Any tour is a massive undertaking that requires an unbelievable amount of planning and logistics. That goes for a band in a van pulling double (or triple, or quadruple) duty as performers, drivers, merch salespeople, and backline technicians, or the biggest pop stars on the planet, who need hundreds of people to make their treks possible.
Despite that reality, it’s rare to see a major artist share the full production and services credits for their tours, so that everyone involved gets a chance to shine. It does happen every now and then: Madonna gave a big shout out to her personnel for her Madame X tour; SZA let the credits roll on the big screen at the end of her SOS shows; and now Beyoncé has shared the credits for her Renaissance tour, which just launched in Europe.
The Renaissance credits offer a glimpse at the insane scale of such tours, which aren’t possible without everyone from back-up dancers and musicians, to wardrobe and glam teams, to lighting crews, audio technicians, carpenters, builders, caterers, and security. Beyoncé even has a full-on “Automation” team, which is probably the crew responsible for making sure those crazy robot arms function properly every night.
(Seeing the full credits also helps partially explain why concert tickets are so expensive these days — not counting the arguably questionable fees implemented by those selling the tickets.)
Beyoncé launched Renaissance in Stockholm, Sweden last Wednesday, May 10. So far the shows have featured massive, career-spanning setlists stuffed with plenty of surprises, like a show-opening rendition of “Dangerously In Love” and clever mash-ups of old and new hits (like 2008’s “Sweet Dreams” mixed with Renaissance favorite “Alien Superstar”).
The European leg of the Renaissance tour will continue through May and June. Beyoncé will kick off her North American trek July 8 in Toronto, with shows scheduled through Sept. 27 in New Orleans.
