Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em World Tour
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| Tour by MC Hammer | |
| Associated album | Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em |
|---|---|
| Start date | June 15, 1990 |
| End date | August 3, 1991 |
| Legs | 4 |
| No. of shows | 144 |
| Supporting acts | En Vogue and Vanilla Ice |
| Box office | US$32 million |
| MC Hammer concert chronology | |
Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em World Tour is the first world tour by American recording artist MC Hammer to promote his album Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em.[1] It was sponsored by Pepsi-Cola and promoted by MTV. Beginning in Louisville, Kentucky, on June 15, 1990, it visited North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania, concluded in Paso Robles, California, on August 3, 1991. With a total of 144 shows, it grossed over $32 million.[2]
The tour was a box office success. Pollstar ranked Hammer at seventh on the Top 10 highest-grossing act to tour U.S. of 1990. Also, it received generally positive reviews by the critics while some praising Hammer's energetic stage performance. Several acts were selected as opening acts of the tour. The first shows in United States were opened After 7, Michel'le, and Oaktown's 3.5.7 and later by En Vogue and fellow rapper Vanilla Ice. The European leg was supported by Snap! and the last leg by the group B Angie B.
By June 1990, Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em become the first rap album to top the pop charts and by August it become the best-selling rap album of all time, surpassing License to Ill by Beastie Boys.[3] Initial plans to tour the tour stated that it would visit North America, Europe, Japan and Australia. However, more shows were added due the high demand of tickets. Hammer led a 30-member troupe that included a live band, 10 backup singers, 15 dancers and some of the flashiest fashions this side of Mardi Gras. On the first concerts, the show consisted on five acts, four opening acts: Troop, After 7, Michel'le and Oaktown's 3.5.7 and the main act MC Hammer.[4] The main artist performance was 80 to 90 minutes, with eight dancers and 10 backup singers. Fellow rapper Vanilla Ice also was selected as opening act until the end of November 1990, when he dropped out to do his own tour as a headliner.[5]
During the tour, Hammer traveled by private Boeing 727 jet, the touring group included fifteen dancers, a dozen background singers, eight security, seven musicians, three valets and two DJs.[6] According to some media outlets, rap fans had never seen anything of the magnitude of the Hammer Don't Hurt ’Em stadium gigs, which recalled Parliament-Funkadelic’s army-size traveling heyday in the 1970s.[7] The first North America leg received several sponsors, including MTV, Pepsi, and Kentucky Fried Chicken.[8] The European and Asia legs were sponsored by Pepsi.