On The Run 2 // Beyoncé and Jay-Z
A lot has happened with The Carters since the first On the Run tour in 2014. The public has since witnessed a saga of marital issues in the form of songs on Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” and their collab album “Everything Is Love.” For their most recent tour, On The Run 2, The Carters tied it all together and put on a show that tells the story of betrayal, confession, forgiveness and, most of all, love.
Initially for their duets, Jay-Z and Beyoncé used catwalks that ran across different sides of the crowd, allowing them to address the audience separately, symbolizing a divide. Come second half, The Carters shared a floating platform that moved over the crowd as clips of them renewing their vows played on the big screen. The band then performed through silhouettes of church windows, exemplifying forgiveness and redemption.
When performing their solo pieces, the couple had separate artistic aesthetics and owned the spotlight in their own ways. Beyoncé; with her army of strong female backup dancers in lush costumes that accented her glittering body suits. She oozed female empowerment through her choreography, performing as a unit with her dancers in “Formation” and “Run the World (Girls).” Jay-Z hypnotized the crowd with his masculine, truculent performance. He took over the stadium with his literal flame throwing spectacle of “Run This Town” and displayed political unrest in “99 Problems” where he wore a bull-proof vest and featured mugshots of fellow celebrities including Jane Fonda, Snoop Dogg and David Bowie.
Separately their performances brought messages of change within social justice and trials within ones self, making the large stadium feel intimate. Jay-Z’s performance of “The Story of OJ” and Beyoncé’s “Resentment” brought beauty with the small, quiet moments every show needs. When The Carters came together and performed as a unit with classics like “Crazy in Love,” “Bonnie and Clyde,” and “Naughty Girl,” the night moved towards reconciliation, bringing back these feel good favourites of the early 2000’s.
On the Run 2 made you feel like you were apart of this Hollywood ride, full of extravagance, beauty, political substance and personal trial, all leading to one union. Beyoncé in a long glistening black gown with gold embroidery stands next to Jay-Z as they bring the crowd down with “Young Forever.” The couple share a kiss as you experience The Carters’ happy ending where Everything is Love.
Review: Sophia Niewerth
Photos: Raven Verona
