MasterCard Priceless Surprises Presents Gwen Stefani

MasterCard Priceless Surprises Presents Gwen Stefani is a promotional concert tour by American singer and songwriter Gwen Stefani. This became Stefani's first tour since 2007's The Sweet Escape Tour; however, tickets available for the tour were only accessible by MasterCard holders. Stefani's recent partnership with MasterCard allowed her to create a concert experience for her fans in a more intimate setting, as she did not perform in large concert venues. The shows contained material from Stefani's first two studio albums, as well as songs that would later appear on her third release, This Is What the Truth Feels Like (2016).

MasterCard Priceless Surprises Presents Gwen Stefani
Concert by Gwen Stefani
Promotional banner for the concert
Start dateFebruary 7, 2015
End dateMarch 16, 2016
Duration90 minutes
Legs2
No. of shows2 in North America
1 in Asia
3 Total
Gwen Stefani concert chronology

Each of the three shows contained different set lists. She also premiered several of her songs during these shows, including "Start a War" on February 7, 2015; "Used to Love You" on October 17, 2015; and "Misery" on March 16, 2016. Her first two American concerts, held in Los Angeles and New York City, sold out immediately after tickets were made available to cardholders. The final show took place in Tokyo. The concerts were well received for being individualized and Stefani received praise for her stage energy.

Background
Orpheum Theatre, the location of the opening show in Los Angeles

Stefani initially announced the tour alongside a partnership with MasterCard on December 8, 2014; the partnership enabled MasterCard holders to win several different prizes, including handbags, golf getaways, and concert tickets to see Stefani perform live.[1] The collaboration began with a 30-second television commercial announcing the partnership and debuting Stefani's single, "Spark the Fire". In an interview with MasterCard regarding the concert series, Stefani said that she was "excited to be part of a collaboration that offers me the opportunity to connect and engage with fans through amazing surprises when they least expect it," further stating that she "look[s] forward to working with them to bring something truly unique to fans.”[2]

The February 7th show opened doors to the public at 7:00 pm, but the concert itself did not start until 8:00 pm.[3] Each attendee could purchase a maximum of two tickets, exclusively through Ticketmaster; the starting price for a ticket was $79. The New York City concert was announced on September 15, 2015, and was billed as a "special" event by MasterCard and Stefani herself.[4] The show was, again, only available to MasterCard holders instead of the general public and later became sold out.[5][6]

Despite the significant time gap between her last concert, MasterCard announced on February 8, 2016 that Stefani planned to perform one last show in Tokyo at the Zepp Diver City event center.[6] During a MasterCard press release, Stefani stated that she looked forward to play fan favorites as well as a few new songs for lucky MasterCard cardholders and my most passionate Japanese fans".[7] At the same venue, the singer premiered her single "Misery" to her fans as "a special surprise".[8]

Synopsis
Zepp Diver City, the location of the final show in Tokyo

For the Los Angeles performance, Stefani opened the show with "Spark the Fire", her then-latest single.[9] Immediately after performing a medley of "Harajuku Girls", "Yummy", "Don't Get It Twisted", "Now That You Got It", and "Bubble Pop Electric", Stefani debuted the previously-unreleased "Start a War".[9] During the New York and Tokyo performances, the show was opened by a performance of Stefani's 2006 single, "Wind It Up";[10][11] Stefani wore "red plaid pants, a fishnet body stocking, a cropped black beaded top, and black combat boots", which continued into the performance of "Rich Girl".[8] During the performances of "Misery" and "Make Me Like You", Stefani wore "cropped red track pants and a red sequined cage top over a black bra" as the lyric video for "Misery" was displayed as the backdrop.[8] In between "4 in the Morning" and "Danger Zone", Stefani shouted "these songs are taking on new meaning[s]!", referencing her recent divorce from singer Gavin Rossdale.[12] At the Hammerstein Ballroom show, Stefani debuted her single "Used to Love You", along with the music video which was played during the background.[13] The night ended with an encore performance of both "Hollaback Girl" and "The Sweet Escape".[14]

Critical reception

In his review of the New York City show, Andrew Hampp of Billboard praised Stefani for bringing "an arena-level production to an intimate theater."[9] Jeffery Slonim, writing for Gotham, similarly enjoyed the performance for being "personal" and particularly favored the emotional premiere of "Used to Love You".[15] Milos Balac of The Huffington Post was also impressed, claiming that the tour would "cement [Stefani's] status as of one of pop's reigning acts."[12] A reviewer from Hidden Jams Music stated that the New York performance allowed Stefani to prove herself and predicted that "Used to Love You" would be "all over [the] radio soon."[16] Reflecting on the Tokyo appearance, Thomas Hall from The Japan Times felt that Stefani "exuded just as much energy as she did the last time she performed in Tokyo in 2007". He complimented her vocals and found the impact of them comparable to the strength of the background dancers.[17]

Set list
February 7, 2015
  1. "Spark the Fire"
  2. "Rich Girl"
  3. "What You Waiting For?"
  4. "Baby Don't Lie"
  5. "Cool"
  6. "Together"
  7. "Early Winter"
  8. "Harajuku Medley" (contains elements of "Harajuku Girls", "Yummy", "Don't Get It Twisted", "Now That You Got It", and "Bubble Pop Electric")
  9. "Start a War"
  10. "Luxurious"
  11. "4 in the Morning"
  12. "The Real Thing"
  13. "Danger Zone"
  14. "Wonderful Life"
  15. "Orange County Girl" (video interlude)
  16. "Crash"
  17. "U Started It"
  18. "Wind It Up"
  19. "Hollaback Girl"
  20. "The Sweet Escape"
October 17, 2015
  1. "Wind It Up"
  2. "Rich Girl"
  3. "Baby Don't Lie"
  4. "Early Winter"
  5. "Spark the Fire"
  6. "Harajuku Medley" (contains elements of "Harajuku Girls", "Yummy", "Don't Get It Twisted", "Now That You Got It", and "Bubble Pop Electric")
  7. "Luxurious"
  8. "Crash"
  9. "U Started It"
  10. "The Real Thing" (contains excerpts of "Wonderful Life")
  11. "Let Me Blow Ya Mind" (instrumental)
  12. "Cool"
  13. "Fluorescent"
  14. "4 in the Morning"
  15. "Danger Zone"
  16. "What You Waiting For?"
  17. "Used to Love You"
  18. "Hollaback Girl"
  19. "The Sweet Escape"
March 16, 2016
  1. "Wind It Up"
  2. "Rich Girl"
  3. "Baby Don't Lie"
  4. "Early Winter"
  5. "Spark the Fire"
  6. "Harajuku Medley" (contains elements of "Harajuku Girls", "Yummy", "Don't Get It Twisted", "Now That You Got It", and "Bubble Pop Electric")
  7. "Luxurious"
  8. "Crash"
  9. "U Started It"
  10. "Fluorescent"
  11. "The Real Thing" (contains excerpts of "Wonderful Life")
  12. "Let Me Blow Ya Mind" (instrumental)
  13. "Misery"
  14. "Cool"
  15. "Make Me Like You"
  16. "Danger Zone"
  17. "What You Waiting For?"
  18. "Used to Love You"
  19. "Hollaback Girl"
  20. "The Sweet Escape"

Sources:[10][11]

Shows
List of concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and attendance
Date City Country Venue Attendance
North America[3][18]
February 7, 2015 Los Angeles United States Orpheum Theatre 2,000 / 2,000
October 17, 2015 New York City Hammerstein Ballroom 2,200 / 2,200
Asia
March 16, 2016 Tokyo Japan Zepp Diver City N/A / 2,473
Total 4,200 / 4,200

References
  1. Ely, Sarah (December 8, 2014). "MasterCard and Gwen Stefani Join Forces to Surprise Cardholders". MasterCard. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  2. "MasterCard Airs New 'Priceless Surprises' Apple Pay Ad Featuring Gwen Stefani [Video]". Clarified. December 8, 2014. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  3. Kuchik, Natalie (January 28, 2015). "Gwen Stefani is playing a Grammy weekend date at The Orpheum Theatre". AXS. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  4. Maslow, Nick (September 15, 2015). "Gwen Stefani Set to Perform Special Concert in N.Y.C." People Magazine. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  5. Ely, Sarah (September 15, 2015). "Gwen Stefani Heads to New York City for an Exclusive MasterCard Performance". MasterCard. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  6. "International Pop Icon Gwen Stefani Announces Exclusive Performance in Tokyo for MasterCard Priceless Japan". MasterCard. February 8, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  7. "MasterCard Priceless Japan Opens Access to Gwen Stefani Priceless Performance to the Public Following Overwhelming Demand From Her Fanbase". MasterCard. February 29, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  8. Wetherille, Kelly (March 16, 2016). "Gwen Stefani Rocks Out in Tokyo". Women's Wear Daily. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  9. Hampp, Andrew (February 8, 2015). "Gwen Stefani Plays First Solo Show in Six Years at L.A.'s Orpheum Theatre". Billboard. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  10. "2015". Beacon Street Online. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  11. "2016". Beacon Street Online. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  12. Balac, Milos (October 18, 2015). "Gwen Stefani Debuts Breakup Song Following Split From Gavin Rossdale". The Huffington Post. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  13. Golding, Shenequa (October 18, 2015). "Gwen Stefani Lights Up The Stage At The Hammerstein Ballroom". Vibe. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  14. Romano, Nick (October 18, 2015). "Gwen Stefani debuts new song, 'Used to Love You,' at New York concert". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  15. Slonim, Jeffrey (October 19, 2015). "Seen & Heard: Gwen Stefani's Personal Song; Carey Mulligan's Hopes for Her Baby Daughter". Gotham. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
  16. "Live Performances". Hidden Jams Music. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
  17. Hall, Thomas (29 March 2016). "Review: Gwen Stefani at Zepp DiverCity". The Japan Times. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  18. "Mastercard Presents Gwen Stefani". Manhattan Center. Archived from the original on April 19, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2016.
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