My December Tour

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My December Tour
Promotional poster for first incarnation of tour.
Concert tour by Kelly Clarkson
Locations North America
Australia
Europe
Supporting album My December
Start date September 28th, 2007
End date April 13th, 2008
Legs 4
Shows 27 in North America
8 in Australia
16 in Europe
50 in total
Kelly Clarkson tour chronology
Addicted Tour
(2006)		 My December Tour
(2007-2008)		 2 Worlds, 2 Voices Tour 2008
(2008)

The My December Tour was a concert tour by pop rock singer-songwriter Kelly Clarkson, and follows the release Clarkson's third studio album, My December. Originally a large-scale summer tour timed to coincide with the June 2007 availability of the album, public career battles and poor ticket sales led Clarkson to cancel it before it began. A considerably smaller-scale tour commenced in October 2007, and extended into 2008, with the international legs remaining at arena venues.

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] First incarnation

The tour was initially announced by both Billboard.com and Clarkson's official website on April 26, 2007. [1] It was scheduled for almost 40 dates in North America, running from July 7 to September 28, 2007,[2] beginning in Portland, Oregon's Rose Garden Arena, including such venues as the TD BankNorth Garden in Boston and Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey, and concluding at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas. For the first time, Clarkson would be playing in arenas instead of the smaller amphitheatres that her previous tours were staged in. Clarkson commented on the anticipated tour by saying, “This will be the biggest tour I’ve ever done. It’s all about the music - we’re bringing extra musicians and we’ll be making an arena environment intimate because I want the fans to be part of the show! And you’ll hear all your favorite hits too!!”[2] The show would feature a 36-row catwalk and b-stage, in order to make the large arenas more intimate for fans. Clarkson had also confirmed, through MySpace, that Mat Kearney would be her support act for the tour.

The tour was to be sponsored by Vitamin Water. The company set up an exclusive website, kellyallaccess.com, which offered a pre-sale through Ticketmaster. Fans who purchased tickets through this pre-sale would be sitting in the exclusive 'Pink Focus' section at each arena, which would feature Vitamin Water Swag Bags, gobo lights, pink cushions and optimal view of the concert, including the catwalk.

The original Fan Club pre-sale created uproar from fans on May 10, 2007. The Fan Club tickets sold out within 3 minutes of going on sale and many fans could not access the Ticketmaster website. The event echoed that of Clarkson's previous Addicted Tour in 2006, when some Fan Club shows sold out in under a minute. Fans bombarded the Fan Club message boards with angry messages over the pre-sale. EchoMusic, Clarkson's Fan-Club maintainers, cited 'unexpected demand' as the cause for the fiasco and promised a second pre-sale on May 11, 2007. Minutes after the first pre-sale had sold out, tickets appeared on eBay for $500, over $400 above the original face value of the tickets.

Tickets to the general public went on sale on May 12 and unlike the Fan Club experience, prospects for the tour got caught up in Clarkson's very public career drama concerning the contents and commercial potential of My December, her relations with record company boss Clive Davis, and her falling out with her own management.[3] Clarkson stated:[4][5]

On Thursday, June 14, the tour was cancelled per Clarkson's official website, with her statement saying:

“ I can't tell you how much I've been looking forward to getting out there to perform for y'all. In the craziness of the music business, performing is what I look forward to doing the most, so it really is disappointing for me to have to tell you that I won't be coming out to tour this summer. The fact is that touring is just too much too soon. But I promise you that we're going to get back out there as soon as is humanly possible to give you a show that will be even better. Thanks for all of your love and continued support."[6] ”

However, low ticket sales were acknowledged by promoters and her representatives as the reason for the cancellation. LiveNation CEO Michael Rapino said: "Ticket sales have not been what we anticipated and we came to the realization that we had bit off more than we could chew. In the end, we are in the Kelly Clarkson business and for that reason we believe that this decision will only benefit her and her fans in the long run."[7]

The My December album itself was finally released on June 26, 2007, and within a few weeks it was clear that its sales would be considerably less than those of her previous two albums. The only public performances to survive the tour cancellation were her five-song set at the Live Earth concert at Giants Stadium on July 7, 2007, and various promotional appearances on morning and late-night television programs in conjunction with the album's release.

[edit] Second incarnation

Time passed. Finally on September 4, 2007, a new My December Tour for Fall 2007 in North America was announced in Billboard.com and elsewhere,[8] scheduled to play 26 dates in 3,000-to-6,000 seat theatres rather than the previous arenas.[8] Ticket sales, when they happened, were now more fitting to the venue; her three shows at New York City's Beacon Theatre were all sold out,[9] while her performance at the Tower Theater outside Philadelphia was virtually so.

It was confirmed when the second incarnation of the tour appeared on Ticketmaster, that Jon McLaughlin would be opening for Kelly for the Majority, if not all of her North America dates.[10]

A further six shows have been confirmed for an Australian tour starting March 2008; the singles from My December had fared a somewhat better reception there than in the U.S., and Clarkson was following the strategy of scheduling Australian dates that the Dixie Chicks had following for their similarly sales-challenged Accidents & Accusations Tour of 2006. Tickets for the Australian tour went on sale October 8th.[11][12]

Though it is speculated that Latin America tour will be added either before or after the Australia shows, no dates have been confirmed yet.

On Tuesday, October 23rd 2007, the full European lineup was announced and tickets went on sale immediately. German, Swedish and Dutch tickets went on sale for fans through a number of different ticketing websites and stores across the continent. Although Sony BMG UK set up an official pre-sale for fans through Live Nation, Ents24.com and Seetickets, Orange UK set up a "reserve ticket" system through WAP on their website, for registered Orange users within the UK.

Unlikely that other venues through the UK are to under-sell, there was a high demand for Glasgow and Manchester fans and a further date was added for each within a week. Gigsandtours.com/Seetickets.com and Ticketmaster UK have yet to sell out each other but it is speculated that this is due to the high demand of Seating Tickets that are not on sale this tour, as all of the shows are for the majority of the audience General Admission 3 of the UK dates of the tour have already sold out. Kelly will appear on the UK TV show "This Morning" on December the 12th to promote the UK leg of the tour [13]

The second Manchester date was postponed due to Kelly straining her voice the night before as the band were being too loud. The show was rescheduled for 8th April.

[edit] Tour dates

These are the tour dates for the second incarnation of the tour.

The first two shows were added to Australian Ticketmaster secretly at the beginning of September for subscribers only and sold out within a matter of hours. They were small, intimate shows to kick-off the My December Tour and were part of the week's promotion Clarkson spent in Australia at the end of September.

Date Location Country Venue
September 28, 2007 Melbourne Australia Palais Showcase
September 30, 2007 Sydney Australia The Forum
Date Location Country Venue
October 10, 2007 Verona, NY United States Turning Stone Casino
October 12, 2007 Atlantic City, NJ United States Borgata Event Center
October 14, 2007 New York City, NY United States Beacon Theatre
October 15, 2007 New York City, NY United States Beacon Theatre
October 16, 2007 New York City, NY United States Beacon Theatre
October 18, 2007 Philadelphia United States Tower Theater
October 21, 2007 Uncasville, CONN United States Mohegan Sun
October 23, 2007 Boston, MS United States Orpheum Theatre
October 24, 2007 Washington, D.C United States DAR Constitution Hall
October 26, 2007 Niagara Falls, N.Y United States Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel
October 28, 2007 Detroit United States The Fillmore Detroit
October 30, 2007 Toronto Canada Massey Hall
November 1, 2007 Chicago, IL United States Chicago Theatre
November 2, 2007 Minneapolis United States State Theatre
November 5, 2007 Denver, CO United States Paramount Theatre
November 10, 2007 San Jose, CA United States Events Center
November 12, 2007 Seattle, WA United States Paramount Theatre
November 14, 2007 Sacramento, CA United States Memorial Auditorium
November 16, 2007 San Diego, CA United States Civic Auditorium
November 18, 2007 Los Angeles, CA United States Gibson Amphitheatre
November 20, 2007 Phoenix, AZ United States Gammage Theatre
November 23, 2007 Dallas, TX United States Nokia Theatre
November 25, 2007 Houston, TX United States Verizon Wireless Theatre
November 27, 2007 Atlanta United States Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre
November 29, 2007 Miami, FL United States Mizner Park
December 1, 2007 Clearwater, FL United States Ruth Eckerd Hall
December 3, 2007 Nashville United States Ryman Auditorium
Date (2008) Location Country Venue
March 1, 2008 Perth Australia Challenge Stadium
March 3, 2008 Adelaide Australia Adelaide Entertainment Centre
March 4, 2008 Melbourne Australia Rod Laver Arena
March 6, 2008 Sydney Australia Sydney Entertainment Centre
March 8, 2008 Newcastle Australia Newcastle Entertainment Centre
March 9, 2008 Brisbane Australia Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Date Location Country Venue
March 14, 2008 Manchester United Kingdom Manchester Apollo
March 17, 2008 Glasgow United Kingdom Carling Academy Glasgow
March 18, 2008 Glasgow United Kingdom Carling Academy Glasgow
March 20, 2008 Wolverhampton United Kingdom Wolverhampton Civic Hall
March 22, 2008 Plymouth United Kingdom Plymouth Pavilions
March 23, 2008 Bournemouth United Kingdom Bournemouth International Centre
March 26, 2008 London United Kingdom Hammersmith Apollo
March 27, 2008 London United Kingdom Hammersmith Apollo
March 29, 2008 Cardiff United Kingdom Cardiff International Arena
March 31, 2008 Brighton United Kingdom Brighton Centre
April 2, 2008 Manheim Germany Mozartsaal Hall
April 3, 2008 Köln Germany Palladium
April 5, 2008 Antwerp Belgium Lotto Arena
April 6, 2008 Amsterdam Holland Heineken Music Hall
April 8, 2008 Manchester* United Kingdom Manchester Apollo
April 9, 2008 Kobenhavn Denmark KB Hallen
April 11, 2008 Stockholm Sweden Annexet
April 13, 2008 Helsinki Finland Icehall
  • Rescheduled from March 15th to April 8th

[edit] Support Acts

Clarkson and band perform during the early part of the set on October 18, 2007 at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.
Clarkson and band perform during the early part of the set on October 18, 2007 at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.

United States:

Australia:

UK: (support act: Jamie Scott and the Town)


Clarkson and band perform Miss Independent on March 6, 2008 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.
Clarkson and band perform Miss Independent on March 6, 2008 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.

[edit] The show

As in the past, Clarkson's concerts held more in common with traditional rock concerts than with pop- or R&B-oriented "diva" productions. The show began with a stage tableau of the cover of the My December album, complete with staircase laced with gnarly tree branches and Clarkson sitting in the big red dress. Clarkson immediately shed the bulky red dress, however, and performed in an understated black pants and back top outfit. Halfway through the show the main curtain closed, and Clarkson and selected band members performed a quieter mini-set of “Because of You”, “Up to the Mountain”, and “Be Still” in front of the curtain. A mash-up of “Miss Independent” and Led Zeppelin's “Whole Lotta Love” AC-DC's "Back In Black" then played for a while over the sound system; when the curtain opened the set had been stripped to a techo-modern look, while Clarkson had undergone the minimal costume change of adding a black sleeveless vest. The single encores segment began with a respectfully delivered “Sober” followed by the informal “Chivas” and then her biggest hit, “Since U Been Gone”. In all she typically performed for about 80 minutes.

The show's set list was dominated by My December and Breakaway material, with only “Miss Independent” appearing from her first album Thankful and the only indicator of her American Idol heritage her introduction to the Idol Gives Back showstopper “Up to the Mountain”. Clarkson's concert audience in the U.S. was typically composed of high school and younger college age people, predominantly female, and preteen girls accompanied by one or both parents. This constituted something of a disconnect with her radio audience, which includes widespread play on adult contemporary stations, and with the music presented in the show, which is more conventionally rock-oriented than her concert audience profile might indicate. Clarkson's between-songs stage patter typically made only a few allusions to her career adventures with the My December album. At the start of the tour, she introduced My December material carefully. Near the close of shows, she thanked the audience for giving this chance to her to perform her songs, saying that all the other facets of the music industry paled in importance. She gave more extensive introductions for “Hole” and “Up to the Mountain”, which she said did not fit her normal sound.

[edit] Set list

Clarkson and band perform during the later part of the set on October 18, 2007 at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.
Clarkson and band perform during the later part of the set on October 18, 2007 at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.
  1. “One Minute”
  2. “Behind These Hazel Eyes”
  3. “Don't Waste Your Time”
  4. “Never Again”
  5. “Maybe”
  6. “Gone”
  7. “Hole” [1]
  8. “Addicted”
  9. “Because of You”
  10. “Up to the Mountain”
  11. "Beautiful Disaster" [2]
  12. “Be Still”
  13. “Miss Independent”
  14. “How I Feel”
  15. “Breakaway”
  16. “Walk Away”
  17. “Sober”
  18. “Chivas”
  19. “Since U Been Gone"

The intro sound system song varied between her own “Irvine” and AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long".

Variations in the set list were uncommon, although “Thankful” was added because of requests from fans at the Boston show, while at the Toronto show, Clarkson played "Home" because a fan had requested it on a poster. She also performed "Home" at the Detroit show. She also performed "Can I Have A Kiss" at the Los Angeles show. Near the end of her Nashville performance, Kelly sang Patty Griffin's "No Bad News".

There was no change in the first concert (Perth) she did in Australia on her "My December Tour." "Hole" was not included in the Melbourne show, but was including in the Sydney show. Beautiful Disaster was also included in the Sydney Show as well as at the brisbane concert which replaced hole on the original set list.

[1]not featured in the European leg, except the Manchester show on 14th March [replaced by Beautiful Disaster] [2]replaced Hole during the European leg, not featured in Manchester on 14th March

[edit] Band members

  • Keyboards: Jason Halbert, formally of Sonicflood. Halbert was co-producer for several tracks on My December and had also contributed to Breakaway.
  • Lead Guitar: Aben Eubanks, formally of Graham Colton Band (opener for Clarkson's Breakaway and Hazel Eyes Tours), and also former guitarist for Matt Nathanson. Aben was co-writer and co-producer for several tracks on My December.
  • Rhythm Guitar/Backup Vocals: Cory Churko, Band member of Shania Twain for several years.
  • Bass: Einar Pedersen
  • Drums: Chris Deaner, on leave from the band +/-. Deaner has contributed home-made videos of Clarkson and other band members from recent travels for her online fanbase.
  • Backup Vocals: Jill Pickering & Kate Rapier of Jill & Kate. Pickering also plays acoustic guitar on some songs.

[edit] References

  1. ^ My December Tour!!!. kellyclarkson.com (2007-04-26). Retrieved on 2007-10-28.
  2. ^ a b "Kelly Clarkson sets summer tour dates", Associated Press for China Daily, 2007-04-26. Retrieved on 2007-10-28. 
  3. ^ "Kelly in Control", EW.com.
  4. ^ Elle Cover Story: Kelly Clarkson pg. 6
  5. ^ "Kelly Clarkson Fires Manager", Usmagazine.com, June 12, 2007.
  6. ^ Emily Fromm, "Kelly Clarkson Tour Shelved – For Now", People.com, June 14, 2007.
  7. ^ Mike Bruno, "Clarkson Postpones Summer Tour", EW.com, June 14, 2007.
  8. ^ a b Jonathan Cohen. "Kelly Clarkson Unveils Fall Tour Plans", Billboard.com, 2007-09-04. Retrieved on 2007-10-28. 
  9. ^ "Kelly Clarkson", Pop and Rock Listings, The New York Times, 2007-10-12. Retrieved on 2007-10-28. 
  10. ^ Jon McLaughlin gears up for solo tour and guest spot with Kelly Clarkson - Music
  11. ^ Ticketek Australia
  12. ^ SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT :: Australia :: News
  13. ^ Official Ticketmaster site. Kelly Clarkson tickets, concerts and tour dates
  14. ^ Mandy Moore

[edit] External links

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