The Rammstein Stadium Tour was the seventh concert tour by German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein, originally in support of their 2019 untitled studio album, but then Zeit as well in 2022 and onwards,[1] with a total of 58 shows in 2019. It grossed more than $64,000,000 by the end of 2018 in pre-sales.[2]
It started on May 27, 2019 in Germany with a series of 31 concerts in Europe, the next leg of the tour was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and postponing its dates for two years. It was completed for the following three years from 2022 to 2024. With a total of 141 shows between Europe and North America; with a sale of more than six million tickets,[3] it is the most successful of their career, accumulating a gross of $563,046,342.
Background
Announcement
On 2 November 2018, Rammstein announced that they would tour again, in stadiums.[4] Along with that in the following days a few teasers were uploaded to the band's social media channels[5][6][7] containing studio snippets from the yet unreleased song "Ramm4", that the band played on their recent tours in 2016–17.
The presale tickets were available from 5 November 2018 and were available to the public from 7 November 2018. Most of the venues sold out within days. And in the following days the band added a few other shows to sold-out events, mostly to the following day. On 10 April 2019, a limited number of tickets were available in some venues,[8] due to the new single, "Deutschland", getting released.
On 24 June 2019, Rammstein added a teaser – including names of cities – on their social media pages which revealed that they would continue their European stadium tour in 2020.[9][10][11] On 26 June, the band added another teaser, this time revealing Europe dates and venues, as well as mentioning that a US tour.[12][13] Ticket sales started on 5 July. Rammstein released a teaser image for what was planned to be their next UK performance of 2020 on 26 July 2019 using a photo of what looked like a Welsh Rugby Union jersey with a Rammstein logo, draped over some stadium seating. Fans speculated that this was the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. It was then confirmed by the band when they made the official announcement that they would be playing the Cardiff stadium on 14 June 2020.[14] This would have been their first show in Wales since July 2005. As per a 2020 announcement, the shows planned for 2020 would not take place due to the 2019–20 coronavirus outbreak,[15] but were preliminarily postponed into 2021,[16] and then postponed again into 2022.[17] On May 12, 2021 the band announced four additional shows,[18] as well as postponing the American dates to 2022 on 24 May 2021.[19][20] At the last concert in Ostend in Belgium (2022), the band announced that they would be going on a European stadium tour in 2023. Concerts have been announced in Lithuania, Finland, Denmark, Germany, Slovakia, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Italy, the Netherlands, Hungary, France, Austria, Poland and Belgium.[21] More than one million tickets were sold in the first few hours after the pre-sale. Further additional concerts were sold out within a very short time.[22]
Allegations
On May 25, 2023, the Irish woman Shelby Lynn made allegations of sexual assault against Lindemann. On June 3, Rammstein released a statement on the allegations. "The allegations have hit us all very hard and we take them extremely seriously," the band wrote on Instagram. At the same time, Rammstein, just like those who made the allegations, "had a right - to not be prejudged either". The Berlin law firm Schertz Bergmann, which is representing Lindemann, is called on Shelby Lynn to stop publishing the "untrue" accusations and allegations against Lindemann. Lynn, on the other hand, continued, but again underlined that she was not raped. The famous Influencer Kayla Shyx uploaded a YouTube video in which she described in detail how the "Row Zero" system worked. Mostly female Rammstein fans were allowed to sit in the front row at Rammstein concerts. Shyx is also reporting on Rammstein's "casting director" and tour manager for the first time. She is said to have recruited these fans for Lindemann. On June 14, 2023, the Berlin public prosecutor's office initiated investigations against Lindemann for allegations "in the area of sexual offenses and the distribution of narcotics", according to the authorities. These investigations were later dropped due to a lack of evidence and a lack of sufficient suspicion. The Vilnius public prosecutor's office, declared that it would not initiate an investigation against Lindemann.[23][24][25][26]
2024 and end of tour
Due to the allegations against the band's singer, it was unclear whether the band would go on tour again in 2024. After the end of the 2023 tour, which was particularly marked by the accusations surrounding Lindemann, Rammstein announced another tour for 2024. The band quickly put a stop to rumors of a possible end to the band. Concerts have been announced in the Czech Republic, Germany, Serbia, Greece, Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland, Italy and Austria. Of the 30 concerts, 12 took place in Germany alone. Four in Dresden, three in Frankfurt and a series of five concerts in Gelsenkirchen.[27]
During the concert series in Gelsenkirchen, Rammstein guitarist Paul Landers said at a meeting with fans that the band want to take two years off after the end of the tour. During the time off, Landers talked about releasing the song "Ramm4". The song served as the opener for this year's tour and was already played live by the band at concerts in 2016, but never released as a studio version.[28] Additionally, the concert film from the tour will be released in the interim. After the final show on July 31, 2024 in Gelsenkirchen, the band confirmed that the tour had come to an end after 135 concerts in five years.[29]
Development
The 2019 set list of the tour saw notable performances, with "Heirate mich" and "Rammstein" being performed for the first time in 18 and 14 years, respectively. Additionally, regularly played staple songs "Keine Lust" and "Feuer frei!" were excluded from the set list for the first time. The 2022 set list features new pieces from Zeit in place of "Was ich liebe", "Tattoo", "Sex", "Diamant" and "Ohne dich" respectively, as well as ending with "Adieu" as opposed to "Ich will". 2023 saw them opening with "Rammlied" for the first time in 13 years and including "Bestrafe Mich" for the first time in well over 20 years.
The song "Pussy" was removed from the set list after the Odense shows due to the allegations against Till Lindemann.[30]
The Song "Sex" was removed from the set list after the show in Barcelona in 2019.[31]
During the shows in Mexico City in 2022, the band played a special encore with their song "Te quiero puta!".
Concert synopsis for 2019 and 2022
Rammstein performing in July 2019
The show begins with "Music for the Royal Fireworks" played over the speakers, as a screen rises up above the stage. As the music builds to a crescendo, Rammstein's stylised R logo flashes onto the screen, as Christoph walks on stage to his drums, and there is an explosion of pyrotechnics. The rest of the band then emerges from the bottom of the stage, Richard first, then Paul, followed by Ollie and Flake, and finally Till, clad in a snakeskin military uniform, complete with jacket and boots. They then launch straight into "Was Ich liebe", during which black smoke is rising from the stage and delay towers. Next up, Till discards his jacket, and the band continues with "Links 2-3-4". Red banners with the Rammstein logo are revealed across the stage when the song kicks in. As the band start playing "Tattoo", Till then takes off his shirt, revealing a vest top underneath. After "Sehnsucht" and "Zeig Dich", Till begins singing "Mein Herz Brennt", but tricks the audience into singing the hook at the wrong time, before the band starts playing the hook properly. As the band starts playing "Puppe", Till then goes under the stage, and comes back pushing an enormous metal pram. He then puts on a camera that goes over his eye, and looks inside the pram, to reveal a deformed baby doll with its mouth stuck in a scream. During the chorus, flames erupt from the pram, and black confetti falls down on the audience. The pram is then moved off stage, and the band continues with "Heirate mich" and "Diamant". Afterwards, the band leaves the stage, as Richard ascends the stage on a mechanised platform, and starts playing his remix of "Deutschland" on a DJ deck. After a few minutes, Paul, Christoph, Ollie and Flake walk on stage wearing identical hooded suits, which light up as they put their hoods up, and dance around the stage. Afterwards the platform descends, the band come back in their normal clothes, and play the regular version of "Deutschland". After an energetic performance of "Radio", Till and Flake disappear offstage. As the rest of the band start playing "Mein Teil", Till comes back in a bloodied chef's outfit, wheeling a huge cooking pot. He then lifts the lid to reveal Flake inside, playing his keyboard. Till then starts singing into a microphone with a knife attached to the end. After the second chorus, he then brings out a variety of flamethrowers, and roasts the bottom of the pot. Finally, Flake escapes the pot, and Till chases him off the stage. They then return to the stage for "Du hast". Midway through the bridge of the song, a roadie brings out a crossbow, as Till picks it up, aims and fires, sending fireworks shooting above the audience, causing a series of explosions. They then stop, and start playing "Sonne", which is accompanied by twenty-foot theatrical flames, around the audience. They then finish the set with "Ohne dich", during which sparks rain down over Till. They then leave the stage, as a graphic on the screen shows a smartphone turning on the flashlight, encouraging the audience to do the same.
The band then appears on a small stage in the middle of the stadium, with their opening act Duo Jatekok, and play a piano version of "Engel". Flake, Schneider, Paul, Oliver and Richard return to the main stage via inflatable rubber life rafts where they are greeted by Till, at which point they delve into their first encore and play "Ausländer". Next is "Du riechst so gut", where Till shoots a bow shooting sparks. They finish the first encore with "Pussy", where midway through the song, Till mounts a phallic cannon that shoots white foam on the audience. After getting off the cannon, confetti starts shooting out over the audience. The band then leaves the stage.
After a long pause, the band come back onto the stage for their second encore, and start playing "Rammstein". They finish with "Ich will" (Adieu in 2022 and 2023), during which, huge bursts of flame shoot up into the sky from the very top of the stage. The band then stops playing, and they don a curtsey (as is customary for them) at the bottom of the stage, before Till stands up and thanks the audience for their support, and the band finally leave the stage by way of a lift. The show ends how it began, with another explosion.
Tour dates
List of 2019 concerts, showing date, city, country, venue, tickets sold, number of available tickets and gross revenue
