Pick a Day

Music History Events: Tours

July 21, 2017 The day after the suicide of lead singer Chester Bennington, Linkin Park cancel their upcoming tour and set up a tribute page on their website with resources for suicide prevention.

May 12, 2017 To commemorate the 30th anniversary of their acclaimed 1987 album, The Joshua Tree, U2 embarks upon The Joshua Tree Tour 2017, with an opener in Vancouver, Canada. The band plays through the entire album, including rare treats "Exit" and "Trip Through Your Wires," which haven't been performed since the '80s, and a live first for "Red Hill Mining Town."

April 28, 2017 At the WXTB Rockfest, in Tampa, Florida, Soundgarden launch what will be their final tour with Chris Cornell, who dies on May 17 at a stop in Detroit.

March 16, 2017 Ed Sheeran launches his ÷ (Divide) tour in Turin, Italy. The trek lasts two-and-a-half years and breaks U2's record for highest-grossing tour, raking in $775.6 million on 255 dates. U2's 360 tour (2009-2011) took in $735.3 million.

August 25, 2016 Kanye West begins his Saint Pablo Tour with a concert in Indianapolis. During the show, West performs on a floating stage that hovers about 15 feet over the audience.More

July 20, 2016 Weed-loving rappers Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg begin their "High Road" tour with a show in West Palm Beach, Florida. Says Khalifa, "It's a joint performance."

April 27, 2016 Beyoncé kicks off her Formation tour with a show in Miami. Her first solo stadium tour, it features new tracks from her album Lemonade and new takes on many of her old hits.

April 8, 2016 The Guns N' Roses reunion tour gets underway in Las Vegas. Axl Rose, who fractured his foot at a warm-up show, performs from the throne Dave Grohl used to play Foo Fighters shows when he was hobbled.More

January 16, 2016 Bruce Springsteen begins The River Tour with a show in Pittsburgh. His 1980 album The River is the centerpiece of the tour, played start to finish at many stops. The tour is the year's most successful, grossing over $268 million.

June 5, 2015 Shania Twain begins her Rock This Country Tour with a show in Seattle. Billed as her farewell tour, it's her first trek since her 2003-2004 Up! tour.

July 19, 2014 Nine Inch Nails and Soundgarden launch a co-headlining tour at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, Nevada.

July 18, 2012 The Who announce of a tour to revive their rock opera Quadrophenia. The original run of the film of Quadrophenia debuted in 1979; the album in 1973. Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, as the surviving members of the group, are also tapped to perform the ending song for the 2012 Olympic games in London.

June 30, 2012 In Kiev, Queen launch their first tour with American Idol alumnus Adam Lambert on lead vocals. The band had previously toured with Paul Rodgers.

April 24, 2012 The Beach Boys begin their 50th anniversary tour, which reunites Brian Wilson with fellow founders Mike Love and Al Jardine, along with longtime members Bruce Johnston and David Marks.

July 30, 2011 U2 wrap up their 360 tour at Moncton, Canada. The final gross for the tour is $735 million, breaking the record set by The Rolling Stones on their A Bigger Bang tour, which ran from 2005-2007. Ed Sheeran sets a new mark in 2019 with $775 million on his ÷ (Divide) tour, but it takes him 255 shows to do it - U2s tour ran for 110 dates.

June 18, 2011 In Bristow, Virgina, Rascal Flatts kick off their "Flatts Fest" tour, with karaoke, carnival games, mini golf and other entertainment in the hours before the show. As a tie-in with their song "Why Wait," there's also a wedding chapel.

May 12, 2011 The Monkees, minus Mike Nesmith, embark on a 45th Anniversary Tour with a date at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England. It's the group's fourth and final reunion tour, as Davy Jones dies in 2012.

March 30, 2011 Buffalo Springfield, which split in 1968, announce a reunion tour with original members Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay. The tour lasts seven shows, ending with a performance at Bonnaroo. Another 30 dates are planned, but Young calls it off.

February 20, 2011 Katy Perry launches her worldwide California Dreams Tour in support of her Teenage Dream album, starting in Lisbon, Portugal, where she transforms the venue into a candy-coated wonderland. "It's very kitsch," she says. "I'm borrowing from The Wizard of Oz, Alice In Wonderland, Black Swan, Pee Wee's Big Adventure and a little John Waters. People are raising the bar so you either have to get to that level or you're out of the game."

June 30, 2009 U2 launch their 360 tour with a show in Barcelona. 109 shows later, the tour finishes with $735 million in earnings, blowing away the $558 million record set by The Rolling Stones on their 2005-2007 A Bigger Bang tour. Ed Sheeran breaks the record in 2019 when his ÷ (Divide) tour rakes in $775 million.

March 9, 2009 In New Orleans, Britney Spears launches her Circus tour, her first since 2004. The tour, which features acrobats, clowns, magicians, Pussycat Dolls, and lots of hits, is a triumphant return for Spears, who seemed unhinged throughout 2007 as she battled addiction and dealt with the fallout from her divorce.

January 15, 2009 In Tupelo, Mississippi, Darius Rucker, once a headliner with his pop band Hootie & the Blowfish, joins Brad Paisley's tour, where he is third on the bill behind Paisley and Dierks Bentley. It's Rucker's first tour as a country artist; he's willing to do "everything the new guy does" to make it happen.

July 1, 2008 Crüe Fest kicks off in West Palm Beach, Florida. The tour features Mötley Crüe, Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Sixx:A.M., and Trapt; it earns about $40 million.

September 27, 2007 In Charlotte, Van Halen kick off their North American tour, bringing David Lee Roth back into the fold for the first time since 1985. Their new bass player is Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddie's 16-year-old son.

April 21, 2006 Faith Hill and Tim McGraw kick off their Soul2Soul II tour in Columbus, Ohio, which becomes the highest-grossing country tour of all time. On some dates, their opening act is a young singer named Taylor Swift.

February 17, 2005 With Tommy Lee back in the band for the first time in five years, Mötley Crüe begin their Red, White & Crüe tour in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It's a circus theme, with clowns, fire-eaters and acrobats. For his drum solo, Tommy Lee and his rig go up on a trapeze and he performs from 30 feet in the air.

March 27, 2004 Prince kicks off his Musicology tour with a show in Reno, Nevada. The average ticket costs $61, which includes a copy of the Musicology album. These are counted as sales according to Billboard, so the album rises to #3 (his previous three albums failed to chart). The tour takes in $87.4 million, making it the highest-grossing of 2004.

September 26, 2003 With their second album, Melt, climbing the charts, Rascal Flatts kick off their first headline tour in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

May 9, 2003 The Eagles, trimmed to a four-man lineup (Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit) after parting ways with Don Felder, start their Farewell I tour in Richmond, Virginia, the title a mocking reference to the many "farewell" tours that aren't really. They play 168 dates on the tour over a span of three years.

June 14, 2002 Cher starts her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour. Planned for 59 dates, it ends up at 325, bringing in 260 million dollars. It's billed as her final tour, though she ends up returning to music years later.