The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour

The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour

World tour by Beyoncé
Associated album	Beyoncé
Start date	April 15, 2013 (2013-04-15)
End date	March 27, 2014 (2014-03-27)
Legs	6
No. of shows	60 in Europe 47 in North America 7 in South America 18 in Australasia 132 Total
Box office	$188.6 million
Beyoncé concert chronology

The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour is the fifth concert tour by American recording artist Beyoncé. It was announced in February 2013 following Beyoncé's performance at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show and entitled in reference to her marriage with Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter. An advertisement to promote the tour was revealed the same month featuring Beyoncé dressed in royal regalia and subsequently several posters and photos were released on Beyoncé's official website to promote the tour.

The opening leg was lauded by critics who praised Beyoncé for her dancing and singing abilities. The outfits worn by Beyoncé during the show, for which she collaborated with several designers, were generally well received. Following the announcement of the tour all of the tickets made available for the shows were sold out which prompted more dates to be added to the itinerary. A promotional trailer and behind-the-scenes footage of the tour were released through Beyoncé's official YouTube channel and website. The tour placed at number 2 on Pollstar's year-end Top 20 Worldwide Tours list, grossing $188.6 million from the first 107 shows. This made The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour the highest grossing female tour of 2013, Beyoncé's highest grossing tour to date and one of the highest grossing tours of all time.

Background

Beyoncé's husband Jay-Z (pictured) served as an inspiration for the title of the tour

During a press conference for Super Bowl XLVII on January 31, Beyoncé revealed that she would make an announcement after her performance at the halftime show and added that "fans should just stay tuned to see". The tour and its name, which is a reference to Beyoncé's marriage with Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter, were announced following her performance at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show on February 3, 2013. Initial dates in Europe and North America were announced, and later more were announced in Latin America, Australia and Asia. However, the official poster of the tour with the name written on it was leaked on the tickets website Live Nation prior to the official announcement. It shows Beyoncé wearing a Victorian golden royal top and a crown further referencing Queen Elizabeth I. Cassie Carpenter of the Daily Mail praised the poster, writing that "Knowles looks every bit the queen of pop" with the "billowing" costume. Rosie Swash of the same publication described it as a "visual stamp of authority".

The concert at The O₂ Arena in London was announced on February 3, along with an advertisement which was posted on Beyoncé's official website. An extended version of the advertisement appeared in late February. It shows Beyoncé dressed with ermine cape, scepter, gilded ruffs, thigh-high stiletto boots, "caged" skirt, golden nails and a golden corset with jewels. She is performing a choreography with several dancers and a DJ, dressed as a jester who tries to distract Beyoncé. A writer of the website E! Online compared her look with Marie Antoinette and Queen Elizabeth I. The end of the advertisement shows black-and-white snippets of behind-the-scenes footage of the video, where several assistants, choreographers and dancers appear. Margaret Eby of Daily News praised Beyoncé's aristocratic look in the video, saying that her "towering bouffant and opulent style" is similar with Marie Antoinette while he compared the costume with Lady Gaga's style.

Following the announcement of the title of The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, Beyoncé was criticized by several critics for titling the tour after her husband's name as she has been regarded as a feminist. Sarah Walters of Manchester Evening News noted that critics questioned "how could a woman as empowered and influential as Beyoncé compromise her identity and be known as the bride of some other celebrity?". During an interview with Vogue magazine, Beyoncé confirmed that she regards herself as a "modern-day feminist" and further spoke about her decision to reference her husband's name in the tour's title, saying: "I feel like Mrs. Carter is who I am, but more bold and more fearless than I've ever been... It comes from knowing my purpose and really meeting myself once I saw my child. I was like, 'OK, this is what you were born to do'. The purpose of my body became completely different."

Promotion

Beyoncé performing "Why Don't You Love Me" during the tour on July 23, 2013

In March 2013, Beyoncé posted a new poster for the tour on her official Facebook page and it showed her striking four different poses, wearing a blond wig, a white top and blue shorts. A writer of The Huffington Post commented that Beyoncé was channeling her "inner 60s siren complete with blonde Brigitte Bardot-esque wig". Gregory DelliCarpini Jr. of Billboard magazine praised Beyoncé's look on the poster, writing that it suits her "divalicious, chic style". Prior to the opening concert, it was announced that Beyoncé took part in "Miss A Meal", a food-donation campaign and supported the charity Goodwill during her tour, where fans were asked to bring food, clothes and household goods. Throughout the tour, an auction for the campaign was held by Beyoncé and her mother on the website Charitybuzz in which the auction value was $25,000. The winner would get a chance to work behind the scenes of Beyoncé's concert in Los Angeles and assist Tina Knowles in the wardrobe department, get a VIP ticket for the concert and have a personal meeting with Beyoncé.

On April 24, 2013, it was announced by Beyoncé's publicist that all photographers except Beyoncé's personal photographer Frank Micelotta, were banned from the tour, following the incident from her Super Bowl XLVII halftime show where unflattering pictures of her appeared online, even after her publicist asked from websites to remove them. Beyoncé added a limited edition to her Heat line of perfumes, titled Heat: The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour. Inspired by the tour, the fragrance was meant to "give them [fans] a special remembrance of this tour and... reflect the power, passion and playfulness I put into my performances" as stated by Beyoncé. On August 22, 2013, Beyoncé released a black-and-white promotional retro video for the tour dates in Brazil. The video features the singer in a bikini swimming in the water, writing Brazil in the sand and relaxing on a hammock. On September 8, 2013, before Beyoncé's first performance in Brazil, a press conference was held at the stadium she was performing at in Fortaleza. Beyoncé spoke about her love for the country and her Brazilian fans as well as talking about touring with her daughter and why the tour has its given name.

Development

Beyoncé performing "Grown Woman", during The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour

Eight hundred dancers auditioned to be included in Beyoncé's performance at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show and she chose a selected group of them who were also chosen for the tour. Her choreographer Frank Gatson described them as "professional and magical". During the performances, Beyoncé was backed by several female dancers for the choreography, three backing singers The Mamas, an eleven-piece female band including a guitarist with fireworks sparking from her instrument, a drummer, two saxophone players and two keyboardists. Two back-up male dancers called Les Twins also accompanied Beyoncé on stage performing street dances. Wind machines were also present during the performances. During Beyoncé's costume changes there were ballet dances, choreographs performed by her male dancers, piano and guitar solos as well as video interludes. The video interludes were complete with voice-overs which talked about empowerment and womanhood. Philip Matusavage of musicOMH commented that the production value of the show was relatively low-key compared to most other arena pop concerts by other artists as Beyoncé and her dancers only danced in front of it. Tim de Lisle of Daily Mail wrote in his review, "The ultra-wide video screen allows for some dazzling effects: when the dancers separate into a line of silhouettes, the screen reflects and multiplies them, conjuring up an instant Busby Berkeley musical." Las Vegas Weekly's Andrea Domanick commented, "The show’s production read like a formula for a Las Vegas hit: interactive LED screens... pyrotechnics, laser lights, Cirque-worthy choreography and costumes... and, of course, a headlining voice—all of which was executed with simplicity and elegance."

A running Louis XVI theme was also present throughout the show highlighting the oversized wigs, bustiers, and white-powder makeup of 18th century France as noted by Tiffany Poole from The Oklahoman. Two stages were used during the performances; a main stage and a B-stage where Beyoncé was transferred with a rope over the crowd and performed three songs; "Irreplaceable", "Love on Top" and "Survivor" after being carried back the same way. Beyoncé said that the favorite part of the show for her was when she was on the B-stage, closer to the fans as she could read all the signs and feel their energy. The set list of the tour included songs from Beyoncé's four solo studio albums: Dangerously in Love (2003), B'Day (2006), I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008) and 4 (2011). The majority of the songs on the set list originated from 4; seven tracks were featured from that album. Several cover versions of other artists which were used as snippets to Beyoncé's own songs were also included.

Fashion

Beyoncé and her background dancers performing "Freakum Dress" dressed in thigh-high split long dresses

Beyoncé has been working with multiple designers for the tour's costumes. She wore costumes by Peter Dundas from Emilio Pucci, Riccardo Tisci from Givenchy, The Blonds, Julien MacDonald, Dean and Dan Caten, Ralph and Russo, David Koma, Alon Livné, Vrettos Vrettakos designers from Kenzo who designed the costume for the performance of "Grown Woman", Gucci, Roberto Cavalli and Dennis Kolpodinos. Beyoncé worked with duo Dean and Dan Caten, known by their DSQUARED² name, using an outfit from their spring/summer 2013 collection, the Glamazon catwalk show which was inspired by models of the '90s like Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and Christy Turlington. Peter Dundas from the fashion company Emilio Pucci also designed several costumes which were described as a "modern take on glamour", taken from his fall/winter 2013 collection and designed the clothes which would allow Beyoncé to perform the choreography during her performance.

"What Beyoncé specifically pays attention to is being able to [wear the shoes] without noticing they're on her feet... She doesn't want her feet to burn, so we can't have too thin of a sole, but [she asks for] the build-up inside the shoe so it doesn't look too heavy. The public doesn't see or think about that, but Beyoncé does... I've been doing shoes for so long for her, we've learned what she needs... She really is interested in the way the shoe feels on her foot. She absolutely has the impression of not being willing to suffer, no matter how the shoe looks on her foot."

— Stuart Weitzman

Ralph and Russo's creative director, Tamara Ralph, was personally requested by Beyoncé to design an outfit for her. Stuart Weitzman designed the shoes for the tour for Beyoncé, her back-up dancers and band collaborating with stylists Ty Hunter, Raquel Smith and fashion designer Tina Knowles. Forty to fifty shoes were created for the tour made from Swarovski jeweled pumps, ankle boot lace-ups with metal trim on them. Weitzman further said that they were made up to the thigh, have a military influence and are designed in different colors, so the stage would look like a battleground. The heels were designed with a special width so Beyoncé could dance with them and they had rubberized soles "so she's not slippin' and slidin' around" as stated by Weitzman. One of Beyoncé's costumes was a gold bodysuit designed by The Blonds embellished with golden breasts complete with a nipple detail. The costume was a collaboration between the group, Beyoncé and her mother Tina Knowles as well as her stylist Ty Hunter. It was hand embroidered with approximately 30,000 Swarovski crystals that took over 600 hours to apply. According to The Blonds, it was meant to give the illusion of being covered in crystallized honey and reflect Beyoncé's personality for the tour. They were inspired by Beyoncé's songs of female empowerment and female nudes painted by Tamara de Lempicka. The costume received media attention by fans and mixed reviews by critics. Jocelyn Vena of MTV News described the costumes as "Eye-catching... dazzling... [and] provocative". Tess Merich and Donna McConel of Daily Mail described it as Beyoncé's "raciest outfit yet" and added that it "grab[bed] the attention" of the crowd. A writer of Life & Style magazine described the tour as Beyoncé's "sexiest tour to date" and added that she looked "sexier than ever", while a writer of The Huffington Post described it as a "shocking look".

During the first concert of her tour, it was reported that Beyoncé changed her wardrobe eight times, and later nine times during the other stops of the tour. The other outfits worn by Beyoncé were praised by critics. Rosa Silverman of The Telegraph commented that Beyoncé was "mesmerizing the crowds with her showstopping outfits and polished choreography... she took to the stage in a series of racy costumes that made no attempt to hide her famous curves." Owen Tonks of Daily Mirror gave a positive review about the look, writing, "Impressive and totally unsurprising as Beyoncé did look rather excellent in her different outfits." Erika Ramirez of Billboard magazine commented that most of Beyoncé's "stunning" costumes were dazzled with sequins. A dress created by Amato Haute Couture's Furne One which was worn by Beyoncé for the tour book was originally designed and worn by Estonian singer-songwriter Kerli during her Utopia EP photoshoot who praised the look after seeing it. The other dresses and looks were noted to channel queens like Marie Antionette, Cleopatra and Elizabeth I. Beyoncé's makeup for the tour focused on trying to emulate cosmic stars with the underlying themes based on the stratosphere. Other references used as inspiration for the makeup included: Film noir, 60's London, cyber beauty, cosmic constellations and felines. The tourbook for The Mrs. Carter Show was meant to artistically illustrate all of the different visual aspects of the tour through multi-media collage and image manipulation. By using collage, Beyoncé's team created pages filled with images that were inspired either by certain songs or by the singer herself and image manipulation was explored, with images being solarized, layered and stacked. With the tourbook, fans had an opportunity to "bring a part of the tour home with them", as Beyoncé's team stated. Beyoncé debuted another new costume during her performance at the 2013 Made in America festival. The original opening outfit was replaced with a similar but shorter and more revealing costume designed by Timothy White, accomponied by Reed Krakoff shoes.

Concert synopsis

The concert began with a video projected on the screen showing black and white images of gothic architecture and Beyoncé dressed as Marie Antoinette. She was then being handed a crown by several female subjects. As several of them walked off the video and onto the stage wearing hoop-skirt cages and being masked, the video wall raised and a brief pyrotechnics display began. Then Beyoncé appeared onstage in white dress, standing several seconds and then starting to perform "Run the World (Girls)" which was preceded by an extended rumbling of timpani. She performed a choreography to the song's dance hall rhythm while singing and also a routine of faux kicking her male dancers. "End of Time" was performed after that with Beyoncé performing a choreography as fireworks were also displayed on stage. "Flaws and All" was performed as the third song on the set list with Beyoncé showing her imperfections and dedicating it to the members of her fan group, the BeyHive. A video interlude entitled "You Are a Queen" followed. The ballad "If I Were a Boy" was mashed with The Verve's grunge song "Bitter Sweet Symphony" taking its string motif and incorporating several lines. "Get Me Bodied" followed with Beyoncé interacting with the audience with a playful call and response. "Baby Boy" was performed against a holographic background. Beyoncé and several female dancers did synchronized moves before the screen which was flashing realistic images of more dancers. Beyoncé took her cap off to perform a Dutty Wine dance at the end of the performance, before immediately going into "Diva". Prior to the performance of "Naughty Girl" a video interlude was shown. The song was later performed into a neon strip-lit with a snippet of Donna Summer's "Love to Love You Baby" interpolated in it. Beyoncé also performed a choreography in front of an open fire. "Party" was performed after with a Las Vegas showgirl-theme. For "Freakum Dress" two ballerinas appeared on stage and performed a choreography and Beyoncé later performs the song in a deep-plunging, thigh-high split long red dress along with her dancers. For "I Care" Beyoncé was dressed in a black leather fedora seated on a bar stool. Beyoncé sang "I Miss You" while shadow dancing was illustrated on the screen behind her. "Schoolin' Life" was performed with a light show and '80s neon lights while Beyoncé performed a dance routine. "Why Don't You Love Me" followed borrowing a riff from Lenny Kravitz's "Are You Gonna Go My Way" along with a projection showing a vintage video and Beyoncé being dressed in a 1920s fringed dress. The singer then performed the song with a call-and-response interaction between her and the audience. The performance of "1+1" saw Beyoncé in a blue cat-suit singing the song kneeling and laying atop a grand piano. Later, she was transformed from the main stage to the B-stage closer to the crowd with a wire through a cloud of glitter. "Irreplaceable" was performed after that with an audience sing-along. "Love on Top" and an abbreviated version of Destiny's Child's "Survivor" followed; Beyoncé dedicated the latter song to the member of her former girl group, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. After that, Beyoncé was taken back to the main stage in the same fashion she came to the B-stage. "Crazy in Love" was the first song performed on the main stage with a new brassy arrangement, different from Beyoncé's other live performances of the song. During "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", Beyoncé integrated a snippet from the theme song to The Jeffersons TV show, "Movin' On Up". Images of pyramids, animated lions and elephants and a portrait of the singer wearing a Nefertiti-style crown accompanied the African vibe of "Grown Woman". Beyoncé was also wearing African-inspired costumes. A montage of Beyoncé's life was shown with the song "I Was Here" being played in the background; it showed images of Beyoncé with the American President, doing charity work, moments with Jay-Z, during a holiday and at the Super Bowl. An a cappella performance of several lines of "I Will Always Love You" preceded "Halo" as the closing song of the concert. "Green Light" and "Suga Mama" were used for the encore of the concert.

Critical reception

The writers of Black Entertainment Television commented that the show was "the hottest thing to hit Serbia since the Ottoman Empire" and added that Beyoncé, "a whirlwind of culture-mixing and 'Single Ladies' independence, came through with her next level dancers, choreography and special effects and turned the global spotlight up even brighter on the nation." While reviewing the concert in Zagreb, Boštjan Tušek of the website 24ur.com wrote that "If Madonna is still the Queen of Pop, then it is becoming increasingly clear that Beyonce Knowles is a hot candidate for sure." The show received praise from critics in Netherlands, following her concerts in the country. Alex van der Hulst from the newspaper NRC Handelsblad called her stunning and sensual during the performances and gave the show 5 out of 5 stars. Myrthe van der Wolf of De Telegraaf praised the choreography and singing during the shows as well as the balance between the up-tempo and low-tempo songs performed during the concert. In his review he further wrote, "This superstar has once again proven that she is more than worth all the fuss... In the two-hour show [...] Beyonce pulled out all the stops, exciting outfits, daring choreography and most vocal violence. For live singing, this lady can do it like no other." Gijsbert Room of the newspaper de Volkskrant praised the fact that Beyoncé was one of the rare performers whose live performances are equally as good as his recorded material. He further added that "pop music is gradually becoming well again with a world star who dazzles on all fronts when the room lights go out... Finally, [there is] a world star who convinces in all." Peter van Brummelen of Het Parool also gave a very positive review for the performance and choreography during the concert, adding, "Beyonce has finally taken over Madonna as the role of fashion icon in pop music... There is also Lady Gaga and Madonna (no longer). Beyonce is the queen of pop music today." Describing the performance as a true American show with unique voice and choreography, a writer of NRJ wrote, "With boundless energy, Beyonce gave a unique and unforgettable show at the Parisian public. Staging, choreography, costumes, the star performed flawlessly." Writing that she "ignited" the stage in two minutes, Pauline Delassus of the magazine Paris Match further praised the singing and the "sexy, mischievous, athletic" choreography. Le Parisien's Thierry Dagger commented that Beyoncé proved she was "irreplaceable" during the concert. Describing the concert as the best he has ever seen, Julien Chadeyron of Le Nouvel Observateur wrote that, "A voice of sweetness and power. A lot of dance... Singers, musicians, dancers... the woman is in the spotlight. She says her feminism on stage."

"The Mrs Carter Show heralds Beyonce's thunderous return to the spotlight rejuvenated and hungrier than ever to stake her claim as the greatest female artist alive... Anyone doubting whether she has still 'got it' following her transition to motherhood was quickly silenced as she burned up the stage and showcased her cast-iron lungs."

—Donna McConnell, Daily Mail

While reviewing the first show in the UK in Birmingham, Nick Hasted of The Independent graded it with three out of five stars and wrote, "Beyoncé follows every current stadium trend tonight, crossing big-budget movie clips and Broadway musical dance moves, with platoons of backing singers and dancers acting as extras. As the Marie Antoinette conceit plays out on screen, the fireworks shower down and ballerinas and male marionettes cavort, this is pop as a Cecil B. DeMille spectacle." Adding that Beyoncé's voice is "anyway a more sparingly deployed thunderbolt than her melisma-mad idols Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston", he further concluded, "what makes this show's largely enervating juggernaut breathe is Beyoncé's tireless physical effort. She has created a literal body of work. Gaze on it, ye pop mighty, and despair." Tim de Lisle of Daily Mail wrote that "As well as control, Beyoncé specialises in spectacle" during the performance. However, she noted that "After an hour of this high-energy, high-tech, high-concept show, there hasn’t been a minute of memorable music." Alexis Petridis of The Guardian graded the performance with four out of five stars and wrote that "there's something powerful and relentless about Beyoncé's show". He praised the "bombastic" opening which included videos, backing dancers and pyrotechnics accompanied by choreography which he described as "all impressively grandiloquent stuff", and further commented, "She is, as has often been noted, spectacularly good at belting out uptempo tracks with a rawness that contrasts with the staging and choreography and seems to tap into an R'n'B tradition far older than she is. Watching her in full flight, you're reminded more of Tina Turner than any of Beyoncé's contemporaries... Furthermore, for all the inter-song hokum, she's still a compelling performer." He finished his review by writing that "while onstage Beyoncé feels weirdly unassailable". Manchester Evening News' Sarah Walters commented that "Beyoncé's show is a statement of feminine intent... [she] is clearly determined to give the crowd so much ass-shaking fun they’ll leave crazy in love again". Grading the concerts with four out of five stars, Digital Spy's Robert Copsey noted that Beyoncé proved that with or without the fireworks and leotards, "as a live performer she continues to reign supreme." Philip Matusavage of musicOMH graded the show with four-out-of-five stars praising Beyoncé for being "insanely talented" and added that there is no-one who can compare when it comes to performing live. However, he criticized the show for being repetitive as Beyoncé performed songs that had already been performed during her previous tours. David Smyth of Evening Standard concluded in his review, "Beside her arena pop rivals, she was not as cool and dirty as Rihanna, not as physical and funny as Pink, and not as weird as Lady Gaga. But she had a star wattage that was blinding, an ability to sing and dance and be mesmerising without the light beams and glitter cannons." Metro's Arwa Haider awarded the tour with five-out-of-five stars saying that it "is an assault of ultra-slick showstoppers, with a pace that impressively never flags".

Beyoncé and her background dancers performing a choreography during "Crazy in Love"

The North American leg of the tour received positive reviews from critics. Mike Wass from the website Idolator stated "As massively entertaining as the I Am... World Tour was, it succeeded largely on Beyonce’s extraordinary talent. This time, no expense is spared. The Mrs. Carter Show is a concert extravaganza in the style of Michael Jackson or Madonna." He further noted, "It's a big budget affair with pyrotechnics, stunning couture costumes and jaw-dropping projections. You might pay a little more for the ticket but you see every cent on stage... Everything about the concert screamed quality... The Mrs. Carter Show showcases an icon at top of her game." Gail Mitchell, a writer for Billboard magazine, gave the show a positive review, stating "Queen B’s two-hour musical and visual extravaganza also laid claim to something else: the multi-talented artist’s intent to join the rarefied ranks of ultimate entertainer... A strong-voiced Beyoncé delivered a power-packed two hours, treating fans to a kaleidoscope of colorful imagery and on-point dancing that enhanced rather than overshadowed the music." Mikael Wood of Los Angeles Times noted, "What left the deepest impression was something far more elemental: Beyoncé's ability to make self-aggrandizement seem like an expression of humility... Beyoncé's ambition seemed in proportion with her fans’ expectations; she came by the sense of scale honestly." Tiffany Poole from The Oklahoman claimed, "Leotards, sequins, amazing digital video backdrops, and some of the most impersonated dance moves on YouTube were what the fans paid to see and Beyonce did not disappoint... To say that Beyonce puts on a good show would be grossly understated. The loyal fans that came out to see her perform live are representative of her wide range and longevity as an artist and no doubt expect more club-hits, soulful ballads and dance crazes from Beyonce in the future."

The Hollywood Reporter's Shirley Halperin praised the show, writing that Beyoncé "tore through her Los Angeles set with the ferocity of a grown woman who has something to prove" but criticized the set list which included down-tempo songs for a "ready-to-party" audience. She concluded that the singer had "an equal dose of sex appeal and good old-fashioned hyping... unequaled showmanship and those killer vocals". Las Vegas Weekly's Andrea Domanick graded the show with four out of five star noting that Beyoncé turned the "manufactured, well-oiled machine of a pop tour" into something personal. She added, "Whether writhing atop a piano, strutting in a freakum dress or adjusting her crown in one of the many fashion editorial-esque videos played between songs, every element in the show seemed to proclaim, 'That’s Queen Carter, to you.'" However, Domanick criticized the show's set list as it featured abbreviated versions of the songs performed. Jim Harrington writing for San Jose Mercury News gave a mixed review of the tour, grading it with C and explained that it wasn't Beyoncé's best in comparison with her previous tours The Beyoncé Experience (2007) and I Am ... World Tour (2009–10). He noted that Beyoncé "sounded great and looked even better" but criticized the tour itself for the way it was choreographed, adding that the production was "poorly planned and executed, especially in the way the longtime hits were handled". He also noted Beyoncé spent "way too much time off the stage". Ashley Fetters of The Washington Post gave the show a critically positive review, stating that: "Beyoncé also made her presence felt with her Olympian vocals... With her chin tilted upward, eyebrows up, ready for the close-up, she’d turned in a performance that was, for better or for worse, picture-perfect." Hilary Hughes of the Rolling Stone gave the show in Brooklyn a positive review, stating: "The Beyoncé Standard – that gem-encrusted, gravity-defying, chord-contorting distinction borne from and perfected by the lips, hips and inimitable stage presence of the megawatt diva – was ever-present at the Barclays Center... she continues to somehow scale new heights over the course of a volatile, two-hour extravaganza."

At the 2013 Teen Choice Awards, The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour was nominated in the category for Choice Summer Tour but lost to the Take Me Home Tour by One Direction.

Commercial performance

Following the announcement of The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, a source confirmed to Us Weekly that the tickets for every show were sold at low prices, "so Beyonce can make sure all of her fans can see the show... She takes care of all her fans so that every one of them can see her". Tour stops in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Jose, Miami, Dallas, Charlotte, Houston, Chicago, Detroit, Boston, D.C. and Brooklyn sold out in minutes after being announced. Due to the high demand, one extra show was added in Amsterdam (which had a demand of more than 113,000 people), one extra show in Antwerp, two extra shows in London and a third date in Manchester. In North America, extra dates were added in Washington D.C, Los Angeles and New York City. Tickets for Rock in Rio became available for general sale on April 4, 2013. Within two hours, the first day of the festival, in which Beyoncé is headlining, had sold out all 65,000 tickets. 20,000 tickets had already sold out from the pre-sale a few months before.

A second promotional poster for the tour was released in December 2013, to promote the upcoming 2014 shows

Phone firm O2, which was behind the pre-sale, said it could have sold out London’s O₂ Arena 150 times with the number of website hits. A spokesman said: "We saw an unprecedented level of demand from O2 customers looking to buy tickets." Following the frenzied rush for tickets during the general sale, the UK tour had completely sold out within three minutes. Original tickets for the UK dates were available through the website Ticketmaster for prices between £55-£85. However, websites like eBay and Seatwave sold the tickets for £2,000 which prompted fans which weren't able to buy tickets through Ticketmaster to complain about high prices and demand stronger consumer rights from the websites to protect the fans being "ripped off by touts". An eBay spokesperson told the International Business Times that consumers should have the right to sell spare or unwanted tickets to popular events and added that "the ticket price should be determined by what someone is prepared to pay for it". On July 7, 2013, Beyoncé's performance broke the attendance record (previously held by Janet Jackson) at the Essence Music Festival, with over 70,000 people in attendance. It was one of the few performances in the annual festival's history to sell out the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

On June 24, 2013, a second wave of tour dates were announced via Beyoncé's website. Included in this was a second US leg added due to the overwhelming demand, as well as a Latin American leg, containing multiple stadium dates in Brazil. It was revealed that Beyoncé set the record for the highest number of concert attendees in Brazil for the year 2013, with more than 230,000 fans attending her 5 shows in the country. On July 7, 2013, the Australasia leg of the tour was announced, with dates set for shows in Australia and New Zealand (the latter of which was Beyoncé's first concert in the country). The New Zealand Herald reported that the Mrs. Carter Show tickets were among the very dearest of concert tickets for Auckland shows. Tickets prices for Beyoncé's Auckland shows ranged from NZ$99 to NZ$250. Fan club tickets for the October 18, 2013 show in Auckland, New Zealand sold out in just 3 minutes. The general sale for the New Zealand shows became available to the general public on July 19, 2013. Within 15 minutes all allocations of tickets were sold out for all 3 shows. A 4th and final Auckland show was added. Promoter Live Nation confirmed The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour was officially the fastest selling tour of all time at Vector Arena. It also became the concert with the highest attendance at Vector Arena by a solo artist, with 44,596 tickets sold. Beyoncé's 2 shows at Perth, Australia's Perth Arena went on to hold the number one and two spots for highest attendance in a single show, dethroning previous record holder P!nk. It was then announced that Beyoncé's Australasian leg of the tour was one of the most successful tours in the continent from any artist, playing for more than 220,000 fans and earning AUD$40M. On Pollstar's year-end chart of the top twenty grossing worldwide tours, from January 1 to December 31, 2013, The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour was placed at number 2 with a gross of $188.6 million from the 107 shows that were played during the given time period. Tickets were sold with an average gross of $2,449,248 per city.

On December 11, 2013, the 2nd European leg was announced. This officially brought The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour into 2014. It also carried the total number of shows to 132, making it her longest running tour to date surpassing the 2009-10 "I Am... Tour" (108 dates), respectively. Along with the second leg announcement, a brand new poster for the tour was revealed and used for the promotion of all the newly added shows. Similar to the first European leg, a frenzied rush for tickets (enhanced by the release of Beyoncé's fifth studio album "Beyoncé" 3 days before ticket sales began) resulted in extra dates being added for all United Kingdom shows, Dublin, Cologne, Amsterdam and Antwerp. It was then announced that Beyoncé had beaten the record she herself had set earlier in the year, by selling 40,000 tickets in under one hour for the two 2014 concerts at Antwerp's Sportpaleis.

Broadcasts and recordings

Professional footage from the tour was officially released on April 22, 2013 through Beyoncé's YouTube channel and website. It shows Beyoncé emerging from the stage surrounded by smoke and continues with portions of performances including "Run the World (Girls)", "Love on Top" and "Halo" during the opening nights. A series of eight behind-the-scenes footage of the rehearsals and preparations for the tour were released on Beyoncé's website on May 21, 2013. During "The Sound of Change Live" charity concert held at Twickenham Stadium in London on June 1, 2013, various clips and performances were broadcast worldwide to over 150 countries which were believed to have reached over 1 billion people. A second trailer for the tour was released on June 24, 2013. The 30 second clip contains live vocals of Beyoncé's song "Get Me Bodied" and a dubstep audio mix. It also shows footage from the previously shot O2 commercial, as well as multiple snippets of live performances from the show. A video of Beyoncé's cover of "A Change Is Gonna Come" by Sam Cooke at the concert in Detroit was released through her official YouTube channel on July 30, 2013. On August 29, 2013, Beyoncé posted a video titled "Bey Good" on her official website showing scenes of her with fans backstage and during the concerts. During Beyoncé's performance at the Made in America Festival, the two opening songs—"Run the World (Girls)" and "End of Time"—were streamed live via YouTube. Beyoncé's performance at "Rock in Rio" was broadcast in its entirety, and also streamed via YouTube.

Opening acts

• Franka Batelić (Croatia)
• Eva Simons (Netherlands 2013)
• LidoLido (Norway)
• Luke James (Various European and North American dates)
• Melanie Fiona (Los Angeles)^[A]
• DJ Kika (Venezuela)

• Calma Carmona (Puerto Rico)
• Stan Walker (New Zealand, Sydney and Perth)^[B]
• Iggy Azalea (Australia)
• Sam Bailey (Birmingham)^[C]
• Monsieur Adi (Various European dates 2014)

Notes

^A Fiona only opened for the show on June 28, 2013 in Los Angeles, as part of the BET Experience. The second and third shows in the city were opened by Luke James.

^B Iggy Azalea was originally scheduled to open in New Zealand (as well as Australia), but pulled out due to "other commitments" and was replaced by Walker. Azalea also had to pull out of 3 of the 4 dates in Sydney due to "an unforeseen international scheduling conflict", leaving her to only play the November 3, 2013 show in the city. She furthermore went on to pull out of the final 2 shows she was scheduled to open in Perth. Walker therefore opened these shows also.

^C Bailey won The X Factor UK in December 2013 and will be the opening act during the February 24, 2014 Birmingham show during the second UK leg as part of her prize.

Set list

This set list is representative of the first performance in San Jose. It does not represent all concerts for the duration of the tour.

1. "Run the World (Girls)"
2. "End of Time"
3. "Flaws and All"
4. "If I Were a Boy" / "Bitter Sweet Symphony"
5. "Get Me Bodied"
6. "Baby Boy"
7. "Diva"
8. "Naughty Girl"
9. "Party"
10. "Freakum Dress"
11. "I Care"
12. "I Miss You"
13. "Schoolin' Life"
14. "Why Don't You Love Me"
15. "1+1"
16. "Irreplaceable"
17. "Love on Top"
18. "Survivor"
19. "Crazy in Love"
20. "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" / "Movin' on Up"
21. "Grown Woman"

Encore

22. "I Will Always Love You"
23. "Halo"

Notes

• "Grown Woman" was performed for the first time in Paris on April 24, 2013 and was later permanently included to the set list for all future stops, until the second North American leg where it was ultimately cut.
• "Dance for You" (performed after "Party") and "Resentment" (performed after "Irreplaceable") were cut after the first few shows in Europe.
• "Standing on the Sun" was performed live for the first and only time in Antwerp on May 31, 2013.
• During "The Sound of Change Live" charity concert held at Twickenham Stadium in London on June 1, 2013, Beyoncé was accompanied by an 8-piece string section. She was joined by husband Jay-Z on stage whilst performing "Crazy in Love". The show lasted for 45 minutes and contained unique, one-time only costumes designed by Gucci for the special event.
• "Bow Down" was performed for the first time during the concert in Beyoncé's hometown of Houston, Texas on July 15, 2013. During the beginning of the performance, images of Beyonce's dancers as children with the words "Bow Down" flashed across the screen appeared as sound bites of gossip reports were heard in the background. Beyoncé addressed many rumors surrounding her throughout her career including faking her pregnancy with daughter Blue Ivy Carter, before appearing on stage and beginning the song along with a choreography.
• At the July 20, 2013 concert in Detroit, Beyoncé covered Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come", following the city's recent file for bankruptcy. As Beyoncé performed, the screen behind her displayed photos of Detroit's landmarks and icons including Aretha Franklin, Aaliyah, Eminem, Anita Baker, Bob Seger, Kid Rock, The White Stripes Berry Gordy, Jr, Joe Louis. The montage ended with the declaration "Nothing Stops Detroit!". A spokesperson for the singer described the performance as a "unique tribute to the history of an incredible city and a celebration of the strong spirit of its people".
• At the August 5, 2013 concert in New York City, Jay-Z appeared on stage unannounced after Beyoncé finished performing "Bow Down". Beyoncé took a seat on stage and Jay-Z performed his song "Tom Ford" (2013). During the end of the performance Beyoncé stood up and provided backing vocals for the song on which she is credited under the name "Third Ward Trill".
• At the end of Beyoncé's headlining performance at the 2013 "Rock in Rio" festival, after "Halo", Beyoncé and her dancers jumped around and performed choreography on stage to a popular Brazilian funk song "Passinho do Volante", best known as "Ah Lelek Lek Lek Lek Lek".
• By the time of the first Australian show of the tour on October 22, 2013, "Flaws and All", "I Care", "I Miss You" and "Schoolin' Life" were all individually cut from the set list.
• Beyoncé performed "XO" for the first time during her December 13th concert in Chicago, prior to the release of her unexpected self-titled fifth studio album Beyoncé.

Tour dates

Date	City	Country	Venue	Attendance	Revenue
Europe
April 15, 2013	Belgrade	Serbia	Kombank Arena	16,719 / 16,719	$834,621
April 17, 2013	Zagreb	Croatia	Arena Zagreb	16,920 / 16,920	$932,089
April 19, 2013	Bratislava	Slovakia	Ondrej Nepela Arena	8,770 / 8,770	$1,163,637
April 21, 2013	Amsterdam	Netherlands	Ziggo Dome	30,897 / 31,600	$2,559,806
April 22, 2013
April 24, 2013	Paris	France	Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy	30,764 / 30,866	$2,338,754
April 25, 2013
April 26, 2013	Birmingham	England	LG Arena	29,046 / 29,450	$2,952,937
April 27, 2013
April 29, 2013	London		The O2 Arena	97,082 / 98,212	$9,733,780
April 30, 2013
May 1, 2013
May 3, 2013
May 4, 2013
May 5, 2013
May 7, 2013	Manchester		Manchester Arena	44,739 / 45,064	$4,650,150
May 8, 2013
May 9, 2013
May 11, 2013	Dublin	Ireland	The O2	25,536 / 25,536	$2,752,927
May 12, 2013
May 15, 2013	Antwerp	Belgium	Sportpaleis	34,785 / 34,793	$2,927,440
May 17, 2013	Zurich	Switzerland	Hallenstadion	13,000 / 13,000	$1,154,980
May 18, 2013	Milan	Italy	Mediolanum Forum	9,964 / 9,964	$882,241
May 20, 2013	Montpellier	France	Park&Suites Arena	11,993 / 11,993	$1,212,031
May 22, 2013	Munich	Germany	Olympiahalle	11,857 / 11,857	$981,667
May 23, 2013	Berlin		O2 World	27,632 / 27,632	$2,015,780
May 24, 2013
May 25, 2013[A]	Warsaw	Poland	Warsaw National Stadium	49,034 / 49,034	$3,651,304
May 27, 2013	Copenhagen	Denmark	Forum Copenhagen	9,890 / 9,890	$1,052,082
May 28, 2013	Fornebu	Norway	Telenor Arena	21,989 / 21,989	$2,204,442
May 29, 2013	Stockholm	Sweden	Ericsson Globe	13,934 / 13,934	$1,318,690
May 31, 2013	Antwerp	Belgium	Sportpaleis	[B]	[B]
June 1, 2013[C]	London	England	Twickenham Stadium	45,060 / 45,060	$5,132,599
North America
June 28, 2013[D]	Los Angeles	United States	Staples Center	14,045 / 14,045	$1,573,932
June 29, 2013	Las Vegas		MGM Grand Garden Arena	12,913 / 12,913	$1,856,203
July 1, 2013	Los Angeles		Staples Center	13,715 / 13,715	$1,798,782
July 2, 2013	San Jose		HP Pavilion at San Jose	12,304 / 12,304	$1,414,075
July 5, 2013	Oklahoma City		Chesapeake Energy Arena	11,746 / 11,746	$1,277,715
July 6, 2013	Dallas		American Airlines Center	13,758 / 13,758	$1,427,075
July 7, 2013[E]	New Orleans		Mercedes-Benz Superdome	38,441 / 38,441	$5,766,150
July 9, 2013	Sunrise		BB&T Center	12,269 / 12,269	$1,328,330
July 10, 2013	Miami		American Airlines Arena	13,323 / 13,323	$1,444,290
July 12, 2013	Duluth		Arena at Gwinnett Center	10,662 / 10,662	$1,089,710
July 13, 2013	Nashville		Bridgestone Arena	14,233 / 14,233	$1,399,640
July 15, 2013	Houston		Toyota Center	11,935 / 11,935	$1,320,925
July 17, 2013	Chicago		United Center	14,154 / 14,154	$1,688,865
July 18, 2013	Saint Paul		Xcel Energy Center	14,187 / 14,187	$1,349,130
July 20, 2013	Auburn Hills		The Palace of Auburn Hills	13,901 / 13,901	$1,414,609
July 21, 2013	Toronto	Canada	Air Canada Centre	14,610 / 14,610	$1,690,500
July 22, 2013	Montreal		Bell Centre	14,609 / 14,609	$1,570,565
July 23, 2013	Boston	United States	TD Garden	12,911 / 12,911	$1,574,130
July 25, 2013	Philadelphia		Wells Fargo Center	14,671 / 14,671	$1,491,320
July 26, 2013	Atlantic City		Boardwalk Hall	12,788 / 12,788	$1,646,832
July 27, 2013	Charlotte		Time Warner Cable Arena	14,355 / 14,355	$1,393,108
July 29, 2013	Washington, D.C.		Verizon Center	27,133 / 27,133	$3,110,937
July 30, 2013
July 31, 2013	East Rutherford		Izod Center	14,264 / 14,264	$1,598,000
August 2, 2013	Uncasville		Mohegan Sun Arena	7,473 / 7,473	$702,825
August 3, 2013	New York City		Barclays Center	41,907 / 41,907	$5,357,970
August 4, 2013
August 5, 2013
Europe
August 17, 2013[F]	Chelmsford	England	Hylands Park	—	—
August 18, 2013[F]	Weston-under-Lizard		Weston Park	—	—
North America
August 31, 2013[G]	Philadelphia	United States	Benjamin Franklin Parkway	—	—
South America
September 8, 2013	Fortaleza	Brazil	Estádio Plácido Aderaldo Castelão	27,847 / 40,000	$2,563,750
September 11, 2013	Belo Horizonte		Mineirão Stadium	22,023 / 40,000	$1,986,730
September 13, 2013[H]	Rio de Janeiro		Parque dos Atletas	—	—
September 15, 2013	São Paulo		Estádio do Morumbi	37,346 / 50,000	$3,415,660
September 17, 2013	Brasília		Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha	36,284 / 40,000	$2,444,810
September 20, 2013	Caracas	Venezuela	Estadio de Fútbol de la USB	9,406 / 12,000	$4,737,070
September 22, 2013[I]	Medellín	Colombia	Estadio Atanasio Girardot	4,300 / 4,300	$822,500
North America
September 24, 2013	Monterrey	Mexico	Monterrey Arena	11,810 / 11,810	$986,466
September 26, 2013	Mexico City		Palacio de los Deportes	19,027 / 19,107	$1,858,905
September 28, 2013	San Juan	Puerto Rico	Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot	14,358 / 14,358	$1,801,378
Australasia
October 16, 2013	Auckland	New Zealand	Vector Arena	44,760 / 47,200	$6,748,371
October 17, 2013
October 18, 2013
October 19, 2013
October 22, 2013	Melbourne	Australia	Rod Laver Arena	47,320 / 47,320	$7,890,660
October 23, 2013
October 25, 2013
October 26, 2013
October 28, 2013	Brisbane		Brisbane Entertainment Centre	22,214 / 22,536	$3,815,980
October 29, 2013
October 31, 2013	Sydney		Allphones Arena	56,822 / 56,822	$9,422,280
November 1, 2013
November 2, 2013
November 3, 2013
November 5, 2013	Adelaide		Adelaide Entertainment Centre	15,330 / 15,330	$2,697,390
November 6, 2013
November 8, 2013	Perth		Perth Arena	29,356 / 29,356	$4,994,010
November 9, 2013
North America
November 30, 2013	Vancouver	Canada	Rogers Arena	13,590 / 13,590	$1,721,804
December 2, 2013	San Jose	United States	HP Pavilion at San Jose	11,972 / 12,618	$1,490,045
December 3, 2013	Los Angeles		Staples Center	13,982 / 13,982	$1,954,343
December 6, 2013	Las Vegas		MGM Grand Garden Arena	12,811 / 12,811	$1,872,823
December 7, 2013	Phoenix		US Airways Center	10,752 / 10,752	$1,299,545
December 9, 2013	Dallas		American Airlines Center	12,011 / 12,011	$1,336,055
December 10, 2013	Houston		Toyota Center	11,936 / 11,936	$1,414,525
December 12, 2013	Louisville		KFC Yum! Center	14,979 / 14,979	$1,746,575
December 13, 2013	Chicago		United Center	14,005 / 14,005	$1,859,745
December 14, 2013	St. Louis		Scottrade Center	14,079 / 14,079	$1,588,140
December 16, 2013	Toronto	Canada	Air Canada Center	14,785 / 14,785	$1,906,954
December 18, 2013	Washington, D.C	United States	Verizon Center	14,074 / 14,074	$1,605,612
December 19, 2013	New York City		Barclays Center	27,760 / 27,760	$3,695,080
December 20, 2013	Boston		TD Garden	13,003 / 13,003	$1,686,370
December 22, 2013	New York City		Barclays Center	[J]	[J]
Europe
February 20, 2014	Glasgow	Scotland	SSE Hydro	—	—
February 21, 2014
February 23, 2014	Birmingham	England	LG Arena	—	—
February 24, 2014
February 25, 2014	Manchester		Manchester Arena	—	—
February 26, 2014
February 28, 2014	London		The O2 Arena	—	—
March 1, 2014
March 2, 2014
March 4, 2014
March 5, 2014
March 6, 2014
March 8, 2014	Dublin	Ireland	The O2	—	—
March 9, 2014
March 11, 2014
March 12, 2014
March 15, 2014	Cologne	Germany	Lanxess Arena	—	—
March 16, 2014
March 18, 2014	Amsterdam	Netherlands	Ziggo Dome	—	—
March 19, 2014
March 20, 2014	Antwerp	Belgium	Sportpaleis	—	—
March 21, 2014
March 24, 2014	Barcelona	Spain	Palau Sant Jordi	—	—
March 26, 2014	Lisbon	Portugal	MEO Arena	—	—
March 27, 2014
Total				1,543,860 / 1,581,137 (97.6%)	$178,101,151

Festivals, other miscellaneous performances and box office score data information

^A This concert was a part of the "Orange Warsaw Festival"

^B This box office score data is combined with the May 15, 2013 performance at Antwerp's Sportpaleis respectively.

^C This concert was a part of the "Sound of Change Live"

^D This concert was a part of "BET Experience 2013"

^E This concert was a part of the "Essence Music Festival"

^F These concerts were a part of the 2013 "V Festival"

^G This concert was a part of the "Made in America Music Festival"

^H This concert was a part of "Rock in Rio"

^I This concert was held to celebrate the 10th anniversary of W Radio

^J This box office score data is combined with the December 19, 2013 performance at Brooklyn's Barclays Center respectively.

Additional notes

• During the concert in Copenhagen on May 27, 2013, Beyoncé was hit on her buttock by a fan while she was interacting with the crowd during the performance of "Irreplaceable". Beyoncé responded on the microphone, "I will have you escorted out right now, alright?". The video was posted to YouTube and went viral, also receiving coverage from the media.
• During the concert in Nashville on July 13, 2013, Beyoncé requested a moment of silence from the crowd, following the verdict of the trial of the Shooting of Trayvon Martin, resulting in George Zimmerman being acquitted. After the silence, Beyoncé went into the finale of the show, singing "I Will Always Love You" and "Halo".
• First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama and her two daughters attended the July 17, 2013 show at the United Center in Chicago.
• During the July 22, 2013 concert in Montreal, Beyoncé's hair became stuck and tangled within the blades of one of her electric fans. She continued to sing the final song "Halo" calmly, whilst a number of security guards safely extracted her hair. Multiple videos of the incident appeared online, as well as Beyoncé's herself joking about the event via her official Instagram account.
• At the July 23, 2013 concert in Boston, Beyoncé invited backstage and met with three female victims of the Boston Marathon bombings. All three women had lost a leg from the explosions and had all learned to walk again using prosthetic limbs.
• During the July 25, 2013 concert in Philadelphia, Beyoncé's husband Jay Z surprised her on stage during the finale of the show, running up to and kissing her, before quickly running off stage again.
• During the concert in São Paulo on September 15, 2013, Beyoncé was pulled out off stage by one of the fans in the audience during the performance of "Irreplaceable". The security quickly released Beyoncé from his hands and after finishing the performance, she replied to the fan, "Nice to meet you. Thank you, I love you, too".
• Beyoncé's interaction with the audience during her Australian leg of the tour made multiple headlines both locally and globally. During the first show in Melbourne on October 22, 2013, Beyoncé posed for a photo with a 15 year old girl while performing on stage. The image went viral. During another show in Melbourne, Beyoncés unknowingly handed her microphone to a local music teacher, who sang Beyoncé's song "Halo" back to her, surprising and impressing Beyoncé. The footage made Australian news headlines
• During the concert in Los Angeles on December 3, 2013, Beyoncé dedicated "I Will Always Love You"/"Halo" to Paul Walker, following his death that occurred 3 days before.

Cancellations and rescheduled shows

May 14, 2013	Antwerp, Belgium	Sportpaleis	Rescheduled to May 31, 2013 due to dehydration and exhaustion

Awards and nominations

See also: List of awards and nominations received by Beyoncé

Teen Choice Awards

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2013	The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour	Choice Summer Tour	Nominated

Billboard Touring Awards

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2013	The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour	Concert Marketing & Promotion Award	Nominated
		Eventful Fans' Choice Award	Nominated

Personnel

Credits and personnel are taken from the Official The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour Program.

Creative direction

• Beyoncé – show direction, staging, choreography
• Frank Gatson – creative director
• Tina Knowles – creative consultant, stylist
• Ty Hunter – stylist

Suga Mama band

• Cora Coleman-Dunham – band leader, drummer
• Rie Tsuji – musical director, keyboards
• Bibi McGill – guitar
• Katty Rodriguez-Harrold – tenor saxophone
• Crystal J. Torres – trumpet
• Lauren Taneil – bass
• Adison Evans – alto saxophone
• Dani Ivory – additional keyboard

The Mamas (background vocalists)

• Montina Cooper
• Crystal A. Collins
• Tiffany Moníque Riddick

Choreographers

• Jaquel Knight
• Chris Grant

Assistant choreographers

• Christian Owens
• Sean Bankhead
• Les Twins
• Dana Foglia
• Mishai Peyronelli
• Bianca Li
• Darrell Grand Moulfree
• Amy Hall Garner
• Sheryl Murakami
• Michelle Robinson
• Anthony Burrell
• Denee (Dnay) Baptise
• James Alsop
• Jefferey Page

Dancers

• Ashley Everett – female dance captain
• Kimmie Gipson – additional female dance captain
• Amandy Fernandez
• Hannah Douglass
• Sarah Burns
• Hajiba Fahmy
• Tanesha "KSYN" Cason
• Kim Gingras
• Denee (Dnay) Baptiste

Security

• Julius DeBoer – head security for Beyoncé
• Kelly Samlelen – security for Beyoncé
• Bob Fontenot – venue security

Tour management

• Alan Floyd – tour manager
• Marlon Bowers – assistant tour manager
• Larry Beyince – tour assistant
• Daniel Kernan – tour accountant
• Josh Katzman – tour accountant

Sponsors

• Pepsi