Beyoncé’s performances can sometimes feel a bit serious, with her structured, synchronized dancers and no-one-wakes-up-like-that style. But at the kick-off of her Formation World Tour last night at Marlins Park in Miami, it seems like she finally found what it is that makes her smile. She appeared to have embraced the entirety of her intense nature, found the joy it it, then brought it to the stage. She was exact without seeming meticulous (which she obviously is), not to mention vulnerable and a little giddy. Instead of bowing before her, the Beyhive shook, swayed, and squealed alongside their queen.
The release of her new album, Lemonade, and its visual accompaniment just days before this arena show left no one in the dark about why Solange attacked Jay Z in that elevator. It seemed Bey wrote and sang her way through her grief to forgiveness in her marriage. And, as trite as it sounds, maybe that trial overcome was why the gleam in her eye was brighter than ever.
There was really no better way to open up in the Magic City than with living meme DJ Khaled presenting a receiving line of surprise guest rappers, each for a few minutes in the spotlight of an almost empty stadium: Rick Ross, 2 Chainz, Yo Gotti, Lil Wayne, Trick Daddy, Kent Jones, and finally, Future. Beyoncé, on the other hand, does only Beyoncé. She isn't the type to mess with surprises in the live setting very often (album releases are another story). This is her show, and she's who you came to see. Here’s a complete breakdown of what went down last night.
The Setlist
She sang a seamless 37-song mix starting with “Formation,” moving through a well-paced serving of Lemonade songs and forgotten early gems, ending with a string of popular, danceable bangers and a touching final few moments.
"Formation"
"Sorry"
"Bow Down / Tom Ford"
"Run the World (Girls)"
"Mine"
"Baby Boy"
"Hold Up"
"Countdown"
"Me, Myself and I"
"Runnin'" (Naughty Boy song Bey appears on)
"All Night"
"Don’t Hurt Yourself"
"Ring the Alarm"
"Diva"
"Flawless (Remix)"
"Feeling Myself"
"Yoncé"
"7/11"
"Drunk in Love"
"Rocket"
"Daddy Lessons"
"Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)"
"Purple Rain" (Prince cover, obviously)
"Crazy in Love/Bootylicious"
"Naughty Girl"
"Party"
"Blow / Nasty Girl"
"Sweet Dreams" (Eurythmics cover)
"Sweet Dreams" (Bey's song)
"Freedom"
"Survivor"
"End of Time/Grown Woman"
"Halo"
The Performance
The lights shut off suddenly just minutes after the 8:30 p.m. start time and were replaced by a rotating rectangular cube screen that stood as high as the stadium. To the distinctive opening notes of “Formation,” the display showed a massive moving image of the singer with an orchid in her mouth that soon changed to artsy—but not screensaver-ish—nature scenes.
At first, it seemed like you could see her thighs gliding through the smoke as a tidy bevy of black-clad women in wide-brimmed hats sauntered out. Another mirror image gang suddenly appeared on the other side of the stage. It was there that the queen in all her glory was concealed amidst her subjects. “If you came to have a good time, say, ‘I slay!’” she instructed. The cheering crowd was a dark sea dotted with iPhone lights.
Next, a recording of Brenda Lee cooing “I’m Sorry” played as an explosion of blue and red light flooded the stage. “You all know this song. Try and help me sing,” Mrs. Carter announced before standing solo for her less apologetic “Sorry.” Her dancers came out, middle fingers blazing. Starting out boldly, this is the song that features the “better call Becky with the good hair” line currently ringing in everyone’s ears and rolling off their tongues. The intensity escalated and found expression in a concentrated group dance to “Flawless.” The feeling was heightened by bursts of fire reaching high into the clear night above the stage, as the Major Lazer sample at the heart of “Run the World (Girls)” pumped through the speakers. The mood swayed between personal and jovial, like when Sean Paul’s distinctive growl came through on “Baby Boy.” Things stayed cool and tropical with a clip of the Sister Nancy’s dancehall opus “Bam Bam” that transitioned into “Hold Up” while Beyoncé and her girls bounced their bottoms to the delight of the masses.
The show continued smoothly with “7/11” and “Feeling Myself,” plus clips from O.T. Genasis’ “Cut It” and D’Angelo’s “Untitled (How Does It Feel).” “Drunk in Love” secured the rapture and participation of the crowd, with the lyrics after “surfboardt” being recited especially loudly. Bey had her Madonna BDSM “Human Nature” moment when she appeared in a wooden box wearing a red pleather bodysuit and sang her Fifty Shades of Gray version of “Crazy in Love” before a “Bootylicious”/“Naughty Girl” mashup that indicated the night was winding down. She even had an Annie Lennox moment, impressively covering the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).”
The whole time, Beyoncé smiled through her sweat. She glowed as she said a long goodbye, complete with salutes, laughter, and a childlike jump in the air. Something happened to Beyoncé between the release of “Formation” and Lemonade that softened her hardest edges, sweetened her mood. She seemed to have struck the balance between being “perfect” and being perfectly herself.
The Videos
A massive, moving video cube was the backdrop for the stage, and it helped greatly in transforming a baseball stadium into an arena of magic. Much of the video shown came from Lemonade, so the show stuck close to Bey’s powerful visual themes and various symbolism surrounding black womanhood, accompanied during interludes by Warsan Shire’s spoken-word poetry that was adapted for Lemonade. One video showed the singer with a muzzle of diamonds and a razor emerging from her mouth, which she used to slice a bloodless cross on her giant tongue. The crowd cringed as Bey removed her priceless silencing device to ask, “Why can’t you see you’re the love of my life?” Damn.
There were a few more lighthearted moments within the visuals as well, including fan videos asking Bey “to just put out a new CD!”, home movies with Jay and Blue Ivy at play, and clips from Bey’s childhood performances.
Photo by Frank Micelotta/Parkwood Entertainment via Getty Images
The Costumes
Not one leg on that stage was covered, which was kind of amazing considering the style in which her dancers—nearly all black women—were dressed: They resembled gothic ice skaters in puffy, long-sleeved, and sequined bodysuits. Bey’s outfit changes—of which there were roughly six throughout the two-hour show—were varied but not all that more ostentatious than the looks her dancers sported: think bodysuits emblazoned with red and gold sequins in geometric shapes, a few more elegant looks.
The Stage Set-Up & Choreography
The brilliant set design had every single person in the stadium feeling like they were in the front row, by blowing up Beyoncé’s live image to the size of a building. Dancers were suspended and twirling from the ends of wires, with one writhing in a metal cube midair. Queen Bey had a Game of Thrones-style throne that rose from the guts of the stage. Plus, obviously, there were fireworks, pyrotechnics, and a buttload of confetti. The mostly synchronized choreography, however, was a little simpler. Elements of African dance and flapper moves were incorporated throughout.
The greatest design aspect was the catwalk, which snaked its way in an L-shape into the crowd on the field. Towards the end of the show, it turned out to have a conveyer belt on it, which moved the dancers smoothly into the audience before lowering into a pool of water, where the ladies danced to “Freedom.” The choreo’s tone was serious and powerful given the song’s strong Civil Rights message, but the way the dancers splashed as they marched and stomped was also playful—and just incredible to watch, visually.
Later, Beyoncé sat barefoot in this pool of water and dedicated the final song, “Halo,” to her family and her “beautiful husband.” She also thanked Prince for his “beautiful music,” and God for speaking through all of “his artists.”
The Fan Interaction
Beyoncé spent a bit of time alone on stage, making her way down the catwalk by herself as she reveled in the attention. She told a few stories. Earlier that day, Blue Ivy saw the stadium and asked her if she was going to work. This reminded Beyoncé of being a little girl and fantasizing about having a sold-out stadium tour. “I’m witnessing a dream come true tonight,” she said, truly touched. “I want to thank my Beyhive.” She basked in some low-key songs that showed off her chops, like “Me, Myself, and I,” saying, “Nobody is responsible for your happiness but you. And you always have yourself, so you are never alone.” As Bey is one to do live, she asked for a lot of “help” singing her songs, with some call-and-response on “All Night.”
For “Single Ladies,” Beyoncé brought up two crowd members. Of course these young women—one wearing an “unavailable” tee and the other sporting a white bodysuit and curly mohawk—knew all the choreography and performed with panache.
The Merch
The Beyhive was dressed to impress but in an understated way suited for Miami’s spring weather. There were moms sporting Talbots, slender young boys in heels and mascara, tons of girls rocking bodysuits, and even more wearing shirts purchased at the relatively unimpressive merch table. It would have been better if the girl wearing her homemade “I was served lemons but made lemonade” jean jacket had been serving up her creation for sale. There were two exceptions to these surprisingly underwhelming merch offerings, however: a stylish tank with a line drawing of Bey flipping the bird (for a steep $45), and “Boycott Beyoncé” shirts, which referenced the proposed police boycott of the concert by the Miami Fraternal Order of Police. Despite the so-called anti-police message in Beyoncé’s Super Bowl Halftime Show, the boys in blue showed up for work and managed the packed stadium. The show was, in fact, not politically charged in the way her Super Bowl performance was.
Etc.
There was a Prince tribute that involved the huge screen turning purple and “Purple Rain” playing over the speakers. It was more of an interlude than a proper tribute. During one of the two guitar solos, Beyoncé also shouted-out one of Prince’s earliest proteges, the woman-powered R&B trio Vanity 6, and rolled out a little of their biggest hit “Nasty Girl,” which she’s covered before.
Also, Bey’s former Destiny’s Child cohort Michelle Williams was in the house, though not on stage. This was Beyoncé’s solo victory lap, through and through.