The Most Anticipated Tours of 2022 — And How to Buy Tickets
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To music lovers, 2022 is a much-welcome reintroduction to live music after some of the most anticipated tours and festivals of the past two years were postponed due to the pandemic.
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Now, artists are finally hitting the road again, with some artists showcasing albums that came out as far back as 2020. Tame Impala, who had to cut his 2020 tour short when the world shut down in March, is finally revisiting “The Slow Rush” during his global tour, but this time with the handful of remixes and collaborations he added onto the deluxe edition, which came out last month.
Other highly anticipated tours include Dua Lipa, who will trek across North America in support of her chart-topping album “Future Nostalgia,” and Bad Bunny’s “El Último Tour del Mundo,” which was reported to be the fastest-selling tour since 2018.
Below, check out the most anticipated tours of 2022, and how to buy tickets.
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga has finally announced new dates for her highly anticipated “Chromatica Ball” tour, which had to be rescheduled because of COVID. The 2020 album, which Variety celebrated as some of her best work to date, suffered from a fairly silent press cycle due to the pandemic, but that also means fans have probably not tired of the new songs that she’ll perform for the first time this summer. The tour will kick off in April, taking Gaga across Europe and North America.
Avril Lavigne
The Canadian singer-songwriter is staying true to the angsty pop-punk music that made her a bonafide superstar when she was still a teenager in the early aughts. Now, with her seventh studio album “Love Sux,” Lavigne is growing her fanbase by creating music for a new generation, without leaving behind the listeners that grew up with her. The singer is currently touring across major cities in her home country of Canada, before a stint in the states for the Boston Calling Music Festival and Vegas’s When We Were Young Festival.
Katy Perry
“‘Play’ is a captivating, grin-inducing show that you may well wish you could mainline, repeatedly, or at least have captured in shroom form that could be put on sale in the gift shop,” Variety music writer Chris Willman wrote about Perry’s Las Vegas residency. All the glitz and glam aside, you can expect to see Perry perform her most famous songs during her stint in Vegas, where she’s sure to deliver the fan favorites that catalyzed her career such as “Hot n Cold” and, aptly, “Waking Up in Vegas.”
Clairo
It seems like yesterday that Clairo dropped her 2019 debut album “Immunity,” after “Pretty Girl” became a viral hit during her freshman year of college. But now, the English-based singer is already selling out venues at major cities across the country for her second album, the Jack Antonoff-produced “Sling.”
John Mayer
John Mayer’s 2022 North American tour is in support of his eighth studio album “Sob Rock,” marking his return to the stage after wrapping up a 2021 tour with Dead and Co. While his new music was met with mixed reviews by critics, any longtime Mayer fans will want the chance to see the prolific songwriter and objective “shredder” perform live.
Animal Collective
Courtesy of Vivid Seats
Every animal of the pack will be on stage as part of Animal Collective’s U.S tour in support of their new album “Time Skiffs.” The psychedelic crew’s new songs makes for the exact type of music you’d want to hear live, with melodies that are a mix between the pop and avant garde, punctuated by solid drumming, subtle percussion and blissful harmonies.
Bad Bunny
Bad Bunny’s “El Último Tour del Mundo” is the fastest-selling tour since 2018. The Puerto Rican rapper, singer and songwriter released three albums in 2020: “YHLQMDLG,” “Las Que No Iban a Salir” and the aptly titled “El Último Tour del Mundo,” meaning his current tour is the first time the global superstar will perform some of his biggest hits on stage.
Beach House
According to Variety music writer Jem Aswad, Beach House’s most recent album is their best one yet. And 15 years into their career, with eight total studio albums under their belt, that’s a grand statement. Their long-running tour is fitting for the 18-track album “Once Twice Melody.” The band is currently traveling across North America before heading to the U.K and Europe, and then back to the U.S. and Canada in July.
Big Thief
Big Thief is another band with a sprawling album, clocking in at 80 minutes with 20 songs. But the indie-rock band’s cult followers are surely happy to be lulled to sleep by Adrianne Lenker’s soothing vocals in the quartet’s new music, only to be rocked to their feet by James Krivchenia’s drums and guitar. The Brooklyn-based crew kicked off their tour in North America last year, and will continue on to spots across the U.K and Europe.
Billie Eilish
The explosive intensity and emotion on Billie Eilish’s second album, released after a life-changing couple of years that saw the teenager catapult to pop stardom, lends itself to an electric concert thrumming with life when performed on stage. Videos from her “Happier Than Ever Tour,” which kicked off last year, show thousands of super-fans avidly singing along to lyrics at sold-out arenas across the country, the loudest sing-alongs almost becoming shouting matches as Eilish jumps around to the widely known latter half of the title track.
Bon Iver
Like many planned events in 2020, Justin Vernon’s tour in support of his Grammy-nominated “i.i” was canceled due to the pandemic. Now, the singer and songwriter behind Bon Iver will finally take his band across stages throughout the U.S, before a final string of dates set in Europe. Concert-goers can expect a fun slate of guest performers and openers, such as Dijon, Bonny Light Horseman and Carm.
Charli XCX
If you’re a Charli fan, you don’t need to be reminded that the English singer is armed with a wealth of new songs that had yet to be debuted on stage…that is until she kicked off her “Crash” tour, which will showcase brand new smash hits from her most recent album, in addition to chart-topping singles from 2020’s “How I’m Feeling Now.” She’s currently making her way through North America through April, before heading to Europe in May.
Coldplay
This is definitely the most sustainable tour to support this year. After declining to tour their album “Everyday Life” in 2019 for environmental reasons, the beloved group is returning to the stage in support of their most recent album “Music of the Spheres.” The Chris Martin-helmed band is staying true to their values while on the road, though, promising to cut emissions by 50 percent by powering the entire tour with renewable energy.
Dua Lipa
It’s been quite a year for Dua Lipa. Anyone who didn’t know about the English singer from her debut studio album is surely all too familiar with the smash hits that came out of her highly anticipated sophomore album “Future Nostalgia.” See the pop star perform Grammy-winning songs such as “Levitating,” “Physical” and “Don’t Start Now” during her North American tour, which kicked off in February.
Foo Fighters
It can be hard to keep track of everything Dave Grohl is up to. His memoir “The Storyteller” which came out last October is still a New York Times bestseller, and his supernatural horror flick “Studio 666” is currently in theaters. But now, the 16-time Grammy winner is leading the Foo Fighters across the country as part of the band’s 27th anniversary. The group will travel across North America, South America, Europe and the U.K.
Haim
Seeing Haim on stage is given whole new meaning now that the guitarist is an Oscar nominee. Whether you got introduced to the beloved sister-band after seeing Alana Haim star in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Licorice Pizza” or have known about the Los Angeles-based rock band since their debut album in 2013, their upcoming tour is one worth going to. Their playfully titled “One More Haim” tour kicks off in April,.
J Balvin
J Balvin is a mainstay headliner at festivals across the country and now he has is very own three-night festival in July that will take place in Ibiza, where he’ll be joined by top Reggaeton stars. But if you can’t make it to Spain for the weekend’s extravaganza, you can still check out his global tour in support of his new album “Jose.” The Columbian singer will travel through the U.S in April and May, with a final show in San Juan, Puerto Rico on June 4.
Lorde
Lorde initially planned to tour Australia and New Zealand in April and March but she’ll now kick off her global tour in April, with shows set across North America and Europe. This will be her first time showcasing her music across the world since her “Melodrama” tour in 2018. This time around, concert-goers will hear the songs from her highly-anticipated “Solar Power” album that came out last year. Fans can also see her headline at a slew of festivals this year such as Primavera Sound.
Mitski
A true artist at heart, Mitski promises to deliver the utterly unexpected at her live concerts. The last tour she went on saw her strap knee pads to her legs before diving into the crowd, and the synth-heavy intensity of her latest album “Laurel Hell” only hints further at the electric energy she’s sure to bring to the stage this year. She’s already begun performing in cities across North America, before finishing off her tour in Europe come May.
Tame Impala
Kevin Parker (the multi-instrumentalist behind Tame Impala) had to cut his 2020 tour short when the world shut down in March 2020. But now, fans will be able to revisit their favorite songs from “The Slow Rush” close to two years since the album’s initial release. And this slate of shows will look a lot different than those in his first leg of the tour; now playfully called the “Phase 1 Rushiam Trials,” Parker and his bandmates will perform the deluxe box set edition of “The Slow Rush,” which came out Feb. 27 and includes dozens of remixes and collaborations.
Tyler, the Creator
Come for the show-stopping track list from Tyler, the Creator’s “Call Me If You Get Lost,” stay for the countless bold-faced names that will join him on stage during his North American trek. Vince Staples, Kali Uchis, and Teezo Touchdown are just some of the musicians set to support Tyler on his tour. The multi-hyphenate rapper, who just launched a new sneaker design with Converse this week, will wrap up his North America tour in April before heading to Europe and Oceania in June.
My Chemical Romance
This tour is extra special because it marks nearly a decade since the iconic rock band broke up after their heydey in the early aughts. Their original reunion was set to happen more than two years ago but, of course, was delayed until this year. Old-time fans will enjoy seeing the frontman of frontmen Gerard Way command the stage as the band performs some of their most nostalgic songs.
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