Touch the Sky Tour

On September 14, 2005, West's record label Def Jam announced dates across North America for the first leg of the Touch the Sky Tour, titled after his song from Late Registration (2005). The tour dates ran from October to December 2005 and West was set to be supported by fellow rapper Common, American Idol winner Fantasia, and singer Keyshia Cole, who previously sang for the rapper's 2005 sets with R&B singer Usher. It marked West's second tour, though stood as his first major headlining one, with him playing large venues across the United States. Hours before the first concert was set to take place, Common canceled his involvement because of a demanding schedule for his role in a film with Taraji P. Henson. West was shooting a music video in New York for "Heard 'Em Say" the night before the kickoff show at the University of Miami Convocation Center in Miami on October 11, 2005, and also had a lack of rehearsal time. He went against the notion that the first show would pose a challenge: "Fuck that! We not gonna wait for 10 shows from now, we gonna touch the sky tonight." Tickets for the dates were made available a day after the announcement and on December 16, West extended his stop at London's Hammersmith Apollo from one concert to three due to demand. In March 2006, it was confirmed by tour promoter Michael Coppel that West would be playing five dates in Australia that month, with the rapper later adding a concert at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney after a "special request". West came third in a survey of who University of North Carolina Wilmington students wanted to perform on campus, but he was the only available act from the top three. This led to an additional tour date there on April 22, 2006, with the university paying him over US$100,000 to appear. ==Inspiration and development==

After sometimes being vocal about his detractors, West made a statement in September 2005 about his motives for the Touch the Sky Tour, saying things have "never been about the critics or the album sales", rather than "about the fans". He said that he loves being able "to bring this music — that I've poured my heart and soul into — to them", recalling considering how audiences will respond to hooks, intros, and specific lines when working on his music. West told an MTV reporter that making "the world better" is one of the missions with the music and visuals, calling his pain "everybody else's pleasure—how I stress, how I was up all last night, how I'm about to kill myself because it's not perfect. Well, maybe people can feel that when they're in the audience, like, 'Yoooooo! [...] He really put a lot of work in this.'" Despite English artist Es Devlin's lack of experience in staging popular music concerts, West recruited her as a production adviser to revamp the stage design. The collaboration came about after West's colleague Richard Brown recommended him to work with Devlin, who studied the rapper's previous work and was impressed that he could not speak after his mouth was wired shut due to the near-fatal car accident that created "Through the Wire" (2002). Devlin presented West with a few sketches of her ideas, which he disliked and saw as inferior to the content on her website; eventually, they started over because only 10 days remained until the tour. West was intent on the set featuring nature, requesting trees, rocks, and volcanoes, yet the artist struggled to work with replica natural displays. After the Touch the Sky Tour, Devlin remained as West's stage designer, designing all of his succeeding tours, as of 2016. ==Concert synopsis==

On the Touch the Sky Tour, West was accompanied by a six-piece all-female string section on a platform and Canadian DJ A-Trak. The rapper wore six different costume pieces for the tour, such as an outfit consisting of a light-colored shirt and pants, a suit jacket, and white-framed sunglasses at the kickoff show in Miami. Prior to the concerts, the lights dimmed and a video reenactment of a Late Registration comedy skit appeared on the screen. Negative reviews of West's music and personality were projected onto a scrolling screen behind him as he performed, including when he collapsed during a performance of "Bring Me Down" at New York City's Madison Square Garden. One of the reviews started with, "The second release by the most obnoxious, egotistical, self-centered hip hop artist in the history of obnoxious..." Also behind the stage, live footage was projected of the concerts. Lighting backed West on stage, such as four large translucent light boxes, featuring his band that included his DJ and an orchestra led by a violinist. At certain points, white flood lights shone over the audience. When performing "Roses", West would often kneel down onstage. ==Reception==

's presence on the tour.|alt=Fantasia performing at the Air Canada Centre concert in November 2005 The Touch the Sky Tour was met with positive reviews from critics. Reviewing the Miami kickoff show, MTV writer Shaheem Reid was impressed by West's outfit that made it look like he had "stepped directly out of a photo shoot" and heavily appreciated his ability to captivate the audience. Reid also praised Common's appearance, the lack of audio problems, West's song choices, and the vocal performances from Cole and Fantasia. Brackett focused praise on West's stage acting and the atmosphere created by him performing hit singles, though was uninterested in the performances of some songs. He gladly remembered a part of the show when West "displayed on the screen what critics and magazines were saying about him at the time", and was satisfied with his performance. Controversy During the tour's last stop in the UK at the NEC Arena in Solihull on February 28, 2006, two security guards were shot while people tried to enter without tickets. West Midlands Police were called to the site slightly after 10p.m. (GMT), reaffirming it "involved individuals who had been ejected" due to attempting to enter with no tickets. Following the incident, West's performance in Milan two days after the concert was canceled. ==Set list==

The respective set lists given below for West and Cole are representative of the first show on October 11, 2005, in Miami, per MTV. as well as "Diamonds from Sierra Leone". In his 2015 book God & Monster, journalist Mark Beaumont recalls West as having performed a 20-song set throughout the tour. During the sets, he would occasionally perform the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" (1966) or Twista's "Overnight Celebrity" (2004). ;Kanye West set • "Touch the Sky" • "Late" • "Drive Slow" • "Spaceship" • "Get 'Em High" (performed with Common) • "Go!" (performed with Common) • "All Falls Down" • "Through the Wire" • "Gold Digger" • "Jesus Walks" • "We Major" ;Keyshia Cole set • "I Changed My Mind" • "I Should Have Cheated" ==Shows==