Purpose World Tour (reviews)

Purpose World Tour

The Purpose World Tour is the third worldwide tour by Canadian singer Justin Bieber. It is in support of his fourth studio album Purpose (2015). The Tour started on March 9, 2016 in Seattle and will currently end on September 6, 2017 in Toronto.

The tour was announced on November 11, 2015 on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. That same day, 58 dates in the United States and Canada were revealed on the singer's website. Due to overwhelming demand, additional shows were added in several cities. On September 30, 2016, Bieber announced Australian and New Zealand tour dates were to be released the following week. On October 25, 2016, two tour dates were announced for Mexico, as well as the South American and Central American legs of the tour. On December 5, 2016, Bieber announced on The Ellen DeGeneres Show he will tour stadiums in the United States in the summer of 2017, with dates announced later that day.

Set list

This set list is representative of the show on March 9, 2016. It is not representative of all concerts for the duration of the tour^.

1. "Mark My Words" 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. "Where Are Ü Now"
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
    
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. "Get Used To It"
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
4. "I'll Show You" 
    
   
   
   
5. "The Feeling"
   
   
   
   
6. "Boyfriend"
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
7. "Love Yourself"
   
   
   
   
   
   
    
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
8. "Been You"
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
9. "Company"
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
10. "No Sense"
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
11. "Hold Tight"
12. "No Pressure"
13. "As Long As You Love Me"
14. "Children"
    
    
    
    
15. "Let Me Love You"
16. "Life is Worth Living"
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
17. "What Do You Mean?"
    
18. "Baby"
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
19. "Purpose"
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
20. "Sorry"

The Show (based on the very first concert)

The show starts with a pre-recorded sequence in which he is "stuck inside a glass cube; then the real Bieber appeared inside a real cube" performing "Mark My Words", scrawling words like "hope" on the walls with a marker. Later, Bieber rises from below the stage in a large glass cube, "with the hydraulics pushing him higher" during the performance of "Where Are Ü Now", with holograms flashing about, while "Bieber's crew of dancers tumbled onstage in all-white attire as women suspended in midair did acrobatics against a chrome-y, industrial video backdrop." For "I'll Show You", Bieber is "trapped under a literal steel cage while firestorms and spinning whirlwinds engulf him." During the song's chorus, "an LED light show began flashing across its beams, covering him in exploding octagons and digital fireworks." During "The Feeling", acrobats twirled above him, while cosmic projections of Halsey are shown. Later, the performance of "Get Used To It" brought pyrotechnics, as well as movement from the platforms onstage.

The performance of "Love Yourself" has Bieber on acoustic guitar while seated on a red velvet couch down center stage. Later, the acoustic break also continued with a breezy solo rendition of "Home to Mama" (or “Cold Water”) and a new song called “Insecurities” (or sometimes he’d cover other singers’ songs) . After the acoustic set, "Boyfriend" is performed, with dancers in LED-laden black bodysuits creating "a light show" in choreography. Later, "Been You" is performed by Bieber and his dancers, featuring a "dance break", while in "Company", "a hidden platform anchored to the ceiling begins to descend and it turned out to be a giant, suspended trampoline, on which Justin completed a couple of backflips." "No Sense" is followed by the performance of "Hold Tight" and "No Pressure". The performance of "As Long As You Love Me", having a hard electric guitar riffs. Later, Bieber introduced his own act-two drum solo. Wearing a Marilyn Manson T-shirt, he "cheerily introduces and hugs elementary school-aged dancers" during the "Children" performance, which is followed by "Life Is Worth Living", where Bieber is backed by couples in stark white doing a contemporary choreography. In "What Do You Mean?", dancers on skateboards circled the singer, who by then had changed into a pair of joggers emblazoned with the Purpose tour logo. The performance of "Baby" was considered "playful", and later he performs "Purpose" at a white grand piano (later in his concerts, he doesn’t use the grand piano again but he’d sit on the stage close to the front line audience), The concert finishes with "Sorry," where Bieber stood with his dancers beneath a shower of artificial rain.

Critical reception

¹⁾        Dylan Rupert of Billboard praised his vocals for sounding "smooth as ever," while noting that the performance of "Company" was "one of the show's most thrilling (though slightly puzzling) moments" and praising the acoustic set.

²⁾       Marc Snetiker of Entertainment Weekly called it "a concert that shows, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Bieber is back. Bieber had to prove that his comeback tour is exactly that — a performer's return to top form, not just a fluke of well-produced singles and hooks. That unfortunate weight did seem to bear down on Bieber during the entire show — he brought out no special guests and remained solemn throughout the night — but over time, its heft will diminish."

³⁾       Andrew Matson of Rolling Stone offered a very positive review, declaring: "The concert was sublime vocally, visually and musically, Bieber and his scaled back band did justice to songs in a cavernous space, often elevating the material." [...] "Bieber sang for real, played the piano, acoustic guitar and rock drums all gracefully and danced with zero mistakes. Sure, his energy seemed tentative as his dancers did Matrix capoeira all around him, but the Purpose tour is off to a stellar start, showcasing a musician taking control of his art and an audience vibing along for his journey."

⁴⁾       For Owen R. Smith of Seattle Times, "Nothing could topple the positive quality of the evening overall."

⁵⁾       Francois Marchand of Vancouver Sun analysed the tour, stating: "But all in all it was entertaining and the songs on Purpose are excellent - smooth and steady, atmospheric and deep."

Other reviews / critics :

6)   The hat trick of hits that was 'What Do You Mean?', 'Sorry' and 'Love Yourself' finally opened him up to an audience beyond screaming teens, positioning him as a pop idol Dad can also appreciate when he's inevitably dragged along to the show. The album title summed it up perfectly. Justin Bieber had found his Purpose.

The thing is, Dad might know a few more of the JB songs these days, but we're willing to bet he still doesn't understand what all the fuss is about. There's no denying Justin Bieber is a talented young man. When he sits with his guitar and sings stirring renditions of 'Cold Water' and 'Love Yourself', his voice is smooth, strong and soulful. When he can be bothered to put in the leg work during high-energy choreographed routines for 'Where Are U Now' and 'As Long As You Love Me', he's pop perfection.

The staging and production around the Purpose tour is incredible. Immersive, colourful visuals light up the stage, from cosmic explosions to futuristic pyramids. There are acrobats, breakdancers and even a giant trampoline suspended in the air for Biebs to backflip on. It's all put together as the ultimate pop spectacle. The songs are huge, the production outstanding, and Bieber had moments of magnificence.

7)   On the evidence of the first of six sold out and rapturously received London shows, Justin Bieber has nothing to apologise for.

“sorry” has become his signature tune, a catch all apology for stumbling from one controversy to another as he does all his growing up in public. The Canadian pop idol is 22-years-old and has already been famous for a third of his life. Like the intriguingly eccentric and slickly effective future R'n'B album it is promoting, the Purpose tour is meant to mark his transformation from teen candy to something more, well, purposeful.

A stripped back acoustic section showcased actual, tangible, flesh and blood talent. He slumped on a sofa to trum an acoustic guitar left handed and offer up charming, singalong renditions of Cold Water and Love Yourself with a focussed intensity that suggested he'd be a knockout at an open mic night. Turns out he’s a natural musician, he can play decent guitar, solid piano. The staging was spectacular, the musical presentation was dynamic and The Star comported himself with a goofy cool.

8)   oddly, it is that very element of self doubt that makes him so compelling. He seemed most engaged during a long, rambling monologue about the purpose of love, before singing the title song to a piano accompaniment.

9)   Justin Bieber literally burst through the 3Arena stage in a glass box to Mark My Words. Wearing one of his special Dublin Purpose Tour official tshirts, it was hard to hear his Canadian tones over the screams of the capacity crowd. His show opener was a dance and special effects spectacle to Where Are You Now and the crowd went wild. Backed by a dance troupe dressed all in white, Justin sang and danced his way through hit after hit.

High energy, high octane and pulsating, Biebs had his Beliebers salivating over his every move. After a few more lively hits, he slowed it right down to singing acoustic armed only with his guitar. And belting out spine-tingling versions of Cold Water and Love Yourself, he showed off the range of the stunning voice that has catapulted him to global superstardom. The roof seemed like it would lift off when he mounted a suspended trampoline stage and was raised high into the 3Arena. He somersaulted his way through Company as his beautiful female dancers gyrated up and down him. There was almost pandemonium when he took off his T-shirt and fired it into the crowd shortly before the interval. And don't mention the water bottle!! It seemed sort of strange at the beginning when it was announced Biebs would be taking a 20-minute break at 9.30pm. But after the non-stop action of the opening half, he deserved the breather. Justin, you should definitely Love Yourself because that was one hell of a show.