The Big Steppers Tour

The Big Steppers Tour
World tour by Kendrick Lamar
Location
  • Europe
  • North America
  • South America
  • Oceania
  • Asia
  • Africa
Associated albumMr. Morale & the Big Steppers
Start dateJune 23, 2022
End dateMarch 23, 2024
Legs4
No. of shows103
Supporting acts
Box office$110.8 million (73 shows)
Websiteoklama.com/tour
Kendrick Lamar concert chronology

The Big Steppers Tour was the fourth solo concert tour by American rapper Kendrick Lamar, in support of his fifth studio album, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers (2022). It was his first concert tour and second arena-driven tour after the 2017–2018 Damn Tour.[1] Visualized and formatted by PGLang, Lamar announced the tour hours after the release of Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers. It began on June 23, 2022, in Milan, Italy, and concluded on March 23, 2024, in Mexico City, Mexico, consisting of 103 shows across six continents. 75 of those shows were held in arenas, while 28 were headlining performances at music festivals.

Described as a form of 21st century hip hop opera,[2] the Big Steppers Tour reflects key themes of Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers through its incorporation of minimalist aesthetics and performance art. Narrated by English actor Helen Mirren, the tour follows the album's titular character, Mr. Morale, as he attempts to escape his comfort zone with the assistance of his therapist. Light art, additional props and shadow play are heavily utilized throughout the performance as tools to enhance its storytelling aspects.[3]

The Big Steppers Tour received rave reviews from critics, who commonly labeled it as Lamar's best and most realized tour to date. His stoic performance, concept and high art-inspired stage production were the primary subjects of universal praise.[4] Damien Morris of The Observer considers the tour to be the greatest hip hop show of all time, writing that Lamar "takes the opportunity that his 'Greatest Rapper Alive' status affords to experiment with form, content and stagecraft in ways that the culture has not seen before."[5] An accompanying concert film, Kendrick Lamar Live: The Big Steppers Tour, was released to Amazon Prime Video on November 23, 2022.[6] Earning a total revenue of almost $111 million across 73 shows, the Big Steppers Tour is the highest-grossing rap tour of all time.[7][8]

  1. ^ Aswad, Jem (May 13, 2022). "Kendrick Lamar Unveils 'Big Steppers' Tour Dates". Variety. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  2. ^ Steel, Andrew (November 4, 2022). "Hip-hop star Kendrick Lamar shines brightly on his latest UK arena tour". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  3. ^ Coates, Taiyo (August 5, 2022). "Kendrick Lamar's 'The Big Steppers' Tour Takes Performance Art to New Heights: Concert Review". Variety. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  4. ^ Sacher, Andrew (August 7, 2022). "Kendrick Lamar's Big Steppers Tour is a work of art (Barclays Center night 2 review)". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  5. ^ Morris, Damien (November 5, 2022). "Kendrick Lamar review – the greatest hip-hop show of all time?". The Observer. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  6. ^ Muhammad, Latifah (October 24, 2022). "Kendrick Lamar's The Big Steppers Tour in Paris: Stream On-Demand & Shop the Exclusive Merch Collection". Billboard. Retrieved November 4, 2022.
  7. ^ "Kendrick Lamar's Big Steppers Tour Becomes Highest Grossing Rap Tour Ever". American Songwriter. April 27, 2023.
  8. ^ Richards, Will (May 1, 2023). "Kendrick Lamar's 'Big Steppers Tour' is now the highest-grossing rap tour of all time". NME. Retrieved September 1, 2023.