
April 16, 2004	Paradise		Mandalay Bay Events Center
April 17, 2004	Anaheim		Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim
April 18, 2004	Oakland		The Arena in Oakland
April 20, 2004
April 21, 2004	Anaheim		Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim

Festivals and other miscellaneous performances

^A This concert was a part of the "Spring Break Stampede"

Cancellations and rescheduled shows

April 4, 2004	St. Louis, Missouri	Savvis Center	Cancelled
April 6, 2004	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Petersen Events Center	Cancelled

Box office score data

Venue	City	Tickets Sold / Available	Gross Revenue
Office Depot Center	Sunrise	11,962 / 12,285 (97%)	$808,378
New Orleans Arena	New Orleans	10,983 / 12,390 (89%)	$659,606
American Airlines Center	Dallas	6,624 / 12,096 (55%)	$444,138
SBC Center	San Antonio	8,988 / 13,391 (67%)	$535,029
Greensboro Coliseum	Greensboro	6,520 / 10,564 (62%)	$366,003
Wachovia Center	Philadelphia	21,953 / 26,753 (82%)	$1,488,347
FleetCenter	Boston	12,061 / 17,201 (70%)	$815,693
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum	Uniondale	21,622 / 30,408 (71%)	$1,560,831
Charlotte Coliseum	Charlotte	10,145 / 17,549 (58%)	$632,375
Philips Arena	Atlanta	12,310 / 12,310 (100%)	$845,693
Conseco Fieldhouse	Indianapolis	6,883 / 14,123 (49%)	$369,175
Target Center	Minneapolis	8,123 / 12,363 (66%)	$369,287
Allstate Arena	Rosemont	11,585 / 14,391 (80%)	$723,895
The Palace of Auburn Hills	Auburn Hills	10,674 / 14,899 (72%)	$703,978
Continental Airlines Arena	East Rutherford	11,505 / 15,474 (74%)	$817,340
MCI Center	Washington, D.C.	25,379 / 30,826 (82%)	$1,708,805
Hartford Civic Center	Hartford	8,944 / 11,245 (79%)	$609,898
Madison Square Garden	New York City	13,725 / 13,725 (100%)	$1,110,090
America West Arena	Phoenix	9,326 / 11,932 (78%)	$568,350
Mandalay Bay Events Center	Las Vegas	9,131 / 9,378 (97%)	$778,917
Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim	Anaheim	21,697 / 25,432 (85%)	$1,616,943
The Arena in Oakland	Oakland	20,725 / 24,362 (85%)	$1,644,858
TOTAL		280,865 / 363,097 (77%)	$19,177,629

Critical reception

The tour was lauded by critics and spectators. Although most reviews praised the ensemble, many felt Keys and Knowles were the stars of the show. Neil Drumming (Entertainment Weekly) thought Keys was the most "radiant" performer of the evening at the Office Depot Center. He felt, "Her old-school references charmed, and her clap-along 'How Come You Don't Call Me' obliterated the CD version. Mounting the piano, tickling keys with one hand, she struck a quirky balance between class and kitsch". Jon Parles (The New York Times) wrote all the ladies "earned their due" during the concert at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. He continued, "The three headliners have made their way in a hip-hop culture that largely treats women as playthings and conquests. Their response has been to play along while making modest demands of their own. In the meantime, they're willing to work like superwomen".

Unlike the previous reviews, Steve Hammer (NUVO) was not impressed with the show at the Conseco Fieldhouse. He states the show felt "inconsequential". He further explained, "Any show featuring three multiplatinum recording artists is bound to struggle against time limitations. But the problems plaguing each of the three fine artists — Missy Elliott, Alicia Keys and Beyoncé — was not that the sets were so short, but that they were so meaningless".

High praised continued as the act performed at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. Portsia Smith (The Free Lance–Star) says the show was a night of "talent" and "beauty". She spoke highly of all the acts but says Keys was the most in-demand for the audience. She elaborates, "She wowed the audience members, who probably thought she would just sit at her piano and sang. But how wrong were they". Keys received another positive review from Stephen Kiehl (The Baltimore Sun). He states, "But the most astute set closer belonged to Keys, who sang 'You Don't Know My Name' from her new album. The song features a one-sided cell phone conversation between a coffee shop waitress and the guy she has a crush on. She asks him out, but then loses the signal".

Ben Johnson (The Day) wrote the show at the Hartford Civic Center was nothing short of "decadence". He continues, "[...] became a rallying point of girl power fit for an appearance by the Powerpuff Girls". The highlight of the tour was the concert at Madison Square Garden. The show feature guest appearances from Big Boi, Fabolous, Jay-Z, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Stephen Reid (MTV News) felt that throughout the entire show, Knowles was the star. He says, "If Muhammad Ali had been at Madison Square Garden Monday night, no doubt he would've found something to pound like a drum as he yelled, "The champ is here! The champ is here!" That's exactly the aura Beyoncé gave off as she began her closing set of the Verizon Ladies First Tour, which also features Alicia Keys, Missy Elliott and Tamia".

Reid also gave rave reviews for Keys' section of the show. "Fittingly, she started with 'Heartburn', shaking her body like Ike-era Tina Turner, causing a sudden rise in blood pressure among the men in the audience. The sex appeal was being poured all over Madison Square like milk on Cheerios". Jennifer Wood (East Valley Tribune) enjoyed the show at the America West Arena. She says, "From the moment Elliott appeared on stage wearing a black suit covered in rhinestones to Beyonce’s exit nearly four hours later, the audience rarely sat as it ogled three of the most celebrated female talents in hip-hop and R&B". Neva Chonin (San Francisco Chronicle) says the concert at The Arena in Oakland proved why Knowles is a star. She says, "In a time of assembly-line pop icons, she manages to infuse her packaged performance with charisma and genuine talent. Her vocal workouts on ballads like 'Dangerously in Love 2' clambered smoothly up and down the scales".