Beyoncé has made her long-awaited return to the stage — on Wednesday night, in Stockholm, Sweden, the legendary pop icon delivered the inaugural performance of the “Renaissance World Tour,” her first solo run of shows since 2016.
Opening for herself, Queen Bey kicked off the marathon, three-hour show by performing a series of ballads, including “Dangerously in Love,” “Flaws and All,” “1+1,” and “I Care.” After a brief intermission, Beyoncé launched into the Renaissance portion of her set, as she showcased her latest album with performances of “I’m That Girl,” “Cozy,” “Alien Superstar,” Cuff It,” “Energy,” and “Break My Soul.”
Video interludes broke the set into themed sections dubbed “RENAISSANCE,” “MOTHERBOARD,” “OPULENCE,” ANOINTED,” and “MIND CONTROL.” After debuting songs from her latest record, Beyoncé used “OPULENCE” to dig into her back catalog with “Formation,” “Run the World (Girls), “Black Parade,” and “Partition,” as well as her remix of Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage.” In addition to addressing those long-awaited Renaissance visuals (“A queen moves at her own pace, bitch,” the narrator from “Formation” said), she delivered a good part of her performance on a metallic tank, which has been dubbed the Bey Wagon by the BeyHive. During “Partition,” she even rode it into a giant… robot vagina?
The next act opened with a performance of the Renaissance cut “Church Girl,” in which Beyoncé created a stunning visual by using UV lights to transform her choir robe into a stained glass look. She followed up by throwing it all the way back to 2003’s “Crazy in Love” alongside other tracks like “Get Me Bodied” and “Love on Top” — the latter of which she mixed with The Jackson Five’s “I Want You Back.”
Returning back to her latest album, Bey ran through the Grammy-nominated “Virgo’s Groove,” “Plastic Off the Sofa,” “Move,” “Heated,” and “Thique.” During the latter track, she interpolated Britney Spears’ “Toxic.” For the final act of the show, she ran through Renaissance standout “America Has a Problem” dressed up as a bee, because, of course. That part of the set even included a news desk for Bey’s “KNTY News.”
Before closing out the show with “Summer Renaissance,” she ceded the stage to her dancers, who showed the crowd what ballroom — a major influence of her dance album — is all about.
See the full setlist and fan-captured performance footage below.
Wednesday’s show in Stockholm kicked off the European leg of the “Renaissance World Tour,” which will run through the end of June. After that, the North American leg will begin with two shows in Toronto, and then zig-zag across the United States. Learn how to get last-minute tickets to her upcoming shows here.
The “Renaissance World Tour” is Beyoncé’s first solo tour since 2016’s “Formation World Tour.” In 2018, Bey embarked on a joint tour with her husband, JAY-Z, and delivered a memorable headlining performance at Coachella. Most recently, in January the 41-year-old multi-hyphenate played a private concert for a crowd of influencers in Dubai, which reportedly earned her $24 million.
Unlike the Dubai show, however, the “Renaissance World Tour” is designed for the public, in an arena setting. Tickets for the rest of the tour are still available to purchase here.
Photo Gallery Beyoncé in Stockholm, Sweden, May 10th (Click to Expand)
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Act 4 – Opulence
Formation
Diva
Run the World (Girls)
My Power
Black Parade
Savage (Remix)
Partition
Act 5 – Anointed
Church Girl
Get Me Bodied
Before I Let Go
Rather Die Young
Love on Top
Crazy in Love
Act 6 – Anointed Pt. 2
Plastic Off the Sofa
Virgo’s Groove/Naughty Girl
Move
Heated
Thique
All Up in Your Mind
Drunk in Love
