HIStory World Tour
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HIStory World Tour | ||||
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One of many identical statues, positioned throughout Europe to promote HIStory. |
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World tour by Michael Jackson | ||||
Location | Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, North America | |||
Associated album | HIStory and Blood on the Dance Floor | |||
Start date | September 7, 1996 | |||
End date | October 15, 1997 | |||
Legs | 3 | |||
Shows | 44 in Europe 19 in Asia 11 in Australasia 6 in Africa 2 in North America 82 played |
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Royal concert in Brunei
Prior to the tour, Jackson performed a free concert at the Jerudong Park Amphitheatre in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei on 16 July 1996. The concert was in celebration of the fiftieth birthday of Hassanal Bolkiah, the Sultan of Brunei and was attended by the Brunei royal family.Much of the concert resembled Jackson's Dangerous World Tour, including his outfit, stage, and the setlist, keeping the details of the upcoming HIStory Tour a close secret. This concert was not part of the Dangerous World Tour nor the HIStory World Tour. The concert also marked the debut live performance of "You Are Not Alone" and "Earth Song" as well as the last performances of "Jam", "Human Nature", "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" and "She's Out of My Life" at a Jackson concert. This concert was also among the last performances of "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" being sung fully live; most subsequent performances have been partially lip-synched.
The full concert was never broadcast on television but was a rare promo item in possession of private collectors; a high quality VHS copy has been leaked.
The changes
- "Carmina Burana" of the "Brace Yourself" introduction was replaced with a similar piece of opera.
- "Jam" had a shorter ending than usual.
- "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" was performed with Marva Hicks rather than Siedah Garrett. In the middle of the song, Michael almost sang Marva's part. They sang an extra chorus.
- "The Way You Make Me Feel" replaces "Workin' Day and Night".
- "The Way You Make Me Feel" begins with the slow intro from the 1988 Grammys performance, which features the 1st verse, and the main instrumentation skips the 1st verse.
- "You Are Not Alone" replaces "Will You Be There".
- "Billie Jean" instrumentation is slower than the Dangerous or Bad World Tours, similar in style to the later HIStory Tour (which used a slightly down-pitched a cappella for playback), but sung live. The dance ending has a repeated snare sound like that from "Why You Wanna Trip on Me", similar to the 1995 MTV Awards performance but without the bassline. Future performances of Billie Jean had this snare, but only in the beginning of the dance. Like the Dangerous and Bad Tours, Jackson does not beatbox before singing the final line and throwing the hat.
- In "Beat It", Michael sang the wrong lyrics in the second verse. Also, he threw his jacket at the end, which he did in HIStory Tour.
- The 1995 MTV Video Music Awards version of "Dangerous" replaces the 1993 American Music Awards version.
- Michael wore the golden shin pads in "Black or White" instead of the black ones. It began to be used in this show before HIStory Tour.
- "Heal the World" wasn't performed, but would be present in the HIStory World Tour.
- "Man in the Mirror" ended with a curtain call, instead of the Rocket Man finale.
- "Earth Song" was performed as an encore, and featured live adlibs at the end of the song.
- Although "Earth Song" is usually performed with the cherrypicker(and it was present in the concert because Jackson performed "Beat It"), he didn't use it in this performance but would use it on the HIStory Tour.
- The concert included the final live performances by Jackson of "Human Nature", "Jam", "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" and "She's Out of My Life". "Human Nature", "Jam" and "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" were later rehearsed for the 2009–2010 This Is It concert series, while "She's Out of My Life" was rehearsed for the first of Jackson's 1999 MJ and Friends concerts in Seoul, but later removed from the setlist.
Tour announcement
The birth of Kingdom International, a joint venture between Jackson and HRH Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, the nephew of the Fahd bin Abdul Aziz, the King of Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005, was announced at a press conference held at the Palais des Congres in Paris, France on 19 March 1996. Kingdom International allowed opportunities to be created and developed in the entertainment industry. In this conference Jackson said "Kingdom International is a dream come true." It was then announced that Jackson would embark on his third solo world tour. Unlike Jackson's past two, the HIStory World Tour was not sponsored by Pepsi-Cola.First leg (1996)
Jackson started the tour off with a concert at Letna Park in Prague, one of Jackson's largest single attended concerts in his career. On October 7, 1996, he performed for the first time ever in Africa in front of 60,000 fans in Tunis in a solo tour. During the tour's stopover in Sydney, Australia, he married his wife (later ex-wife), Debbie Rowe in a private and impromptu ceremony. He was interviewed by Molly Meldrum In Brisbane. On January 3 and 4, 1997 Jackson only performed two concerts in North America. He did not perform in the USA mainland, but rather in Honolulu, Hawaii at the Aloha Stadium to a crowd of 35,000 each.Second leg (1997)
The second leg started off on May 31, 1997 at the Weserstadion in Bremen, Germany. Set list changes included the addition of "Blood on the Dance Floor" and later on the removal of the Off the Wall Medley and "The Way You Make Me Feel". After,It was only during the first concert in Bremen that Jackson donned a red jacket for "Blood on The Dance Floor," which was later replaced with a blue uniform. "Blood on the Dance Floor" was taken off the set list after the concert in Oslo on August 19, 1997. Also, Jackson performed at the Parken Stadium on his 39th birthday with 50,000 fans. He was presented with a surprise birthday cake, marching band, and fireworks on stage before the Jackson 5 Medley. Pro footage of this is found in Michael's private home movies. A concert was supposed to take place on August 8 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, but was canceled due to poor ticket sales (this was the only concert that was canceled during the tour). The concert at Hippodrome Wellington of Ostend, Belgium was supposed to be held on August 31, 1997, but was postponed to September 3 following Princess Diana's death. During the September 3 concert audiences were required to be put into "cages". Starting with this concert, several of the final concerts had begun with Jackson's cover of Charlie Chaplin's Smile being played back, and an image of Diana on the jumbotron for some parts of the concert. At the concert in Munich on July 6, the camera lets you see every little thing happening like Michael going on the crane between "Thriller" and "Beat It" or Michael on his way backstage with Michael Bush, his costume designer. Sometimes at the end of "HIStory" Michael went through the floor, as he did in Brunei. But most of the time, he went backstage. The same thing happened with the camera between Thriller and Beat It in Amsterdam on June 10 and lets you see him coming out of the wall and climbing the ladder to the crane and then starting the song when he's completely on the crane and when the ladder is out of the way and taken through the wall where Michael and Michael Bush came from. It was also Bush's job to put the ladder on and take it back. He also had to signal the machines when Michael is safely up on the crane and ready.Song Info
- "The Way You Make Me Feel" was performed without the 2nd verse and it was withdrawn from all shows after Gelsenkirchen [Jun. 15].
- "Off the Wall Medley" was withdrawn from the show in Tunis and withdrawn permanently following the concert on June 13, 1997, in Kiel.
- "Come Together"/"D.S." was withdrawn from the show in Mumbai [Nov. 1], Manila [Dec. 8], Bandar Seri Begawan [Dec. 31], and all the second and third leg shows.
- "Blood on the Dance Floor" was performed in all the second leg shows until August 19 (Oslo) except Vienna (Jul. 2); it was performed with a red jacket in Bremen (May 31).
- "Dangerous was withdrawn from the show in Tokyo (Dec. 20) and Manila (Dec. 8).
- At every HIStory World Tour stop, during "You Are Not Alone", one lucky girl was allowed to dance with Michael on stage.
- In the performance of "Heal the World" in Bucharest, the headset microphone was having problems. So, one of the backup singers lent Michael his microphone.
- At every concert with a predominantly Muslim audience, such as Tunis or Kuala Lumpur, the "Black Panther" video was replaced with "Brace Yourself". Jackson also refrained from his crotch-grabbing move instead putting his hand more outside the thigh or towards the belly.
- In one of the performances in Tokyo, Michael slipped when he was leaning for "Smooth Criminal". The footage was shown on YouTube, it was taken by a fan (though the audience blocks the view of the moment Jackson falls down).
- During the first concerts in Amsterdam and Sydney, Michael sang "Beat It" fully live.
- In the middle of the year, Michael's friend Princess Diana died from a car accident. During the concert in Ostend Michael told the crew to put Charlie Chaplin's song "Smile" on and at the end of the song, Michael said "R.I.P Princess Diana" through the microphone. During the same concert Michael paid a tribute to Princess Diana, because during the performance of "Heal the World" there would usually be a picture of the globe on the big screen, but for this concert it was replaced with a picture of the Princess of Wales.
- During the first concert in Seoul, Michael was on the crane for "Earth Song", when a fan jumped on it to meet Michael. Michael held the man for safety and at the end of the song the security guards took him away from Jackson.
- During the August 29 concert in Denmark it was Michael's birthday and after "You Are Not Alone" there was a surprise birthday performance for him by the crew. Starting with a marching band coming in and after that, two of the crew members presented Michael with a birthday cake and after he quoted, "This is beautiful, thank you so much." At the end he thanked his fans for the surprise.
- In some of the first concerts in Europe, the jacket for "Thriller" and "Come Together"/"D.S." were red when they are usually white for "Thriller" and blue for the medley.
- During the first European concerts, Michael donned a rare jacket that was used during "Thriller".
- Michael usually performs "Billie Jean" with his hair in a ponytail, but during the second leg of HIStory World Tour, at a concert in Amsterdam, Michael performed the whole "Billie Jean" number with his hair down because his hairtie fell out. Amateur footage of this concert can be found on the internet.
- In Munich, on July 6, during "Scream" his jacket accidentally opened up.
- Usually Michael performs "Stranger in Moscow" with his jacket open, but from the Bremen May 31 concert to Amsterdam June 10, he performed the song with his jacket closed.
- On the second concert in South Africa, Michael's longtime friend Diana Ross attended the show and made a surprise appearance on stage in the middle of the performance of "Heal the World".
Tour dates
Date | City | Country | Venue |
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Royal Brunei concert | |||
July 16, 1996 | Bandar Seri Begawan | Brunei | Jerudong Park |
First leg | |||
Europe | |||
September 7, 1996 | Prague | Czech Republic | Letna Park |
September 10, 1996 | Budapest | Hungary | Népstadion |
September 14, 1996 | Bucharest | Romania | Lia Manoliu Stadium |
September 17, 1996 | Moscow | Russia | Dynamo Stadium |
September 20, 1996 | Warsaw | Poland | Bemowo Airport |
September 24, 1996 | Zaragoza | Spain | Estadio La Romareda |
September 28, 1996 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Amsterdam Arena |
September 30, 1996 | |||
October 2, 1996 | |||
Africa | |||
October 7, 1996 | Tunis | Tunisia | Stade El Menzah |
Asia | |||
October 11, 1996 | Seoul | South Korea | Olympic Stadium |
October 13, 1996 | |||
October 18, 1996 | Taipei | Taiwan | Chungshan Soccer Stadium |
October 20, 1996 | Kaohsiung | Chungcheng Stadium | |
October 22, 1996 | Taipei | Chungshan Soccer Stadium | |
October 25, 1996 | Singapore | Singapore | National Stadium |
October 27, 1996 | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia | Merdeka Stadium |
October 29, 1996 | |||
November 1, 1996 | Mumbai | India | Andheri Sports Complex |
November 5, 1996 | Bangkok | Thailand | Muang Thong Thani City Center |
Oceania | |||
November 9, 1996 | Auckland | New Zealand | Ericsson Stadium |
November 11, 1996 | |||
November 14, 1996 | Sydney | Australia | Sydney Cricket Ground |
November 16, 1996 | |||
November 19, 1996 | Brisbane | ANZ Stadium | |
November 22, 1996 | Melbourne | Melbourne Cricket Ground | |
November 24, 1996 | |||
November 26, 1996 | Adelaide | Adelaide Oval | |
November 30, 1996 | Perth | Burswood Dome | |
December 2, 1996 | |||
December 4, 1996 | |||
Asia | |||
December 8, 1996 | Parañaque | Philippines | Asia World City Concert Grounds |
December 10, 1996 | |||
December 13, 1996[2][3][4] | Tokyo | Japan | Tokyo Dome |
December 15, 1996 | |||
December 17, 1996 | |||
December 20, 1996 | |||
December 26, 1996 | Fukuoka | Fukuoka Dome | |
December 28, 1996 | |||
December 31, 1996 | Bandar Seri Begawan | Brunei | Jerudong Park |
North America | |||
January 3, 1997 | Honolulu | United States | Aloha Stadium |
January 4, 1997 | |||
Second leg | |||
Europe | |||
May 31, 1997 | Bremen | Germany | Weserstadion |
June 3, 1997 | Cologne | Mungersdorfer Stadion | |
June 6, 1997 | Bremen | Weserstadion | |
June 8, 1997 | Amsterdam | Netherlands | Amsterdam Arena |
June 10, 1997 | |||
June 13, 1997 | Kiel | Germany | Nordmarksportfield |
June 15, 1997 | Gelsenkirchen | Parkstadion | |
June 18, 1997 | Milan | Italy | San Siro |
June 20, 1997 | Lausanne | Switzerland | Stade Olympique de la Pontaise |
June 22, 1997 | Bettembourg | Luxembourg | Krakelshaff |
June 25, 1997 | Lyon | France | Stade de Gerland |
June 27, 1997 | Paris | Parc des Princes | |
June 29, 1997 | |||
July 2, 1997 | Vienna | Austria | Ernst-Happel-Stadion |
July 4, 1997 | Munich | Germany | Olympic Stadium |
July 6, 1997 | |||
July 9, 1997 | Sheffield | United Kingdom | Don Valley Stadium |
July 12, 1997 | London | Wembley Stadium | |
July 15, 1997 | |||
July 17, 1997 | |||
July 19, 1997 | Dublin | Ireland | RDS Arena |
July 25, 1997 | Basel | Switzerland | St. Jakob Stadium |
July 27, 1997 | Nice | France | Stade Charles-Ehrmann |
August 1, 1997 | Berlin | Germany | Olympic Stadium |
August 3, 1997 | Leipzig | Festwiese | |
August 10, 1997 | Hockenheim | Hockenheimring | |
August 14, 1997 | Copenhagen | Denmark | Parken Stadium |
August 16, 1997 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Ullevi |
August 19, 1997 | Oslo | Norway | Valle Hovin |
August 22, 1997 | Tallinn | Estonia | Tallinn Song Festival Grounds |
August 24, 1997 | Helsinki | Finland | Helsinki Olympic Stadium |
August 26, 1997 | |||
August 29, 1997 | Copenhagen | Denmark | Parken Stadium |
September 3, 1997 | Ostend | Belgium | Hippodrome Wellington |
September 6, 1997 | Valladolid | Spain | Estadio José Zorrilla |
Third leg | |||
Rehearsals[5] | |||
October 2, 1997 | Cape Town | South Africa | Greenpoint Stadium |
October 3, 1997 | |||
Africa | |||
October 4, 1997 | Cape Town | South Africa | Greenpoint Stadium |
October 6, 1997 | |||
October 10, 1997 | Johannesburg | Johannesburg Stadium | |
October 12, 1997 | |||
October 15, 1997 | Durban | Kings Park Stadium |
Box office score data[6]
Venue | City | Tickets Sold |
---|---|---|
Letna Park | Prague | 125,000 |
Népstadion | Budapest | 50,000 |
Lia Manoliu Stadium | Bucharest | 70,000 |
Dinamo Stadium | Moscow | 50,000 |
Bemowo Airport | Warsaw | 120,000 |
Estadio La Romareda | Zaragoza | 45,000 |
Amsterdam Arena | Amsterdam | 150,000 |
Stade El Menzah | Tunis | 60,000 |
Olympic Stadium | Seoul | 100,000 |
Chungshan Soccer Stadium | Taipei | 80,000 |
Chungcheng Stadium | Kaohsiung | 40,000 |
National Stadium | Singapore | 35,000 |
Merdeka Stadium | Kuala Lumpur | 80,000 |
Andheri Sports Complex | Mumbai | 60,000 |
Muang Thong Thani City Center | Bangkok | 40,000 |
Ericsson Stadium | Auckland | 86,000 |
Sydney Cricket Ground | Sydney | 80,000 |
ANZ Stadium | Brisbane | 40,000 |
Melbourne Cricket Ground | Melbourne | 130,000 |
Adelaide Oval | Adelaide | 30,000 |
Burswood Dome | Perth | 60,000 |
Asia World City Concert Grounds | Parañaque | 110,000 |
Tokyo Dome | Tokyo | 180,000 |
Fukuoka Dome | Fukuoka | 80,000 |
Jerudong Park | Bandar Seri Bengawan | 40,000 |
Aloha Stadium | Honululu | 70,000 |
Weserstadion | Bremen | 105,000 |
Mungersdorfer Stadion | Cologne | 60,000 |
Nordmarksportfield | Kiel | 55,000 |
Parkstadion | Gelsenkirchen | 50,000 |
San Siro | Milan | 45,000 |
Stade Olympique de la Pointaise | Lausanne | 35,000 |
Krakelshaff | Bettembourg | 45,000 |
Stade de Gerland | Lyon | 25,000 |
Parc des Princes | Paris | 125,000 |
Ernst-Happel-Stadion | Vieena | 50,000 |
Olympic Stadium | Munich | 140,000 |
Don Valley Stadium | Sheffield | 45,000 |
Wembley Stadium | London | 216,000 |
RDS Arena | Dublin | 43,000 |
St. Jacob Stadium | Basel | 50,000 |
Stade Charles-Ehrmann | Nice | 35,000 |
Olympic Stadium | Berlin | 78,000 |
Festwiese | Leipzig | 55,000 |
Hockenheimring | Hockenheim | 85,000 |
Parken Stadium | Copenhagen | 100,000 |
Ullevi | Gothenburg | 50,000 |
Valle Hovin | Oslo | 40,000 |
Tallinn Song Festival Grounds | Tallinn | 75,000 |
Olympic Stadium | Helsinki | 100,000 |
Hippodrome Wellington | Ostend | 60,000 |
Estadio José Zorrilla | Valladolid | 40,000 |
Greenpoint Stadium | Cape Town | 72,000 |
Johannesburg Stadium | Johannesburg | 105,000 |
Kings Park Stadium | Durban | 50,000 |
TOTAL | 4,145,000 |