Beyoncé dances with giant robotic arms on the opening night of the Renaissance World Tour

Beyoncé kicked off their 57-year date Renaissance World Tour in Stockholm, Sweden on Wednesday with futuristic panache.

The set design for the opening night of the global superstar’s second all-stadium solo tour seemed her most ambitious yet. Videos posted on social media showed pyrotechnics, disco balls, giant moving robotsand even a shiny, metallic tank that Beyoncé rode while she sang.

The tour is in support of Beyoncé’s seventh solo studio album, Renaissance. It’s her first solo tour in almost seven years. The Formation World Tour in 2016 supported their album Lemonade.

Beyoncé sang all 16 songs from “Renaissance” at the tour’s opening show, performing one of them live for the first time. Several older songs from their extensive catalog also made their live debuts, including the Grammy winner “Black Parade”, “Lift Off” and “Savage Remix”, her number one hit with Megan Thee Stallion.

Beyoncé kicked off the show with four straight ballads, including 2003’s “Dangerously In Love 2,” an unconventional move by a singer known for peppering her concerts with racy hits like “Crazy In Love,” “Run the World (Girls )” to open. ,” and “Formation”.

Beyoncé then began with songs from “Renaissance”, with performances full of futuristic sets – including those robotic arms – and a queer, black and trans-inspired choreography that evoked the themes and tenor of her latest acclaimed album.

The 41-year-old mother-of-three danced energetically alongside a legion of backup dancers wearing blonde wigs and glittery silver leotards, and sang (and rapped) with the vigor and originality that puts her in a special category of pop artist. Her athleticism doesn’t seem to have waned since her amazingly aerobic headlining performances at Coachella in 2018.

The cast’s outfits were as edgy and ultra-modern as the show’s set design, ranging from a gold bodysuit inspired by Loewe’s Fall 2022 collection to a giant bee suit — a fashion-forward embrace of her moniker as “Queen Bey.” Another outfit seemed to be converted by UV light while wearing it.

Beyoncé closed the show with a performance of the album’s final track, “Summer Renaissance,” while atop a shiny, crystalline horse — reminiscent of the cover of the “Renaissance” album — and later lifted above the crowd amidst a cloud of glittering confetti.

Wednesday was only Beyoncé’s second live performance in almost three years. Prior to her January show at the opening of Atlantis the Royal Hotel in Dubai, Beyoncé had not performed in front of a live audience since her performance Kobe Bryant’s memorial in February 2020. Her most recent world tour was co-headlining with her husband Jay-Z in 2018.

Forbes forecast Monday that the Renaissance World Tour could gross nearly $2.1 billion — $500 million more than Taylor Swift’s “Eras” world tour is expected to gross and more than earnings from any of the previous concerts Beyonce together.

Beyoncé has announced that she will be supporting students and entrepreneurs during the Renaissance World Tour by giving a total of $2 million through them BeyGOOD Foundation. Established in 2013, the foundation’s BeyGOOD initiative has conducted various philanthropic projects in the United States and around the world, including providing assistance to communities affected by natural disasters, promoting education, and supporting programs that address issues such as housing and mental health . It has also provided grants to small, black-owned businesses — a focus since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.