When Concert Michael Jackson 1998 Bad Tour?
Michael Jackson’s Bad Tour Concert in 1998
In 1998, music genius Michael Jackson went on his world tour dubbed the ‘Bad Tour’ after his 1987 album called Bad. It included 123 concerts and touched several countries across the world. When the tour finally came to an end, it was among the most successful concert tours in the history of music.
Jackson’s concert in Anytown, USA was one of the most memorable events of the monumental Bad Tour on 1st July 1998. Given that the concert was Jackson’s first in Anytown in over a decade, tickets were incredibly popular. Indeed, the fifty thousand capacity Anytown Stadium was sold out within a few minutes, proving how much people still loved Jackson even after more than a decade after he released the Bad album.
Days before the much-anticipated concert performance on the first of July in Anytown, many fans slept over at the stadium to ensure they secured the best and most strategic general standing positions nearest to the stage. There was a lot of tension and excitement outside Anytown Stadium. People of various age groups and professions felt connected because they shared their passion and anticipation for the King of Pop. People bought trinkets with his face on them and there were food stands with dishes named after his songs. Everyone waited for the hours, minutes, and seconds for the show to start on their amateurish ‘Bad Tour’ clocks.
Lastly, the day of the match reached the last day of July, and fans invaded the stadium as the clock hit seven. Fans rushed to their seats or their ideal standing area of the general admission section when the shrill voice of Jackson’s sister, Janet, welcomed the legend to the stage. People screamed as Jackson appeared on the stage, setting the stage by posing right from the get-go. He was in casual wear – black trousers, white socks, black shoes, a red buttoned shirt with a black jacket with gold trims, a gold belt, and a single shiny glove that glistened like glitter.
Jackson performed a spectacular opening set with his famous ‘Smooth Criminal’, accompanied by dancers and effectively executing his well-known moonwalk. Following was the up-tempo number “The Way You Make Me Feel” which saw Jackson chase a lucky lady selected from the audience to dance with him. Other early highlights included, “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” an incredibly light and buoyant ballad, and “Man in the Mirror,” a relatively serious, deep track.
Continuing the performance halfway through the show, Jackson left the stage to slip into another costume behind a black curtain, while on the giant screens, images from his music videos and short films were shown to keep the audience pumped up. He came back in black leather, sporting a red band across his biceps to sing some of his popular songs from the Bad album which was on sale at the time. People went crazy for him because he did a fantastic job dancing to his hits “Bad,” “Dirty Diana,” and “Smooth Criminal. ” The whole stadium thrilled, and the audience sang along with Michael Jackson.
Bringing things to a more intimate pace, Jackson sat down on the edge of the stage for a stripped-back set. He sang slow numbers such as ‘She’s Out of My Life,’ and ‘I’ll Be There,’ and the audience bobbed their lights up and down, clearly moved by Jackson’s sensitive side. After bowing to the audience and tossing kisses to the spectators, Jackson increased their energy level again and performed an incredible combination of his popular hits from the period of his career which could be referred to as the eighties – “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’,” “Beat It,” and “Billie Jean. ”"
Before the end of the show, Jackson made sure to include a few of the new songs from the HIStory album like ‘You Are Not Alone’ and ‘Earth Song’ before ending the show with his disco song ‘Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough. ’ In his final words to the audience, Jackson thanked the cheering audience and bowed before leaving the stage. However, it would not be possible for the legendary performer to get off the stage without an encore from the audience. The crowd was chanting ‘Michael! Michael!” for the better part of five minutes before the pop star came back to the stage for the final bow. At the end of the concert, Jackson united all the fans to sing along with him in the final song “Heal the World” where he was accompanied by children.
As the concert of the Bad Tour reached its conclusion people welled up and fifty thousand individuals smiled. In the same fashion, Jackson had gone around to show fans across the globe, from one generation to another why he was the King of Pop. The people of Anytown would be reminiscing about that special July 1st night for quite some time – for very good reason! Jackson had managed to give the audience an outstanding show of how to showcase dance and sing in equal measures among other things while giving the audience glimpses of his real life. The audience still charged when exiting the event, it was evident that fans were eager to have the icon back again for his next tour. What was however very evident was that one had to attend a Michael Jackson concert which was one of the greatest milestones in life and cement Michael Jackson as the king of pop.
