J1 World Tour

The J1 World Tour () is the first concert tour by Taiwanese singer Jolin Tsai. The tour began on August 7, 2004, at Hongkou Football Stadium in Shanghai, China, and concluded on April 22, 2006, at Bren Events Center in Irvine, United States. Spanning 1 year and 9 months, the tour included 8 performances across 7 cities worldwide.

Background

On March 7, 2003, Tsai released her fifth studio album ''Magic'', which sold over 360,000 copies in Taiwan and more than 1.5 million copies across Asia. The album ranked second in annual sales in Taiwan for 2003 and earned Tsai the title of the best-selling female artist of the year. On February 27, 2004, Tsai released her sixth studio album ''Castle'' and announced plans to embark on her first world tour following the album's promotional period.

On July 8, 2004, Tsai revealed that the J1 World Tour would officially begin on August 7, 2004, at the Hongkou Football Stadium in Shanghai, China. Tsai expressed, "Shanghai is an international metropolis in China, and by starting this tour there, it signifies my efforts to reach the international market." Regarding the tour's name, she explained, "'J1' stands for the first Jolin concert tour. Future tours can be named 'J2', 'J3', 'J4'... and continue on from there."

Development

The Shanghai concert's stage was designed around the concept of a "Moonlight Treasure Box", with props, costumes, dancers, and musicians contributing to a total production cost of NT$30 million. Among the highlights were five large props funded by the organizers, totaling over HK$5 million. These included a "giant crystal chandelier" (costing HK$300,000), an "LED calculator color-changing elevator" (costing HK$220,000) that shifted colors in sync with the music, a "hydraulic fantasy shell" that allowed Tsai to transform into a "mermaid", a "high-altitude swing" that could elevate Tsai to three stories high, and a "360-degree spherical movie projector" capable of projecting animations and images onto a spherical screen.

The concert's costume designs were valued at HK$400,000 and included outfits such as "Space Princess", "Mermaid Princess", "Future Warrior", "Tropical Queen", and "Dancing Hierarch". Each costume was hand-sewn, with one set, the "Diamond Stockings", featuring over 8,000 Swarovski crystals sewn onto custom-made sheer fabric. Additionally, shoes, hairstyles, and makeup were customized for each outfit, and the costume changes were elaborate and intricate. To ensure perfect sound quality, the organizers imported the latest headset microphones from the United States, known for their precision in capturing audio. After years of training, Tsai's vocal and stage performances had become increasingly polished and confident.

For the Taipei concert, the stage, hardware, lighting, and costumes collectively cost NT$30 million. The Broadway-style stage, which cost NT$12 million to build, featured ten different set designs, including European-style pole lamps, sofas, ballet bars, full-length mirrors, and a 200-meter extension stage wrapped in light tubes. The secondary stage could rise up to three stories high, while the main stage included ten large LCD screens and thirty sets of special effects and animations, with lighting and sound design adding an additional NT$6 million to the overall production. The six costumes for the Taipei concert, valued at NT$3 million, included designs that incorporated Middle Eastern, Roman, Spanish flamenco, pirate, and hip-hop styles, such as the "Swarovski Crystal Outfit", "Modified Female Pirate Costume", "Yellow and White Chiffon Dress", "Black Temptation Outfit", "Blue, White, and Red Hat Outfit", and "Golden Hip-Hop Ensemble".

For the Beijing concert, the stage was designed around the concept of a "Diamond Base", featuring a central massive crystal chandelier that allowed Tsai to descend from the sky. The stage also included a rotating, diamond-shaped lift platform.

Concert synopsis

At the Shanghai concert, Tsai made her entrance standing on a crystal chandelier, wearing diamond stockings while performing "Prove It". She then transformed into both a "mermaid princess" and a seductive "catwoman", showcasing two contrasting sides of her persona—noble and wild. In addition to songs from her Sony era, such as "36 Tricks of Love", "Pirates", and "Fake Confess", Tsai also performed tracks from her Universal period. During "Don't Stop" and " I Know You're Feeling Blue", the audience joined in for a full-scale sing-along. The concert concluded with a performance of "Magic".

The Taipei concert opened with the sound of drumming, as Tsai, dressed in a Swarovski crystal outfit, slowly rose on the secondary stage in a dramatic pose with her right leg raised overhead. She then performed an intricate yoga dance to the rhythm of the music. Tsai moved across the extension stage to the main stage, kicking off the performance with three upbeat songs: "The Spirit of Knight", "Pirates", and "Magic". This was followed by two slower songs, "The Starter" and "The Smell of Lemon Grass", during which Tsai rose slowly on a J-shaped chandelier. When performing "Prove It", Show Lo appeared on stage to dance with her. Tsai then sang "Love Love Love", incorporating a sofa prop on stage and performing acrobatic lifts and flips with her dancers.

Next, Tsai transformed into a "catwoman" for "Good Cat", perfectly mimicking a cat's dance moves and playful gestures. She then performed a series of songs, including "36 Tricks of Love", "Smell of the Popcorn", and "Signature Gesture", as well as tracks from her Universal era such as "Show Your Love", "You Gotta Know", and "Don't Stop". The concert began winding down with "Say Love You", and after an encore from the audience, Tsai returned to perform "Rewind". During the chorus, Jay Chou joined her on stage for a duet, and the two performed a dance together. The concert concluded with a joint performance of "Prague Square", marking the end of the show.

Recording

On December 15, 2004, it was reported that Tsai was planning to release a live video album for the J1 World Tour. The album was expected to be released either by the end of the year or early the following year. It was revealed that the concert would be filmed using HDTV technology and produced in Japan. However, it was also mentioned that footage of Tsai performing with Jay Chou might be excluded due to a contractual dispute between Chou and Sony.

On September 13, 2005, Sony BMG announced that the live video album, titled ''J1 Live Concert'', would be released on September 23, 2005. The album featured Tsai's live performance from the J1 World Tour concert held on November 20, 2004, at the Chungshan Soccer Stadium in Taipei, Taiwan, along with one new song, "Paradise". This album was the first live concert video by a Chinese artist to be filmed using HDTV technology and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.

The album achieved commercial success, topping the video album sales charts in Taiwan's G-Music and Five Music for several weeks. It reached number one on the weekly video album sales chart of G-Music and Five Music for 12 and 5 consecutive weeks, respectively, and was awarded the number one spot on Five Music's year-end video album sales chart for 2005.

Set list

Shows

References

{{Jolin Tsai

2004 concert tours
2005 concert tours
2006 concert tours
Concert tours of China
Concert tours of Malaysia
Concert tours of Singapore
Concert tours of Taiwan
Concert tours of the United States
Jolin Tsai concert tours