2015 saw a lot of great concert tours, from J. Cole’s Forest Hills Drive Tour with Big Sean, YG and Jeremih to Taylor Swift’s huge 1989 World Tour. Some tours sold out stadiums and arenas, selling out the entire tour before it even begun, and some tours were in small intimate venues, either strategically or because simple supply and demand. Some had stacked lineups top to bottom and some introduced us to a lot of great new artists. Festivals like Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo and Coachella were bigger than ever this year, but that didn’t stop your favorite artists from building up some great shows of their own.
Hit the jump and check out our list of our 20 Favorite Concert Tours of 2015!
Last night, rapper Mac Miller brought his GO:OD AM Tour to Emo’s in Austin, TX. Joined by his GO:OD AM tourmate Tory Lanez, Mac killed it! We sent our photographer Mason Power to watch Miller perform a number of his hits, including his hit single and college favorite, ‘Donald Trump’, as well as number of tracks from his new LP, GO:OD AM, of which his 2015 tour get its name. Miller has a stage presence like none other, and with every new tour of his, he brings something new to his performances.
Check out our photos below (and our photos from Mac’s Chicago tour stop here) and make sure you get your tickets for The GO:OD AM tour before they are all sold out!
Chicago felt the madness tonight at the United Center. Kicking off the U.S. leg of The Madness Tour, after two sold out nights at Toronto’s Air Canada Centre earlier this week, The Weeknd performed for yet another sold out crowd, this time for the Windy City in the house that Michael Jordan built. He didn’t do it alone though, as the entire lineup was stacked and provided a great deal of variety. Fans who arrived on time were treated to great sets from ‘Beggin for Thread’ singer Banks, as well as G.O.O.D. Music‘s and Grand Hustle’s always energetic, rapper Travis Scott.
While the opening performances only consisted of a few songs each, both Banks and Scott set the tone for the night, both with completely different sounds and moods. Banks performed a handful of records from her latest LP, Goddess, including her big 2014 single, ‘Begin for Thread’. After her beautiful collection of songs, Travis Scott turned up the volume and energy to an entirely different level.
Instantly Scott made sure that everyone in the arena was ready to rage. He may have been playing the largest venue in Chicago, but the energy felt like a club performance. A few hundred feet separated the ‘Antidote’ rapper and the 300 level of the UC, but his energy reached the rafters. Travis choose to perform some of his most turned up records, including his Days Before Rodeo and Owl Pharaoh bangers like ‘Don’t Play’ and ‘Quintana’, and of course his tracks in support of his new and debut LP, Rodeo.
While Scott’s and even Bank’s fans showed up in numbers, the man behind the madness, and whose music is the reason the entire tour sold out even before it began, was set to headline the show. And to open his set, The Weeknd kicked things off with the same record that kicked off his latest LP, ‘Real Life’. After ‘Real Life’ and throughout the night, The Weeknd performed his entire Beauty Behind the Madness album.
Weeknd did not limit things to his latest and most successful album though, performing a number of records from his discography, including a variety of tracks from his critically acclaimed series, The Trilogy. But despite providing ample entertainment for his day one fan base, the crowd was most alive as The Weeknd performed his singles, like ‘The Hills’, ‘Can’t Feel My Face’ and ‘Often’, that have been dominating the airwaves and clubs in the past half year. The tour may have opened up in The Weeknd’s hometown, but it is hard to imagine an energy that could be matched when compared to tonight’s performance at the United Center.
Check out our photos of The Weeknd’s sold out show with Banks and Travis Scott below.
Tonight TDE’s Kendrick Lamar brought his series of intimate venue performances, the “Kunta’s Groove Sessions”, to Chicago, IL. Selling out Chicago’s Riviera Theatre, King Kendrick absolutely killed it! Lamar performed his critically acclaimed To Pimp a Butterfly album, as well as a number of records from his previous projects for his day one fans. Kendrick and his labelmate and opening act, rapper Jay Rock, grooved out all night with the sold out crowd and gave Chi-town a night that it won’t soon forget.
Check out our photos below of Kendrick Lamar’s sold out performance for the Windy City.
Today marked the last day of Chicago’s Freaky Deaky in 2015. Continuing the Halloween party into November, everyone again arrived in their best Halloween outfits and prepared themselves for some bass. With Freaky Deaky’s big expansion this year (now located at Toyota Park) the fall’s elite music festival in Chicago delivered! Fans today saw sets from Vic Mensa, Mac Miller, Goldlink, A-Trak, AlunaGeorge and many more, and we were there to capture the best moments.
Check out our photos below, of what the third and final day of Freaky Deaky had to offer in 2015.
Today marked the first day of Chicago’s Freaky Deaky in 2015. Everyone arrived in their best Halloween outfits and prepared themselves for some great music. With its huge expansion this year and it’s new location at Toyota Park, fall’s elite music festival really stepped it up this year! Fans today saw sets from Bassnectar, 2Chainz, Griz, Flying Lotus and many more, and we were there to capture the best moments.
Check out our photos below, of what Day 1 of Freaky Deaky had to offer in 2015, and make sure not to miss tomorrow’s artists!
On the edge of becoming today’s biggest breakout artist, Halsey brought her Badlands tour to her familiar crowd of Chicago, at The Vic Theatre last night. Originally a one night stop, an additional day was added due to a sold out venue. In just a span of one year, Halsey has exploded into the mainstream limelight and has taken the world by storm, become a voice of this generation.
We first saw Halsey this past summer in support of the Imagine Dragons’ Smoke + Mirrors tour and Halsey then was set for stardom. Since then the young New Jersey artist has had quite the year. Dropping her debut album Badlands, the world has heard how Halsey sounds and they love it. Debuting at number 2 on the charts, right behind The Weeknd’s Beauty Behind the Madness, Badlands was well received by critics and fans alike.
Halsey’s growing popularity is well-deserved, it’s also setting her up for many milestones. Just this week alone, Halsey made a major announcement, that she will be ending her tour at the legendary Madison Square Garden. She also announced her collaboration with Justin Bieber on his new song ‘The Feeling’, which is produced by Skrillex and set to debut on his forthcoming album.
With a packed Vic Theatre, filled with insanely loved Halsey fans, Halsey put on a shot so mesmerizing that you had to be there to believe it.
Opening the night was indie pop band, Flor, from Los Angeles. Flor members Zach grace, McKinley Kitts, Kyle Hill and Dylan William warmed up the sold out crowd with their indie pop melodies. Originally from Hood River, Oregon, this young band took a leap of faith and moved to L.A. for a chance at music stardom. With much success in a short time, Flor has released many songs through their Soundcloud and now they are leaving Chicago with new fans. Their setlist included: ‘Get Behind This’, ‘Warm Blood’, ‘Ocean, Gotta Give’, ‘Back Again’, ‘Unsaid’ and ‘Heart’.
Halsey’s set was northing short of mesmerizing. Her fierce delivery was met with sheer passion her live performance. She captivated the audience s they sang word-for-word for every one of Halsey’s songs throughout the night. The Vic Theatre’s dim lighting created a personal feeling that complemented well with Halsey’s special demeanor. Performing a number of records from her debut album, Halsey also featured songs from her Room 93 EP.
Halsey’s set list for the night included: ‘Gasoline’, ‘Hold Me Down’, ‘Castle’, ‘Strange Love’, ‘Haunting’, ‘Roman Holiday’, ‘Control’, ‘Drive’, ‘Ghost’, ‘Is There Somewhere’, ‘Colors’, ‘Hurricane’, ‘New Americana’, ‘Young God’, and ‘Young Die’ for her encore.
Only time can tell how big Halsey will get with her unique sound and personality. One driving factor in Halsey’s success is her incredibly passionate fan base. Many fans relate to Halsey for her real and troubling material in her songs. A true voice to this generation, Halsey speaks for many that are captivated by her music.
Check out more photos (by Jesus Montero/The Early Registration) below and see if Halsey is coming to a city near you here.
Last night could not have gone any better if you were a rap fan in Chicago, as the WGCI Big Jam delivered! Bringing the biggest lineup in rap to the Windy City, the United Center saw some amazing performances from Chicago’s Vic Mensa, Twista, Do Or Die, Crucial Conflict and Lil Durk, as well as sets from Monica, Bryshere Y. Gray (Hakeem from Empire), Omarion, Rae Sremmurd, Meek Mill, Future and Kendrick Lamar. The night was full of dancing, surprises, and most importantly some great live music! From seeing records like ‘Feel That’, ‘Overnight Celebrity’ and ‘No Type’ performed live, to watching Future and Kendrick kill their headlining sets, the Big Jam will certainly have trouble topping itself in 2016.
Last night, Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller brought The GO:OD AM Tour to the Egyptian Room at the Old National Centre in Indianapolis. Miller was joined by his GO:OD AM tourmates GoldLink, Odd Future’s Domo Genesis and The Come-Up. Mac performed a number of his hits, including his hit single and college favorite, ‘Donald Trump’, as well as number of tracks from his new LP, GO:OD AM, of which his 2015 tour get its name. While Miller maintains a lot of his fan base from his early mixtapes, his music has continued to develop throughout his latest full length projects and his stage presence is no different. Simply put, Mac kills it on stage!
Check out our photos below (and our photos from Mac’s Madison tour stop here) and make sure you get your tickets for The GO:OD AM tour before they are all sold out!
Profession rapper, Lil Dicky, brought The Looking For Love tour to the Concord Music Hall in Chicago, IL. Repping his Chicago Cubs Sammy Sosa jersey, LD didn’t bring the Cubbies any good luck (as they fell 0-2 to the New York Mets), but he definitely put on a wild show! Accompanied by Chicago’s own, Alex Wiley, who performed his new record which features Chance The Rapper, Lil Dicky rocked the sold out crowd. The show was full of mini-games in a dating game show (you read that right), grinding, a make out session with a fan, a black penis version of pin the tail on the donkey, and of course the rapper performed a number of records from his Professional Rapper LP and his Get Hard mixtape.
Check out our photos below and check out LilDicky.com to see if LD is bringing his Looking For Love tour to a city near you.
The Early Registration 