Charmbracelet World Tour

The Charmbracelet World Tour was the fifth worldwide concert tour in 2003–2004 by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey in support of her ninth studio album Charmbracelet (2002). The tour started on June 21, 2003 in Seoul, South Korea, and visited several countries in Asia, Europe, and North America before ending on February 26, 2004 in Dubai. At the end of 2003, the tour placed 83rd on Pollstar's "Top 100 Tours", grossing more than $6.0 million with 25 shows from her first North American leg.[1]

Charmbracelet World Tour
Tour by Mariah Carey
Associated albumCharmbracelet
Start dateJune 20, 2003
End dateFebruary 26, 2004
Legs7
No. of shows20 in Asia
16 in Europe
33 in North America
69 Total
Box office$6.0 million (25 shows)
Mariah Carey concert chronology

Background

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Carey performing "Subtle Invitation" on the tour

In April 2003, Carey announced a world tour in support of her recent studio album Charmbracelet.[2] The tour followed her Rainbow World Tour in 2000 and was her most extensive lasting for sixty-nine shows over eight months. The tour reached many places in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.[3]

Since her debut on the music scene in 1990, Carey has toured very infrequently compared to many other established acts. As such, the length of this tour had actually been extended due to Carey attempting to promote the Charmbracelet album which was underperforming. After the initial stretch of the tour, Carey decided to add additional dates. For the new dates, she performed a more condensed show, removing several songs from the set list and performing a few new songs in their place with Christmas elements during the seasonal period.

In the United States, venues were switched from large arenas to smaller, more intimate theatre shows due to slow sales in some cities. According to Carey, however, the change was made in order to give fans a more intimate show. She said, "It's much more intimate so you'll feel like you had an experience. You experience a night with me."[2] However, while smaller venues were booked for the US leg of the tour, Carey performed at some arenas in Asia and Europe, and performed for a crowd of over 35,000 in Manila, 50,000 in Malaysia, and to over 70,000 people in China.[4] In the UK, it was Carey's first tour to feature shows outside London; she performed in Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester.[5]

Critical response

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Guardian     [6]
Las Vegas Review-JournalB[7]
Los Angeles Daily News     [8]
Rolling Stone     [9]
The Times     [10]

The tour garnered praise from music critics and audiences, many of whom complimented the quality of Carey's live vocals and the production of the shows. Fans were given the opportunity to request songs from Carey's catalog, which added to its positive reception.[3] At her concert in Manila, Rito P. Asilo from Philippine Daily Inquirer wrote, "I didn't expect her voice to be that crystal clear!"[11] He added, "After 15 songs, we couldn't seem to get enough of Mariah—and we became a believer!".[11]

Carey's sexual image also generated some controversy during the tour. In various countries, she was often criticized for her choice of dress, and a Pan-Islamic youth leader attempted to have her banned from performing in Malaysia.[12]

Set list

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  1. "Looking In" (Instrumental introduction) contains elements of "Butterfly")
  2. "Heartbreaker" (contains elements of "Desert Storm Remix")
  3. "Dreamlover"
  4. "Through the Rain"
  5. "My All" (outro contains elements of the Classic Club Mix")
  6. "Marionette Show" (Interlude)
  7. "Clown"
  8. "Honey" (contains elements of "Bad Boy Remix")
  9. "I Know What You Want"
  10. "Subtle Invitation"
  11. "My Saving Grace"
  12. "I'll Be There" (with Trey Lorenz)
  13. "Friend of Mine" (Interlude) (performed by Trey Lorenz)
  14. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak"
  15. "Fantasy" (Bad Boy Remix)
  16. "Always Be My Baby"
  17. "Make It Happen"
  18. "Vision of Love"
  19. "Hero"
  20. "Butterfly Reprise" (Outro)
Notes
  • "You Got Me" was performed during the opening night in Seoul.
  • "Can't Take That Away (Mariah's Theme)" was temporarily performed from July 26 to November 16, and was ultimately added to the set list on December 10.
  • "Always Be My Baby" and "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" were not performed on select dates.
  • "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was performed during shows in Japan and the second American leg.
  • "Can't Take That Away (Mariah's Theme)" was replaced by "One Sweet Day" in St. Louis, Denver and Mashantucket.
  • "Without You" was temporarily performed from September 17 to November 16.
  • From December 9 to 22, "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing", "Gloria (In Excelsis Deo)", "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World" were performed.
  • During the third show in Los Angeles, "What Would You Do" replaced "I Know What You Want".
  • "I'll Be There" was not performed in Beirut.
  • "Clown" and "Subtle Invitation" were cut from the set list on December 9, 2003.
  • "Vision of Love" was not performed in Busan, Jakarta and Dubai.

Shows

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List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and note about sale status
Date City Country Venue Sale Status
Asia[13]
June 21, 2003 Seoul South Korea Jamsil Arena Sold-out
June 24, 2003 Osaka Japan Osaka-Jo Hall Sold-out
June 26, 2003
June 29, 2003 Fukuoka Marine Messe Fukuoka Sold-out
July 1, 2003
July 3, 2003 Hiroshima Hiroshima Sun Plaza Sold-out
July 6, 2003 Tokyo Budokan Arena Sold-out
July 8, 2003
July 10, 2003
July 13, 2003 Nagoya Rainbow Hall Sold-out
July 15, 2003
North America
July 26, 2003 Las Vegas United States Colosseum at Caesars Palace
July 29, 2003 Chicago United Center
August 1, 2003 St. Louis Fox Theatre
August 3, 2003 Cleveland The Scene Center
August 5, 2003 Columbia Merriweather Post Pavilion
August 7, 2003 Toronto Canada Sears Theater
August 10, 2003 Morrison United States Red Rocks Amphitheatre
August 13, 2003 Concord Chronicle Pavilion
August 15, 2003 San Diego SDSU Open Air Theatre
August 18, 2003 Los Angeles Universal Amphitheatre
August 21, 2003
August 23, 2003 Phoenix Dodge Theatre
August 26, 2003 Grand Prairie NextStage Theatre
August 28, 2003 The Woodlands The Woodlands Pavilion
August 30, 2003 Orlando Bob Carr Performing Arts Center
September 1, 2003 Fort Lauderdale Au-Rene Theater
September 3, 2003 Tampa Carol Morsani Hall
September 6, 2003 Mashantucket Foxwoods Resort Casino
September 8, 2003 Boston Wang Theatre
September 10, 2003 Upper Darby Township Tower Theater
September 12, 2003 Wallingford Oakdale Theatre
September 14, 2003 Cincinnati U.S. Bank Arena
September 18, 2003 New York City Radio City Music Hall
September 20, 2003 Atlantic City Mark Etess Arena
September 23, 2003 Manchester Verizon Wireless Arena
Europe
September 27, 2003 Moscow Russia State Kremlin Palace
September 29, 2003
October 2, 2003 Saint Petersburg Ice Palace
October 5, 2003 Stockholm Sweden Globen Arena
October 8, 2003 Rotterdam Netherlands Sportpaleis van Ahoy
October 10, 2003 Hamburg Germany Color Line Arena
October 13, 2003 Berlin Max-Schmeling-Halle
October 16, 2003 Munich Olympiahalle
October 19, 2003 Vienna Austria Wiener Stadthalle
October 22, 2003 Zürich Switzerland Hallenstadion
October 25, 2003 Glasgow Scotland Scottish Exhibition Hall 4
October 28, 2003 Birmingham England National Exhibition Centre
October 30, 2003 London Wembley Arena
November 1, 2003 Manchester Manchester Evening News Arena
November 4, 2003 Paris France Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy
November 7, 2003 Milan Italy Fila Forum
Asia
November 12, 2003 Shanghai China Hong Kou Stadium
November 14, 2003
November 16, 2003 Taguig Philippines Bonifacio Global City Open Field
North America[14]
December 9, 2003 Portland United States Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
December 10, 2003 Seattle McCaw Hall
December 12, 2003 San Jose HP Pavilion
December 15, 2003 Santa Barbara Arlington Theatre
December 17, 2003 Los Angeles Universal Amphitheater
December 19, 2003 Tucson Tucson Arena
December 20, 2003 Las Vegas Theatre for the Performing Arts
December 22, 2003 Costa Mesa Orange County Performing Arts Center
Asia
February 13, 2004 Busan South Korea Busan Convention Center
February 15, 2004 Jakarta Indonesia Jakarta Convention Center
February 17, 2004 Bangkok Thailand Impact Arena
February 20, 2004 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Stadium Merdeka
February 24, 2004 Beirut Lebanon B.I.E.L.
February 26, 2004 Dubai United Arab Emirates Dubai Media City Sold-out[15]

Box office score data

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List of concerts, showing date, venue, city, tickets sold, number of available tickets and amount of gross revenue[16][17][14]
Date Venue City Attendance / Capacity Revenue
September 18, 2003 Radio City Music Hall New York City 5,922 / 5,922 $426,945
September 23, 2003 Verizon Wireless Arena Manchester 4,531 / 6,715 $305,775
November 12/14, 2003 Hong Kou Stadium Shanghai 70,000 / 70,000
November 16, 2003 Bonifacio Global City Open Field Taguig 35,000 / 35,000
December 12, 2003 HP Pavilion San Jose 5,508 / 5,508 $303,943
December 17, 2003 Universal Amphitheatre Los Angeles 5,614 / 5,769 $302,675
February 20, 2004 Stadium Merdeka Kuala Lumpur 50,000 / 50,000
Total 176,645 / 178,914 (98%) $1,339,338

Personnel

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  • Randy Jackson – musical director
  • Lionel Cole - piano, keyboards
  • Eric Daniels – keyboards
  • Sam Sims - bass
  • Vernon Black – guitar
  • Gregory "Gigi" Gonoway – drums
  • Trey Lorenz – background vocals
  • Mary Ann Tatum – background vocals
  • Sherry Tatum - background vocals
  • Takeytha Johnson – background vocals

References

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  1. ^ "Pollstar Top 100 Tours 2003" (PDF). Pollstar. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 10, 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
  2. ^ a b Patel, Joseph. "Carey Maps Out 'Intimate Evening' Tour". VH1. Archived from the original on January 14, 2004. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Patel, Joseph. "Mariah Carey Scraps Arena Tour, Opts To Get More Intimate". VH1. Archived from the original on February 5, 2013. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  4. ^ "Mariah's Malaysia Concert Ill-timed, Says Muslim Leader". San Jose Mercury News. MediaNews Group. January 16, 2004. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  5. ^ "Mariah Adds UK To World Tour". BBC News. May 31, 2003. Retrieved February 3, 2011.
  6. ^ Smart, James (October 27, 2003). "Mariah Carey". The Guardian. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  7. ^ Elfman, Doug (July 28, 2003). "Carey Concert a Visual Feast". Las Vegas Review-Journal. p. 3B. ProQuest 260164757.
  8. ^ Gittelson, Gerry (August 20, 2003). "No End to Carey's Charms". Los Angeles Daily News. p. U3. ProQuest 282417976.
  9. ^ Moon, Tom (October 16, 2003). "Mariah Carey". Rolling Stone. p. 98. ProQuest 2567859490.
  10. ^ Sinclair, David (November 1, 2003). "Pop". The Times. p. 28. Gale IF0502522034.
  11. ^ a b Asilo, Rito P. (November 23, 2003). "Mariah Carey Thrills Euphoric Manila Crowd". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Philippine Daily Inquirer, Inc. p. I3. Retrieved June 13, 2011.
  12. ^ "Mariah upsets Malaysian Muslims". BBC News. January 16, 2004.
  13. ^ "Charmbracelet world tour ends | The Mariah Carey Archives". www.mcarchives.com.
  14. ^ a b "Boxscore Concert Grosses". Billboard. 31 January 2004. p. 20. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  15. ^ "Charmbracelet world tour ends | The Mariah Carey Archives". www.mcarchives.com.
  16. ^ "Boxscore Concert Grosses" (PDF). Billboard. 11 October 2003. p. 65. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  17. ^ "Boxscore Concert Grosses" (PDF). Billboard. 25 October 2003. p. 25. Retrieved 27 May 2022.