Demi Lovato brought her Tell Me You Love Me Tour to Philadelphia lastnight (March 23rd) to the nearly sold out Wells Fargo Center arena. The arena was full of diehard fans pulsating with energy immediately upon arriving inside of the venue and sharing their excitement with other Lovatics. Supporting the Tell Me You Love Me Tour is DJ Khaled & fast rising, Kehlani. This tour is Lovato’s sixth headlining tour, and it’s her personal favorite and most meaningful headlining tour as it’s in support of her latest album (Tell Me You Love Me) which is she “very proud of” and following the release of her incredibly touching, informative, tell-all ‘Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated‘ Documentary on Lovato’s story about becoming sober and finding self-love.
Launching the show, was rapidly rising R&B pop superstar Oakland, California’s Kehlani (formerly of pop band, POPLYFE), signed to Atlantic Records, bursting into the spotlight with her own sold out tours and chart topping major-label debut record. Dressed to perfection in a shiny white translucent jacket dress over a pearly white body suit, and thigh-high stilettos. Performing songs off her 2017 release, SweetSexySavage, including tracks like “CRZY,” “Get Like,” and “Distraction.”
DJ Khaled delivered a fun filled set, complete with abbreviated versions of his smash hits as well as including plenty of his unique personality. Highlights of Khaled’s set included Rihanna led track featuring Bryson Tiller “Wild Thoughts” where fans got to see Khaled’s dance moves and Khaled led track featuring T-Pain, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg, and Rick Ross “All I Do Is Win” and Fat Joe & Remy Ma’s “All the Way Up.” Khaled also giving a shoutout to his friend and Philly’s own Meek Mill, who is currently in prison and being supported by millions of fans and fellow musicians. Khaled telling the crowd to chant “Free Meek Mill” and playing a snippet of his song before playing fan favorite his smash hit with Justin Bieber “I’m The One.” Khaled also brought his friend Kehlani out to perform her single “CRZY” with him during his set.
The just about sold out crowd erupted into roars as the lights went down and Demi Lovato appeared on massive video screens acting in an array of skits, Lovato then rose onto the stage with her poignant version of her single “You Don’t Do It For Me Anymore,” off her sixth studio album released in 2017 and the crowd went absolutely crazy singing along like a choir. Exiting the stage momentarily for a quick outfit change before exploding into fan favorite song “Daddy Issues” which seen Lovato laying upon what looked like a psychiatrist chair as she began to showcase her sexier side with her dancers assistance. Then powering through hits like “Cool For The Summer,” “Sexy Dirty Love,” and “Heart Attack” before putting up a kiss cam on her video wall backdrop which showcase Straight, Gay, Bi, and Lesbian couples kissing during “Give Your Heart A Break.” Then treking through the arena in her sparkling pink boxing attire and silver heels for a unique introduction to “Confident,” then giving fans a very incredible performance of “Games” which seen Lovato performing on stage in a black hooded outfit and as the lights flickered she appeared to move throughout the venue in the crowd, on different parts of the stage, and even way up in the nosebleeds. The production on this tour is next level (Co2, confetti, massive video walls, beyond flawless lights and dance choreography) and Lovato is sounding and looking better than she ever has before in her more confident state showcasing her personal growth, talents and her vocals which are impressive, very powerful and a force to be reckoned with. Then exploring and displaying a more sexy side of Lovato, she appeared on a B-stage which was a bed which Lovato performed three songs (“Concentrate,” “Cry Baby,” “Lonely”) on and included a very seductive dance routine during “Lonely” in white lingerie.
After Lovato’s incredible performances of her collaboration hits including Cheat Codes led track “No Promises,” and Luis Fonsi’s “Échame la culpa” in which Lovato showcased her Spanish vocal prowess, a slideshow of photos from Lovato’s journey played as Lovato narrated to speak about her now co-owned organization CAST on Tour saying, “I don’t want to be remembered only for my music, I want to be remembered for leaving an impact, for using my voice for the greater good, to keep the conversation going, to tackle the stigmas surrounding mental health, it’s not just about mental illness or diagnosis, it’s about self-love. It’s about caring for others. This is why I partnered with CAST centers, everyone here tonight can make a difference, you can make a difference. This is CAST on Tour.” Before Lovato’s concert Friday night at Wells Fargo Center, she had a select intimate group of fans attend a motivational wellness therapy session at the arena, with Lovato’s co-owner of the CAST treatment center, Mike Bayer and special guest Kevin Hines (who attempted suicide by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge and Survived in 2000). Lovato overcame her struggles with addiction, eating disorders, bi-polar disorder, and self-harm six years ago and she credits Mike Bayer and the team at CAST Centers with providing her with the excellent resources and tools to turn her life around when she needed it most which is now showcased in her daily life.
Next, going into her very emotion filled part of her set where she showcased her more vulnerable side. Performing three piano driven tracks, which really allowed her exceptional vocals to overpower the instrumental including “Warrior,” “Smoke & Mirrors,” and then holding back tears as she told the crowd this next song was for her father, “This next song is really difficult for me to sing, I have actually never performed it on tour before, and I never performed it on tour before cause I didn’t know if I would get through it without crying. But it is important for me that on this tour that I share my journey and I share my story with you guys, and It’s important that healing comes with that. So I decided to play this song, and hopefully someone up in heaven is listening.” going into her heart-wrenching song “Father.”
Then bursting onto the stage with a choir and her Billboard Hot 100 chart topping single, the infectious hater-shunning, “Sorry Not Sorry,” before ending her show with the tours title track and very anthemic, “Tell Me You Love Me” which left fans showered in what looked like white rose petals as white roses were seen falling apart on her video backdrop. Giving fans some love saying “thank you so much for tonight Philly” and shaking some hands before exiting the stage. Make sure you get out and check out Lovato’s Tell Me You Love Me Tour if it comes through your area as it’s one you do not want to miss out on. She really showcases her vulernable, sexy, and confident side with her very emotion filled set showcasing she is living her best life and is happier than she has ever been. Only a few dates left of this tour but see upcoming Lovato tour dates, HERE.
Check out our exclusive photo gallery of the show by our photographer, Andrew Wendowski.
