Tour by D'Angelo | |
Associated album | Voodoo |
---|---|
Start date | March 1, 2000 |
End date | October 20, 2000 |
Legs | 4 |
No. of shows |
|
D'Angelo concert chronology |
The Voodoo World Tour was a concert tour by American R&B/neo soul singer D'Angelo in support of his Platinum selling album, Voodoo . The tour started March 1, with the first of five nights in Los Angeles, CA at the House of Blues. [1] The singer's itinerary included two North American legs, [2] as well as dates throughout Europe and South America.
Following Voodoo's release, D'Angelo embarked on his second international tour in support of the album. The tour was sponsored by the clothing company Levi Strauss & Co., and it featured D'Angelo promoting an end to gun violence. [3] After signing an initiative on June 7, 2000, at Hamilton High School in West Los Angeles to collect a million signatures by November 7 in support of "common-sense solutions" to end gun violence, the anti-gun violence organization PAX agreed to sponsor the tour. [3] The tour was also set to feature a wall composed of denim by Levi's, made available for fans to sign in support of anti-gun violence. [3] Consisting of a group assembled and directed by Questlove, the Soultronics, composed mostly of session personnel, the tour became one of the most attended shows of the year. According to a July 2000 issue of Jet magazine, the tour's first half "sold out in every city." [4] It began on March 1, 2000, at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, [5] The tour lasted nearly eight months, while performances went for up to three hours a night. [6] [7] "The Voodoo Tour" was taken internationally to venues including Paris Olympia, Trump Taj Mahal, Brixton Academy, the Montreux Jazz Festival, the North Sea Jazz Festival and the Free Jazz Festival in Brazil. [8] Tour manager Alan Leeds, who previously headed James Brown's late 1960s and early 1970s outings, as well as Prince's Purple Rain tour in the mid-1980s, cited "The Voodoo Tour" as his most memorable gig. [6] J Dilla's group Slum Village opened on several dates, while R&B singer Anthony Hamilton sang backup within the Soultronics on occasion. [9] [10]
In contrast to D'Angelo's supporting tour for Brown Sugar, which presented him performing behind his keyboard on stage, he exhibited a different style of showmanship and energy. Rolling Stone magazine called him "confident and worldly" in his performance, while also stating "No wonder he's alive onstage now, dancing, touching the audience, slamming his microphone down, lying on the ground at the lip of the stage to sing 'One Mo' Gin' while girls grab his legs, his stomach, his crotch." [11] D'Angelo's wardrobe during the tour included tank tops, black leather pants, and boots. [11] On one of the live outings, Rolling Stone described the appearance of the performers, stating "The Soultronics begin each show in all black, but beyond that one requirement, each looks completely distinct. One man is in a deacon's robe, another in a long cape with a knit ski cap that says FBI. There’s a feather boa, a few badass leather coats, and Questlove's mighty Afro. There's a P-Funkish freaky flair to the Soultronics' look." [11]
In a review of D'Angelo's tour-opening performance at the House of Blues, The Hollywood Reporter 's David Wollock described it as a "three-hour old-school soul marathon that was part 'Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine', part 'Let's Get It On', part 'Move on Up' gospel exuberance ... with call-and-response and other crowd-rousing church conventions". [12] Wollock praised D'Angelo for his energy and display of showmanship, and wrote that "like the best hip-hop emcees who can rock a crowd with two turntables and a microphone, D moved the crowd with pure voice and charisma." [12] A staff writer for the Chicago Defender lauded his performance at the Chicago Theatre, calling it "an explosive mixture of R&B, soul and funk." [13]
With ticket prices ranging from $49 to $79, [14] the tour became one of the most attended shows of 2000. [4] The tour began on March 1, 2000, at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, [5] while other venues included Paris Olympia, Trump Taj Mahal, Brixton Academy, the Montreux Jazz Festival, and the Essence Jazz Festival in New Orleans. [3] By July, the tour's first half had sold out in each city. [4] The tour lasted nearly eight months, while performances went for up to three hours a night. [6] [7] The Voodoo Tour was taken internationally, with one of the most notable performances being the Free Jazz Festival in Brazil. [8]
Performances earned rave reviews from critics and publications, who praised D'Angelo's energy and "charisma as a live performer", as well as the Soultronics group, [15] [16] and received comparisons to outings by the legendary funk bands Parliament and Sly & the Family Stone. [14] Tanya Bell of The Gazette wrote that the group "displayed enormous talent as it took them two hours to play 11 songs." [14] A staff writer for the Chicago Defender lauded his performance at the Chicago Theatre, calling it "an explosive mixture of R&B, soul and funk." [13] Rolling Stone called him "abundantly gifted, eye-poppingly spectacular", "confident and worldly" in his performance at the House of Blues in Los Angeles. [11] It compared the performance to his past concerts, stating "he's alive onstage now, dancing, touching the audience, slamming his microphone down, lying on the ground at the lip of the stage to sing 'One Mo' Gin' while girls grab his legs, his stomach, his crotch." [11]
Totally committed, D'Angelo betrayed neither weakness nor ego—and gave so much Thursday that Friday he canceled with a sore throat I absolutely believe was the truth. He was R&B Jesus, and I'm a believer. Travel to another city to see him now.
— Robert Christgau, 2000 [17]
In a review of D'Angelo's tour-opening performance at the House of Blues, David Wollock of The Hollywood Reporter called it a "three-hour old-school soul marathon that was part 'Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine', part 'Let's Get It On', part 'Move on Up' gospel exuberance [...] with call-and-response and other crowd-rousing church conventions". [12] He added that, "like the best hip-hop emcees who can rock a crowd with two turntables and a microphone, D moved the crowd with pure voice and charisma." [12] Kaia Shivers of the Los Angeles Sentinel commented that his Los Angeles tour stop placed the city "under a spell that it seems hard pressed to shake." [18]
Reviewing his March performance at New York City's Radio City Music Hall, rock critic Robert Christgau dubbed D'Angelo "R&B Jesus" and proclaimed himself a "believer". [19] Christgau praised D'Angelo's delivery and compared the concert to a 1981 P-Funk outing at the Apollo Theater, stating "D'Angelo sang and danced and preached and flexed and crooned and humped the floor and covered Roberta Flack and snapped a mike stand in two and danced and sang and sang some more. Everything meshed; all stops were pulled out. It was already the greatest concert I'd seen in years when Redman and Method Man propelled the climactic 'Left and Right' through the vaulted ceiling. I flashed on P-Funk's 'Sadie', Apollo 1981. What a privilege to experience such a thing again." [20] He also compared it to Marvin Gaye in concert, writing that "I saw Marvin Gaye at this venue shortly before he was murdered, and it was no contest. Gaye was fine, but self-indulgent and riddled with blank spots." [20]
Date | City | Country | Venue |
---|---|---|---|
North America [23] | |||
March 1, 2000 | Los Angeles | United States | House of Blues |
March 2, 2000 | |||
March 3, 2000 | |||
March 5, 2000 | |||
March 6, 2000 | |||
March 16, 2000 | New York City | Radio City Music Hall | |
March 18, 2000 | |||
March 20, 2000 | Radio City Music Hall (rescheduled from March 17) | ||
March 21, 2000 | Philadelphia | Tower Theater | |
March 22, 2000 | |||
March 24, 2000 | Washington, D.C. | DAR Constitution Hall | |
March 25, 2000 | |||
March 26, 2000 | Boston | Wang Center (rescheduled from March 20) [24] | |
March 28, 2000 | Cleveland | Palace Theatre | |
March 29, 2000 | Toronto | Canada | Massey Hall |
March 31, 2000 | Chicago | United States | Arie Crown Theater |
April 1, 2000 | |||
April 3, 2000 | Denver | Paramount Theatre | |
April 5, 2000 | Oakland | Paramount Theater | |
April 6, 2000 | |||
April 7, 2000 | Los Angeles | Gibson Amphitheatre | |
April 8, 2000 | |||
April 10, 2000 | San Diego | Open Air Theatre | |
April 11, 2000 | Las Vegas | The Joint | |
April 12, 2000 | Phoenix | Celebrity Theatre | |
April 14, 2000 | Dallas | Majestic Theatre | |
April 15, 2000 | Houston | Aerial Theater | |
April 16, 2000 | |||
April 18, 2000 | Nashville | Tennessee Performing Arts Center | |
April 19, 2000 | Kansas City | Midland Theatre | |
April 20, 2000 | St. Louis | Fox Theater | |
April 22, 2000 | Detroit | Fox Theatre | |
April 23, 2000 | |||
April 25, 2000 | Newark | New Jersey Performing Arts Center | |
April 26, 2000 | Washington, D.C. | DAR Constitution Hall | |
April 28, 2000 | Richmond | Landmark Theater | |
April 29, 2000 | Greensboro | Special Events Center | |
April 30, 2000 | Charlotte | Ovens Auditorium | |
May 2, 2000 | Miami | James L. Knight Center | |
July 2, 2000 | New Orleans | Superdome | |
July 4, 2000 | Milwaukee | Marcus Amphitheater | |
Europe | |||
July 7, 2000 | Kristiansand | Norway | Quart Festival |
July 8, 2000 | Stockholm | Sweden | Cirkus |
July 10, 2000 | Hamburg | Germany | Gruenspan |
July 12, 2000 | Paris | France | Le Grand Rex |
July 14, 2000 | Montreux | Switzerland | Montreux Jazz Festival |
July 15, 2000 | Zeebrugge | Belgium | Axion Beach Rock |
July 16, 2000 | The Hague | Netherlands | North Sea Jazz Festival |
July 19, 2000 | London | England | Brixton Academy |
North America | |||
July 28, 2000 | Cincinnati | United States | Coors Light Festival |
July 29, 2000 | Chicago | Chicago Theatre | |
July 30, 2000 | Kansas City | Midland Theatre | |
August 1, 2000 | Denver | Paramount Theatre | |
August 3, 2000 | Phoenix | Celebrity Theatre | |
August 4, 2000 | Las Vegas | House of Blues | |
August 5, 2000 | San Diego | Open Air Theater | |
August 7, 2000 | Los Angeles | Greek Theatre | |
August 8, 2000 | Universal Amphitheater | ||
August 9, 2000 | Concord | Chronicle Pavilion | |
August 10, 2000 | Sacramento | Memorial Auditorium | |
August 12, 2000 | Portland | Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | |
August 13, 2000 | Seattle | The Pier | |
August 16, 2000 | Minneapolis | Orpheum Theatre | |
August 18, 2000 | Indianapolis | Murat Temple | |
August 19, 2000 | Detroit | Chene Park | |
August 20, 2000 | Cleveland | State Theater | |
August 22, 2000 | Pittsburgh | Iron City Light Amphitheater | |
August 23, 2000 | Buffalo | Shea's Performing Arts Center | |
August 24, 2000 | Atlantic City | Trump Taj Mahal | |
August 27, 2000 | Wallingford | Oakdale Theatre | |
August 28, 2000 | Boston | Fleet Boston Pavilion | |
August 29, 2000 | Holmdel Township | PNC Bank Arts Center | |
August 31, 2000 | Baltimore | Pier Six Concert Pavilion | |
September 2, 2000 | Fort Pierce | Sunrise Theatre | |
September 3, 2000 | Orlando | Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre | |
September 4, 2000 | Atlanta | Chastain Park | |
South America | |||
October 20, 2000 | São Paulo | Brazil | Free Jazz Festival |
Michael Eugene Archer, better known by his stage name D'Angelo, is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" for R&B supergroup Black Men United. His debut studio album, Brown Sugar (1995), was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and received widespread acclaim from music critics, who have credited the album for ushering in the neo soul movement. His third single, "Lady", reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100.
Erica Abi Wright, known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by R&B, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut album Baduizm (1997), placed her at the forefront of the neo soul movement, earning her the nickname "Queen of Neo Soul" by music critics.
Voodoo is the second studio album by the American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, released on January 25, 2000, through Virgin Records. D'Angelo recorded the album during 1997 and 1999 at Electric Lady Studios in New York City, with an extensive line-up of musicians associated with the Soulquarians musical collective. Produced primarily by the singer, Voodoo features a loose, groove-based funk sound and serves as a departure from the more conventional song structure of his debut album, Brown Sugar (1995). Its lyrics explore themes of spirituality, love, sexuality, maturation, and fatherhood.
Neo soul is a genre of popular music. As a term, it was coined by music industry entrepreneur Kedar Massenburg during the late 1990s to market and describe a style of music that emerged from soul and contemporary R&B. Heavily based in soul music, neo soul is distinguished by a less conventional sound than its contemporary R&B counterpart, with incorporated elements ranging from funk, jazz fusion, and hip hop, and to pop, rock, and electronic music. It has been noted by music writers for its traditional R&B influences, conscious-driven lyrics, and strong female presence.
Raphael Saadiq is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He rose to fame as a vocalist for the R&B group Tony! Toni! Toné!, which he formed with his brother D'Wayne and cousin Timothy Christian Riley in 1986. Along with his groupwork and solo career, he has produced and written songs for other R&B artists, including Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Stevie Wonder, Beyoncé, Total, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, TLC, En Vogue, Kelis, Mary J. Blige, Ledisi, Whitney Houston, Solange Knowles and John Legend.
Ahmir K. Thompson, known professionally as Questlove, is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman for the hip-hop band the Roots. The Roots have been the in-house band for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon since 2014, after having fulfilled the same role on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Questlove is also one of the producers of the 2015 cast album of the Broadway musical Hamilton. He has also co-founded of the websites Okayplayer and OkayAfrica. He joined Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University as an adjunct professor in 2016, and hosts the podcast Questlove Supreme.
Let's Get It On is the thirteenth studio album by the American soul singer, songwriter, and producer Marvin Gaye. It was released on August 28, 1973, by the Motown subsidiary label Tamla Records on LP.
Roy Anthony Hargrove was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing styles of jazz in 1998 and 2002. Hargrove primarily played in the hard bop style for the majority of his albums, but also had a penchant for genre-crossing exploration and collaboration with a variety of hip hop, neo soul, R&B and alternative rock artists. As Hargrove told one reporter, "I've been around all kinds of musicians, and if a cat can play, a cat can play. If it's gospel, funk, R&B, jazz or hip-hop, if it's something that gets in your ear and it's good, that's what matters."
Mama's Gun is the second studio album by American singer Erykah Badu. It was recorded between 1999 and 2000 at Electric Lady Studios in New York and released on November 21, 2000, by Motown Records. A neo soul album, Mama's Gun incorporates elements of funk, soul, and jazz styles. It has confessional lyrics by Badu, which cover themes of insecurity, personal relationships, and social issues. The album has been viewed by critics as a female companion to neo soul artist D'Angelo's second album Voodoo (2000), which features a similar musical style and direction. Critics have also noted that while Badu's first album Baduizm contained its share of cryptic lyricism, Mama's Gun is much more direct in its approach, and places the artist in a subjective position more than its predecessor.
Brown Sugar is the debut studio album by American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, released on July 3, 1995, through EMI. The album was recorded during 1994 and 1995 in sessions at Battery Studios and RPM Studios in New York City and at the Pookie Lab in Sacramento. Its production, instrumentation, arrangements, and songwriting were primarily handled by D'Angelo, who employed both vintage recording equipment and modern electronic devices. The songs feature earnest lyrics about love and romance, set against a fusion of contemporary R&B and traditional soul music with elements of funk, quiet storm, and hip hop music.
The Soulquarians were a rotating collective of experimental Black music artists active during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Initially formed by singer and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, drummer and producer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, and producer-rapper J Dilla. They were later joined by singer-songwriter Erykah Badu, trumpeter Roy Hargrove, keyboardist James Poyser, singer Bilal, bassist Pino Palladino, rapper-producers Q-Tip and Mos Def, and rappers Talib Kweli and Common. Prior to its formation, Q-Tip, Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli were members of the Native Tongues collective, whilst Q-Tip's original group A Tribe Called Quest served as one of the inspirations behind the Soulquarians.
Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite is the debut album by American R&B singer-songwriter Maxwell. It was recorded in 1994 and 1995 and released on April 2, 1996, by Columbia Records.
"Feel Like Makin' Love" is a song composed by singer-songwriter and producer Eugene McDaniels, and recorded originally by soul singer-songwriter Roberta Flack. The song has been covered by R&B and jazz artists including D’Angelo, Roy Ayers, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Lou Rawls, Isaac Hays, George Benson, Jeffrey Osborne, Larry Coryell, Johnny Mathis, and Marlena Shaw.
The Soul to Soul Tour was a concert tour through North America, Europe and Australasia, undertaken by American blues rock band Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble from 1985 through 1986. At the beginning of the tour, the band had finished recording their album Soul to Soul. Their commercial and critical acclaim had been demonstrated during the Couldn't Stand the Weather Tour in 1984, when they had played before a sold-out audience at Carnegie Hall. Longing for opportunities to expand the group's lineup, Vaughan and Double Trouble hired keyboardist Reese Wynans during the Soul to Soul recording sessions in Dallas, Texas. Throughout the tour, the band's success was confirmed as their performances consistently amazed and gratified their audiences.
Chalmers Edward "Spanky" Alford was an American gospel, jazz, and neo-soul guitarist. Alford was born in Philadelphia. He was well known for his playing style, utilizing chord embellishments. He had an illustrious career as a gospel quartet guitar player in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with groups such as the Mighty Clouds of Joy. His most notable contributions are to the D'Angelo album Voodoo, and his contributions to music from other popular artists including Tupac Shakur, Roy Hargrove, and The Roots.
"Untitled (How Does It Feel)" is a song by American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo. It was released on January 1, 2000, by Virgin Records as a radio single in promotion of his second studio album, Voodoo (2000). Written and produced by D'Angelo and Raphael Saadiq, the song was originally composed as a tribute to musician Prince. "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" contains a vintage style and sound similar to that of Prince's early musical work. The song's lyrics concern a man's plea to his lover for sex.
"Devil's Pie" is a song by American R&B and neo soul musician D'Angelo, released October 31, 1998, on Virgin Records. It was issued as a promotional single for his second studio album, 2000's Voodoo. The song was composed by D'Angelo and hip hop producer DJ Premier of the group Gang Starr. "Devil's Pie" served as a departure for D'Angelo from the urban contemporary style of his previous commercially successful singles to the more experimental, "jam"-like sound that is predominant on Voodoo, as well as the use of sampling in his music. The song appeared on the soundtrack to the 1998 film Belly. DJ Premier originally made the track for Canibus but later offered it to D'Angelo after Canibus rejected the song.
"The Root" is a song by American recording artist D'Angelo. It is the eighth track on his second studio album, Voodoo, which was released on January 25, 2000, by Virgin Records. "The Root" was recorded and produced by D'Angelo at New York's Electric Lady Studios during sessions for the album.
The Soultronics was an R&B and neo soul supergroup formed in 2000, which served as the backing band for musician D'Angelo in 2000 during The Voodoo Tour, the supporting tour for his second studio album Voodoo. Several members of the group, including drummer Questlove of hip hop group The Roots, keyboardist James Poyser, trumpeter Roy Hargrove, and Welsh bassist Pino Palladino, had previously contributed to D'Angelo's Voodoo and are also associated with the Soulquarians musical collective. Along with performing during the tour, The Soultronics contributed to Red Hot + Riot: The Music and Spirit of Fela Kuti (2002), a charity release inspired by the music of Afrobeat artist Fela Kuti.
Black Messiah is the third studio album by American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, credited to D'Angelo and the Vanguard. It was released on December 15, 2014, through RCA Records, more than a decade after his previous solo release Voodoo. The album was produced and mostly written by D'Angelo, who collaborated with musicians including drummer Questlove, bassist Pino Palladino, guitarist Isaiah Sharkey, and horn player Roy Hargrove. He pursued an entirely analog and murky funk sound for the record, lending it comparisons to the 1971 Sly & the Family Stone album There's a Riot Goin' On.