The Elusive Chanteuse Show

The Elusive Chanteuse Show was the eighth headlining concert tour by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. It was launched in support of her fourteenth studio album, Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse (2014). The tour began in Tokyo, Japan on October 4, 2014 and concluded in Brisbane, Australia on November 16, 2014.

The Elusive Chanteuse Show
Tour by Mariah Carey
Associated albumMe. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse
Start dateOctober 4, 2014 (2014-10-04)
End dateNovember 16, 2014 (2014-11-16)
Legs2
No. of shows20
Mariah Carey concert chronology

Background and development

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In December 2012, Carey's manager Randy Jackson confirmed that the singer would embark on a world tour following the release of her fourteenth studio album in 2013.[1] Following her departure as a judge on the U.S. singing competition show American Idol in May 2013, Carey's management confirmed that the singer was busy "putting the finishing touches" on the untitled album, performing at the Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks display and appearing in Lee Daniels film The Butler.[2] In the same statement, in announced plans for a world tour to begin in Asia in October that year.[2]

In an official announcement via the singer's website, Carey wrote the following in regards to her feelings and expectations on the tour: "I want to experience the spontaneity and emotion that I put into this album on stage with my fans," says Carey. "I can't stop writing songs so don't be surprised if you hear a brand new song that I just wrote the night before the show in your city!".[3] The tour was finally announced to begin from October 4, 2014, at the Makuhari Messe Arena and subsequent dates throughout China, Japan and Philippines.[4][5] Further dates were added for an Australian and New Zealand leg, starting from November.[6][7]

Mariah Carey became the first western artist to sell out five stadiums in China on a single tour.

Synopsis

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Carey performing in Adelaide during the tour

The main stage was a one level affair, with a large screen backing the singer, which would play exclusive clips, and footage from old video clips from the singers catalogue. The 'cartoon Mariah' from the Heartbreaker video clip was reintroduced, and played for I'm That Chick and Heartbreaker. During Carey's first show of the tour, she was using a signature 'butterfly' microphone, however, it broke on the first night and was not continued in other shows. In select shows, Carey brought her kids, Moroccan and Monroe out on stage during 'Supernatural', which was written about the two. Like always, dancers were used on the tour, with Carey often joining in the dancing.

During some shows, Carey sang All I Want for Christmas Is You and wore a 'Mrs. Claus' outfit. During her song, Thirsty, Carey would make trips around the audience with security guards, allowing the performer to be closer to the audience than ever before. Carey's costumes varied each show, usually staying somewhat similar.

Critical response

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Kenneth Chaw from The Star praised the performance in Kuala Lumpur writing that "it was clear the vocalist remains a master of her trade."[8] Natasha Ann Zachariah from The Straits Times gave a positive review for the performance in Singapore, writing the singer "hit those delicious high octaves with ease, giving goosebumps, of the good kind."[9] Alexa Villano from the Rappler wrote the singer's performance in Manila "gave Filipino fans a show they wouldn't soon forget at the Mall of Asia Arena."[10] Candice Barnes from The Sydney Morning Herald gave the performance in Perth three stars writing the singer "seemed to enjoy making fun of herself, something well-received by the crowd, but delivered a few passive aggressive rants which hinted at her diva reputation."[11]

Matt Gilbertson from The Advertiser gave a positive review of the performance in Adelaide writing "the voice that we all came to adore throughout the ‘90s was back. She even hit those famous, piercingly high ‘whistle notes’ during "Emotions".[12] Shuk-Wah Chung from The Guardian gave the performance in Sydney four out of five stars writing Carey "instantly redeemed herself with a trill here, a whispery vocal there and a gentle caress of those signature curves."[13] Joanna Hunkin from The New Zealand Herald gave a positive review for the performance in Auckland writing Carey hit "the supersonic high notes" and "performed those signature vocal gymnastics with relative ease."[14] Suzanne Simonot from The Daily Telegraph praised the performance in Brisbane writing the singer "hasn't just got it, she flaunts it.".[15]

Set list

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  1. "Across 110th Street" (Introduction)
  2. "Fantasy" (Bad Boy Remix)
  3. "Touch My Body"
  4. "Shake It Off"
  5. "Emotions"
  6. "Cry."
  7. "Fly Like a Bird"
  8. "My All"
  9. "Heartbreaker (contains elements from "Desert Storm Remix")
  10. "#Beautiful"
  11. "I'm That Chick"
  12. "Honey" (So So Def Remix)
  13. "Thirsty"
  14. "Meteorite"
  15. "Supernatural"
  16. "Hero"
  17. "Always Be My Baby"
  18. "Butterfly Reprise" (Interlude)
  19. "We Belong Together" (outro contains elements of Desert Storm Remix)
Notes
  • "Don't Forget About Us" replaced "Touch My Body" in Chiba, Beijing and Chengdu.
  • "Fly Like a Bird" was not performed in Chiba, Yokohama, Seoul, Chongqing, Tianjin and Shanghai.
  • "Vision of Love" was performed in Chiba, Yokohama and Chengdu.
  • "Don't Explain" was performed in Chiba, Seoul and Chongqing.
  • "Breakdown" and "I Know What You Want" were performed in Chiba, Yokohama, Seoul, Bangkok, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland and Brisbane.
  • Starting on October 10, "Babydoll" was cut from the set list.
  • "The Roof (Back in Time)" was performed in Chiba, Yokohama, Seoul, Bangkok, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland.
  • "I'll Be There" was performed in Chiba, Yokohama, Shanghai, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Taipei and Manila.
  • During the show in Seoul, Carey performed a medley "Petals" and "Rainbow (Interlude)". Additionally "Cry." and "Hero" were not performed.
  • "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was performed in Seoul, Chongqing, Bangkok and Adelaide.
  • During shows in China, he "Across 110th Street" video introduction was replaced by a video of Carey's career achievements.
  • "Obsessed" performed in Beijing, Bangkok, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland.
  • "Without You" was performed in Beijing.
  • "Can't Let Go" was performed in Chengdu.
  • "Lullaby of Birdland" was performed in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Taipei, Adelaide and Melbourne.
  • "Fantasy" was not performed in Bangkok.
  • "Crybaby" was performed in Bangkok, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland.
  • "It's Like That" was performed in Bangkok, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Auckland and Brisbane.
  • "Don't Forget About Us" was performed in Bangkok, Sydney, Auckland and Brisbane.
  • "Always Be My Baby" was not performed in Perth and Sydney.
  • "Heartbreaker" and "#Beautiful" were not performed in Perth and Yarra Valley.
  • "Meteorite" was not performed in Perth, Sydney and Brisbane.
  • "One Sweet Day" was performed in Melbourne.
  • During the show in Brisbane, "Make it Happen" was added to the set list. Additionally, "Thirsty" and"Supernatural" were not performed.

Shows

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Date City Country Venue Opening act
Asia[16]
October 4, 2014 Chiba Japan Makuhari Messe
October 6, 2014 Yokohama Yokohama Arena
October 8, 2014 Seoul South Korea Olympic Gymnastics Arena
October 10, 2014 Beijing China Workers' Stadium
October 12, 2014 Chengdu Chengdu Sports Center
October 15, 2014 Chongqing Chongqing Olympic Sports Center
October 17, 2014 Tianjin Tianjin Olympic Center
October 19, 2014 Shanghai Hongkou Football Stadium
October 22, 2014 Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Stadium Merdeka
October 24, 2014 Singapore Singapore National Stadium
October 26, 2014 Taipei Taiwan TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall
October 28, 2014 Pasay Philippines Mall of Asia Arena
October 30, 2014 Bangkok Thailand Impact Arena
Oceania[16]
November 2, 2014 Perth Australia Sandalford Estate Swan Valley
November 5, 2014 Adelaide Adelaide Entertainment Centre
November 7, 2014 Melbourne Rod Laver Arena Nathaniel
November 8, 2014 Yarra Valley Rochford Wines
November 10, 2014 Sydney Sydney Entertainment Centre Nathaniel
November 13, 2014 Auckland New Zealand Vector Arena Titanium
November 16, 2014 Brisbane Australia Sirromet Wines

Box office score data

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List of concerts, showing date, venue, city, tickets sold, number of available tickets and amount of gross revenue[17][18]
Date Venue City Attendance / Capacity Revenue
October 10, 2014 Workers' Stadium Beijing 38,000[19] / 38,000
October 26, 2014 TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall Taipei >13,000[20] / 15,000[21]
November 7, 2014 Rod Laver Arena Melbourne 6,744 / 6,847 $642,148
November 8, 2014 Rochford Wines Yarra Valley 4,509 / 12,000 $324,481
November 10, 2014 Sydney Entertainment Centre Sydney 7,523 / 7,772 $994,219
November 16, 2014 Sirromet Wines Brisbane 6,071 / 11,000 $605,781
Total 24,847 / 37,619 (66%) $2,566,629

Personnel

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  • James "Big Jim" Wright – musical director
  • Daniel Moore II - keyboards
  • Derrieux Edgecombe – keyboards
  • Lance Tolbert - bass
  • Joshua Baker – drums
  • Trey Lorenz – background vocals
  • Mary Ann Tatum – background vocals
  • Takeytha Johnson – background vocals

References

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  1. ^ Hampp, Andrew (December 2, 2012). "Randy Jackson to Debut Guitar Collection on HSN, Talks 'Idol' and New Mariah Carey". Billboard. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Mariah Carey Leaving 'American Idol'". Extra. May 30, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  3. ^ "Mariah Carey > Tours". MariahCarey.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  4. ^ "The Elusive Chanteuse Show". MariahCarey.com. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
  5. ^ "Mariah Carey announces new world tour dates". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi Médias. August 18, 2014. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
  6. ^ "Mariah Carey Live in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2014". The Malaysia Star. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  7. ^ "Mariah Carey > Tours". MariahCarey.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  8. ^ Kenneth Chaw (October 24, 2014). "Mariah Carey hits the high notes in Kuala Lumpur". The Star. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
  9. ^ Natasha Ann Zachariah (October 25, 2014). "Concert review: Mariah Carey finds her voice in Singapore, after all". The Straits Times. Retrieved October 27, 2014.
  10. ^ Alexa Villano (October 29, 2014). "IN PHOTOS: Mariah Carey thrills PH crowd at 'Elusive Chanteuse' concert". Rappler. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  11. ^ Candice Barnes (November 3, 2014). "Mariah Carey opens Australian tour singin' in the Perth rain". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
  12. ^ Matt Gilbertson (November 6, 2014). "Diva Mariah Carey sparkles and charms at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre". The Advertiser. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  13. ^ Shuk-Wah Chung (November 11, 2014). "Mariah Carey review – no bells but plenty of whistles for the diva". The Guardian. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  14. ^ Joanna Hunkin (November 14, 2014). "Concert review: Mariah delivers pure diva performance". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  15. ^ Suzanne Simonot (November 17, 2014). "Grammy winner Mariah Carey wows crowds and silences critics at Sirromet Winery concert". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved November 17, 2014.
  16. ^ a b "The Elusive Chanteuse Show". MariahCarey.com. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
  17. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. November 20, 2014. Archived from the original on January 23, 2013. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
  18. ^ "Billboard Boxscore :: Current Scores". Billboard. November 10, 2015. Archived from the original on November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  19. ^ "Mariah Carey begins China tour". October 11, 2014.
  20. ^ "瑪麗亞凱莉開唱 這趟沒破音". 蕃新聞 (in Chinese (Taiwan)). October 27, 2014.
  21. ^ "瑪麗亞凱莉台北演唱會 2014 Mariah Carey". www.yourart.asia (in Chinese (Taiwan)).