...Baby One More Time Tour

...Baby One More Time Tour
Tour by Britney Spears
Associated album ...Baby One More Time
Start date June 28, 1999
End date September 15, 1999
Legs 1
Shows 56
Britney Spears concert chronology
...Baby One More Time Tour
(1999)		 (You Drive Me) Crazy Tour
(2000)

...Baby One More Time Tour was the debut concert tour by American recording artist Britney Spears. It supported her debut studio album, ...Baby One More Time (1999) and visited United States and Canada. The tour was announced in March 1999, with dates released a month later. Tommy Hilfiger was chosen as the tour sponsor. The show was divided into various segments, with each segment being followed by an interlude to the next segment, and it ended with an encore. The setlist consisted of songs from her debut album and several covers.

Background and development

On March 5, 1999, it was reported that Spears was planning her first headlining tour to support her first studio album, ...Baby One More Time (1999).[1] Shortly after, she announced that the tour would start in July.[2] On May 12, 1999, Tommy Hilfiger was announced as the main tour sponsor. During the time of the announcement, Spears was being featured in the "AllStars" campaign launched by the company. Hilfiger spoke about the sponsorship saying,

"My passion for music has always inspired my designs. This year we have really put music in the forefront of everything we do. Britney represents the spirit of Tommy Jeans and of youth today. I cannot think of a better way to continue this exciting year by sponsoring one of today's hottest, young recording artists".[3]

The secondary sponsor was supposed to be Nestlé, but they pulled out soon after provocative photographs of Spears shot by David LaChapelle were published in Rolling Stone.[4] Tour dates were released through Pollstar on April 9, 1999, with the tour kicking off on June 28, 1999 in Pompano Beach, Florida.[5] Several dates were added and rescheduled, and the complete schedule was released two months later.[6]

Spears talked to CNN about her involvement during the development of the tour, stating that she had designed the entire tour herself, including costumes and concept.[7] Spears worked with fashion designer Gia Ventola to create the costumes for her and the dancers.[8] The proscenium stage was simple and had only one main prop, a staircase in the middle. The band was in both sides of the staircase and consisted of five musicians. There were also six dancers, that took the stage during interludes. The setlist consisted of eight songs from her debut album and several covers by well-known artists.[9]

Concert synopsis

The show began with a dance introduction by Spears' dancers among smoke effects.[10] She appeared shortly after at the top of the staircase wearing a hot pink vinyl tube top and white vinyl pants with pink knee patches, to perform "(You Drive Me) Crazy".[10] In "Soda Pop" she danced and interacted with the audience, before leaving the stage while her dancers continued. She appeared sitting on the staircase to sing "Born to Make You Happy" and "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart".[10] The show continued with a dance interlude set to Madonna's "Vogue" in which she named Madonna and Janet Jackson as her biggest inspirations. She then took the stage to perform a cover of Madonna's "Material Girl".[10] After this, she performed two covers of Janet Jackson songs, "Black Cat" and "Nasty".[10] She ended the section with a performance of Sonny & Cher's "The Beat Goes On", accompanied by psychedelic lights.[10] After a dance interlude, she performed the album track "I Will Be There" and a cover of "Open Arms" by Journey, ending with a smile at the top of the staircase.[10] After "Sometimes", she waved and left the stage. The encore consisted of a performance of "...Baby One More Time", in which Spears wore a black bra under pink halter, a pink sequined plaid mini-skirt, and black thigh-high stockings.[10]

Critical reception

The tour garnered generally positive reviews from critics.[9] Jeffrey Haney of the Deseret News described the show as "funky and flashy".[11] A reporter from USA Today called Spears' performance "assured and energetic".[9] Jim Farber of the Daily News pointed out that Spears seemed to have two personas during the show, one when singing songs from her album and a more edgy look when singing the covers. He also added that "Spears' nods to edginess no doubt reflects her desire to grow into a more mature career".[12] Jane Ganahl of the San Francisco Chronicle said that "she may be somewhat entertaining, but she's also just another prefab act - longer on packaging than actual talent".[10]

Opening acts

Set list

  1. "(You Drive Me) Crazy"
  2. "Soda Pop"
  3. "Born to Make You Happy"
  4. "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart"
  5. "Vogue" (Dance Interlude)
  6. 80's Medley:
    1. "Material Girl"
    2. "Black Cat"
    3. "Nasty"
  7. "The Beat Goes On"
  8. "I Will Be There"
  9. "Open Arms"
  10. "Sometimes"
  11. ...Baby One More Time"

Source:[10]

Tour dates

Date City Country Venue
North America[3][6]
June 28, 1999 Pompano Beach United States Pompano Beach Amphitheatre
June 29, 1999 Tampa USF Sun Dome
July 1, 1999 Atlanta Atlanta Civic Center
July 2, 1999 Myrtle Beach House of Blues
July 3, 1999 Doswell Paramount Theatre
July 5, 1999 Bethel Max Yasgur's Farm
July 6, 1999 Washington, D.C. DAR Constitution Hall
July 7, 1999 New York City Hammerstein Ballroom
July 8, 1999 Hershey Star Pavilion at Hersheypark Stadium
July 9, 1999 Scranton Montage Mountain Amphitheater
July 10, 1999 Corfu Darien Lake Theme Park Resort
July 11, 1999 Schenectady Proctor's Theatre
July 13, 1999 Hamilton Canada Copps Coliseum
July 14, 1999 Toronto Molson Amphitheatre
July 16, 1999 Ottawa WordPerfect Theatre at Corel Centre
July 17, 1999 Montreal Molson Centre
July 20, 1999 Winnipeg Centennial Concert Hall
July 21, 1999 Saskatoon Saskatchewan Place
July 22, 1999 Edmonton Skyreach Centre
July 23, 1999 Calgary Canadian Airlines Saddledome
July 25, 1999 Vancouver General Motors Place
July 26, 1999 Seattle United States Seattle Center Arena
July 27, 1999 Hillsboro DeMar Batchelor Amphitheater
July 29, 1999 Oakland Paramount Theatre
July 30, 1999 Paso Robles Main Grandstand Arena
July 31, 1999 Los Angeles Universal Amphitheatre
August 3, 1999 Brighton Bromley Companies Stage
August 4, 1999 Denver Paramount Theatre
August 6, 1999 Arlington AT&T Music Mill Amphitheater
August 7, 1999 Houston Aerial Theater
August 8, 1999 New Orleans Lakefront Arena
August 10, 1999 Memphis Mud Island Amphitheater
August 11, 1999 Nashville Grand Ole Opry House
August 13, 1999 Eureka Old Glory Amphitheater
August 14, 1999 Omaha Ak-sar-Ben
August 15, 1999 Sioux Falls W.H. Lyon Fairgrounds Grandstand
August 17, 1999 Rosemont Rosemont Theatre
August 18, 1999 Columbus Veterans Memorial Auditorium
August 19, 1999 Fairlea State Fair Event Center
August 20, 1999 Adrian Lenawee County Fair
August 21, 1999 Orlando Hard Rock Live
August 25, 1999 Indianapolis Egyptian Room
August 26, 1999 Cleveland Nautica Stage
August 27, 1999 Mason Timberwolf Amphitheatre
August 29, 1999 Upper Darby Tower Theatre
August 30, 1999 Essex Junction Champlain Valley Fair Grandstand
September 1, 1999 Boston FleetBoston Pavilion
September 2, 1999 Syracuse Mohegan Sun Grandstand
September 3, 1999 Wallingford Oakdale Theatre
September 4, 1999 Baltimore Pier 6 Pavilion
September 5, 1999 Allentown Allentown Fairgrounds Grandstand
September 10, 1999 Salt Lake City Utah State Fair Grandstand
September 11, 1999 Hutchinson KSF Grandstand
September 12, 1999 Detroit State Theatre
September 14, 1999 Allegan ACC Grandstand
September 15, 1999 York Grandstand at the York Fair

Box office score data

Venue City Tickets Sold / Available Gross Revenue
Lakefront Arena New Orleans 10,000 / 10,000 (100%) $278,845[16]

References

  1. ↑ Essex, Andrew; Karger, Dave; Baldwin, Kristen (1999-03-05). "Bubble Gum Blows Up!". Entertainment Weekly (Time Warner). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  2. ↑ Staff, MTV News (1999-03-23). "Britney Spears Back In Action, Plans Summer Tour". MTV (MTV Networks). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Tommy Hilfiger Announces Sponsorship of Britney Spears Summer Concert Tour" (Press release). Business Wire. 1999-05-12. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
  4. ↑ Staff, MTV News (1999-04-07). "Britney Spears On Sponsor-Scaring Pix: "It's Fine And It's Tasteful"". MTV (MTV Networks). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  5. ↑ John, Richard (1999-04-09). "Revised Britney Spears Cdn. tour info". Jam! (Quebecor Inc.). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Staff, MTV News (1999-06-25). "Britney Spears Prepares To Launch Summer Tour". MTV (MTV Networks). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  7. ↑ Tush, Bill (1999-08-02). "Britney Spears has her say-so". CNN (Time Warner). Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  8. ↑ Ryan, Suzanne C. (1999-08-26). "MATERIAL GIRL At 23, fashion newcomer Gia Ventola already has designs on the stars". The Boston Globe (The New York Times Company). Retrieved 2012-04-15.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Stevenson, Jane (1999-07-10). "Spears takes aim at fame". Jam! (Quebecor Inc.). Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 10.8 10.9 Ganahl, Jane (1999-07-30). "The musical equivalent of cotton candy". San Francisco Chronicle (Hearst Corporation). Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  11. ↑ Haney, Jeffrey P. (1999-09-11). "Teen Queen Spears reigns at State Fair". Deseret News (Deseret Management Corporation). Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 Farber, Jim (1999-07-09). "Britney's Act: It's So Schizo". Daily News (Mortimer Zuckerman). Retrieved 2012-04-15.
  13. ↑ Staff, MTV News (1999-05-26). "C-Note Drops Debut Album; Tours With Brandy, Britney, Cher". MTV (MTV Networks). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Stevenson, Jane (1999-07-14). "Sky enjoying sunny days". Jam! (Quebecor Inc.). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  15. ↑ Ripley, Jackie (1999-06-04). "Living the teen dream". St. Petersburg Times (Times Publishing Company). Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Top 10 Concert Grosses". Billboard Magazine (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.) 112 (13): 60. 2000-03-25.