Cultural Reporter
Beyoncé signed on the first night of her London residence, telling fans that she was “blessed” to perform on stage she liked to do what she liked.
She rushed into the game in seven games at Totterham Hotspur Stadium, and the sight of the audience lasted for three hours.
But while this is the first opportunity for fans to enjoy the singer’s country era in person, slower ticket sales and high prices have been hot topics on tour.
The promoters cut some fares in the campaign to fill the stadium, prompting some people who bought seats in advance to feel a brief change.
Beyoncé's rodeo rumbles out of London, bringing every national cliché you can think of - cowboy hats, horseshoes, tassels and even gold mechanical bulls.
The 40-song roster relies heavily on the 2024 Cowboy Carter track, which received good reviews, including a top album award at this year’s Grammy Awards.
Every element of the performance is flawless.
Most of the conversations at the tour, which took place in April and May, were Blue Ivy, the 13-year-old daughter of Beyoncé and Jay-Z, who reportedly begged her parents to dance on the Renaissance tour in 2023 but were denied the opportunity.
She met several appearances throughout the show, standing out from her instrumental performance by her mom in 2006’s hit Deja Vu.
The teen certainly seemed to like her moment in the spotlight, which was a sign with her sister Rumi who took the stage during the Protector, shyly introducing the quote while Beyoncé held.
The show, known as the tour of Cowboy Carter and Rodeo, is a way to refer to black performers isolated from the national stage, often paying tribute to these artists.
Beyoncé herself previously suggested that the country music industry was rejected in the past and throughout her performances, and it felt like she was fighting for the idea.
She incorporated her biggest hits into Cowboy Carter’s tracks, such as Freedom and the heroine, almost proved that she belongs to the space.
Thursday night's performance certainly showed she's qualified to be a country singer, but maybe the 60,000-seat stadium isn't the best stage.
As the night darkened, Beyoncé released a performance composed of her family-style album Renaissance, which immediately made the crowd fall into a party mood.
The LED wristband lights up in all colors as she takes out the alien superstar, and I'm that girl - of course, it's the best reaction for fans of the night.
Similarly, the part of ancient classics such as Crazy Love and Irreversible makes the crowd sing, proving whether more classics will disappear.
The crowd stood up and it was hard to see how sold out the stadium was actually, but it was only a few hours, and there were still thousands of tickets for sale online until the show.
Although the tour only stopped in two European cities - London and Paris, the remaining eight dates were not sold out.
Beyoncé's tour is the highest price for any artist visiting the UK in 2025, at £950 and up to £71.
Near seats for £141.60 this week for free, some seats sold in Beyhive fans’ pre-sales are for sale for £620.
Zulkarnain Sadali flew from Singapore to London to watch Beyoncé live and bought a ticket in the pre-sale, which he said made him "over £700".
He told the BBC: "I checked my ticket a few weeks ago and then curiosity got my best, I checked the same ticket or the same category and it costs about £300."
“I’m really excited (the show), but I would say the dynamic price really leaves a sour smell in my mouth.”
Another fan, Holly Whiteman, said she "panicked" Beyoncé tickets in a pre-sale of the ticket seller's fan, when she initially set a £100 budget, which was a "up from nosebleeding" for £170 per person.
"A few days later, the tickets were sold in general through Tottenham Hotspur and I found the tickets at a much cheaper price in the same row and the same section of the same show."
"I believe they are at least £50 to £70 per ticket."
Sadali said despite the brief change, it did not make him excited about the excitement of the trip.
"It's actually about the experience of Beyoncé, you won't get it anywhere else, and I know it sounds like a contradiction, worth every penny," he said.
Whitman said the process had caused her a little "disappointed" but she was still looking forward to the tour.
A Ticketmaster spokesman told the BBC they “do not use surge pricing or dynamic algorithms to adjust ticket prices”, adding that event organizers are responsible for the pricing structure.
They also added: "Since tickets usually start selling at least 3-6 months before the event starts, organizers can check prices at key points before the show, but they make any adjustments, not the algorithm."
The BBC also contacted Tour Promoter Live Nation for comment.
Ticketing expert Reg Walker believes the lack of sold-out performance comes down to several factors, including her "overexposure" after her last UK stadium tour, which played in the same venue for five nights in 2023.
He told the BBC that ticket prices were "attractive".
“You may be able to afford one of her concerts, and in some categories you effectively paid the same amount of money as a small holiday, but you can’t do that for several years in a row.
He added: “The pricing strategy on tickets is obviously too high.”
Walker said there are a lot of “affordable prices” tours – but with so many artists visiting the UK this summer, fans may choose and choose who they pay to see.
Billie Eilish, Lana del Rey, Dua Lipa, Kendrick Lamar and Sza all started their stadium tours in the next few months, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, Chapell Roan Roan and Drake Headlining festivals.