Welcome 2 America Tour

2010/12

No concert is ever the same.

Essentially a run of several tours under the banner Welcome 2 America, despite it’s name evolved into a world tour – likely driven by its continuing success. The tour was originally announced by Prince in person at the Apollo Theatre, New York on 14 October 2010. When the Welcome 2 America Tour began that December, the event marked Prince’s first American tour for 6 years. This phase of the tour would eventually gross $20 million.

The latter stages of tour expanded to include two 21 Nights In London inspired ‘residency’ stints in Chicago (three nights billed as Welcome 2 Chicago) and Inglewood, California (15 nights, although billed as 21 Nite Stand the remaining shows never materialised).

Renamed Welcome 2 Canada the Canadian leg marked Prince’s first shows in the country for 11 years. After which it moved to the European festival circuit (still under the moniker Welcome 2 America) and then to Australia and renamed Welcome 2 Australia. These tours were a ‘greatest hits’ format and not in promotion of any album.

This tour is noted for seeing Prince’s first and only appearance at a UK festival, The Hop Farm. Having chosen this fairly unknown festival ahead of the expected candidate Glastonbury, the latter had used Prince’s name in the past under the hope to entice him as its headlining act. His choice for an unknown festival was therefore a snub to Glastonbury, however his appearance was a coup for The Hop Farm and put the event on the map as a serious festival. Knowing the exposure it would give the organisers, Prince’s fee for was $1m and was known as the “million dollar show”.

The other festivals he headlined during this tour was Heineken Open’er Festival (Poland), North Sea Jazz Festival (The Netherlands), Sziget Fesztival (Hungary), Way Out West Festival (Sweden), plus two dates at the specially named NPG Music and Arts Festival (Denmark).

A full studio album was originally intended to accompany the tour, Prince produced a 12-track album named Welcome 2 America in 2010 but decided to release 20Ten in place. The Prince Estate released the original album, as Welcome 2 America Deluxe Edition, in July 2021.

Performers

Vocals/Guitar

Prince

Drums

John Blackwell

Guitar

Any Allo

Keyboards

Morris Hayes

Renato Neto

Cassandra O'Neal

Bass Guitar

Ida Nielsen

Vocals

Shelby Johnson

Marva King

Elisa Dease

Total dates played

• Welcome 2 America
  36 shows from 15 December 2010 to 29 May 2011
• Welcome 2 America: Euro Tour 2011
  24 shows from 30 June to 17 August, 2011
• Welcome 2 Canada
  11 shows from 25 November to 17 December, 2011
• Welcome 2 Australia
  8 shows from 11 to 30 May 2012
• Welcome 2 Chicago
  3 shows from 24 to 26 September 2012

Sample setlist

1. Laydown
2. The Beautiful Ones
3. Uptown
4. Raspberry Beret
5. Cream
6. Cool
7. Let’s Work
8. U Got The Look
9. Shhh
10. Nothing Compares 2 U
11. She’s Always In My Hair
12. If I Was Your Girlfriend
13. Insatiable
14. Adore
15. Purple Rain
16. Kiss
17. Sometimes It Snows in April
18. Diamonds And Pearls
19. All The Critics Love U In New York
20. Controversy
21. Sexy Dancer
22. Le Freak

Prince Tour Trivia

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