Sick of Beyoncé and Jay Z yet? Us neither!
America's favorite musical couple is on the verge of completing their second world tour together. The On the Run II tour, which kicked off in Cardiff back in June, is set to wrap up this week, October 4th in Seattle.
We've created a playlist that mirrors the Carters' 44-song setlist to get you hyped whether you'll be there or just dream of being there.
(Make sure to cue up our Setlist Study Guide Playlist on Spotify before reading on... Follow Setlist.fm on Spotify to listen!)
"'03 Bonnie & Clyde"
One of the opening numbers of the show as well as one of the first official collaborations by Bey and Jay, "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" sets the tone for each show. The idea behind the song and the performance is two runners running away from the law, shown by the couple's choreography and clips projected on the screens behind them.
The track was composed by Shawn Carter, Kanye West, Tupac Shakur, Prince Nelson, Darryl Harper, Ricky Rouse and Tyrone Wrice in 2002 for Jay Z's seventh studio album, The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse. The couple first performed the song together in 2002 on an episode of Saturday Night Live.
Here's a clip of the two performing the song in Cologne, Germany:
"Run the World (Girls)"
This song was first released as a single for B's fourth studio album, 2011's 4. The single ended up being a pivotal song for her career, sampling Major Lazer's "Pon de Floor" and using a mixture of different sounds, cultures, eras and a new message of female-empowerment (a theme she's evidently stuck with since then!)
"Run the World (Girls)" is one of many feminist-oriented anthems she performs on this tour.
Check out this performance from a Manchester show:
"Dirt Off Your Shoulder"
Another Jay Z signature, (this time from 2003's The Black Album) this song was first released as a single for Jay Z and Linkin Park's joint mash-up album, Collision Course.
In 2008– before he was elected president and back when he was just a Democratic presidential candidate– Barack Obama, in the midst of a televised speech, used Jay Z's hand signal to "brush the dirt" off his shoulders. When asked whether it was a deliberate reference to the song or not, one of his campaign managers admitted that Obama "has some Jay Z on his iPod." Another reason to love Barry.
Here's a live performance of the song in Berlin:
"Drunk in Love"
After a run of solo cuts, the pair reunites on stage to perform one of their most classic singles. "Drunk in Love" was one of the two lead singles for Beyoncé's self-titled fifth studio album, and many people consider it to be the follow up to Bey and Jay's "Crazy in Love" released in 2003.
Here's some hot tea: This song was almost Future's. The rapper explained that Detail, one of the producers for the song, first approached him and asked him to record a demo before working with Beyoncé. Future worked on the melody and used it on a song called "Good Morning," without getting any credit for "Drunk in Love" once it came out a few months later.
Listen to "Good Morning" below:
And here's "Drunk in Love" live from Pasadena:
Beyoncé and Jay Z remaining tour dates:
October 2 – Vancouver, BC @ BC Place
October 4 – Seattle, WA @ CenturyLink Field
