Anyone who’s been following Louis Tomlinson’s Faith In the Future World Tour will agree that it’s been a whirlwind of a year. Beginning in Uncasville, Connecticut, on the 26th of May 2023, Louis has performed in many different venues all over the United States and Europe, and will conclude his current leg in the UK in Birmingham on the 18th of November 2023. The tour will continue to Australia and Latin America in 2024.
The Faith In the Future album was released on the 11th of November 2022, with Louis announcing the album’s release date and track information on August 31st. The album boasted three singles: Bigger Than Me, Silver Tongues, and Written All Over Your Face, which were all highly anticipated by fans.
The album debuted at no.1 in the UK album charts, the first time this had happened for Louis as a solo artist. Louis commented that this was ‘an absolute honour.’ The album also reached no.1 in Argentina, Belgium, and Spain, and reached no. 5 in the United States. With such a strong start to the album release, it’s no wonder that Louis exudes confidence as he entertains crowds of thousands of fans. As he effortlessly has the crowd screaming the lyrics to his songs, it’s hard to believe Louis is the same person who once felt as if his singing wasn’t sellable, as he stated several times in his documentary All Of Those Voices. Perhaps it’s this initial vulnerability that keeps Louis humble, as can be seen from any of the many speeches he makes during his live shows:
“Athens, how we doing? I wanna talk about my album Faith In The Future for a second. That album means the absolute world to me. Like I said earlier, these shows don’t happen without you guys, but also… I need a fanbase who are willing to listen, and it feels to me that whatever I do, whatever I love, you guys are here for me and fucking love you for that. Thank you very much.” (Athens show, 20.9.23)
As the tour progresses, thousands of fan continue to show up to the shows, some camping for days to ensure a good spot for Louis’ infamous barricade run, and even more watch the many live streams on platforms such as Instagram, commenting on social media about the highlights of the show as they watch.
The setlist for the tour was originally announced to have 22 songs, as can be seen below:
However, as Louis has grown in confidence, he’s taken to changing certain songs within the setlist, adding in fan favourite Drag Me Down in the place of Night Changes and swapping Chicago for Paradise, as well as occasionally adding in 7 by Catfish And The Bottlemen. The changes have sparked much debate, causing fans to wonder why the changes only happen at certain shows and leaving the audience guessing which songs they will hear when their shows finally come around.
No Stunts Magazine asked fans to share their experiences of the tour so far and share any thoughts for future shows and they certainly rose to the challenge. When discussing the set list, everyone responded that as much as they loved the original song plan, the idea that there could be a new song at any given time added excitement. @Luvyouforthat, a fan since 2020, stated that ‘I love that he is changing it as he wants to. It makes each concert that much more special.’ Another fan, @Shreyaphadke97 responded that they ‘just feel lucky to be able to listen to whateer Louis sings. I don’t care if he sings the shark song. I will still cry and be proud of him.’ As much as most people find the Shark song annoying, I’m sure we can all agree that if anyone can make it sound decent, it would be Louis!
There has been some speculation over what has motivated Louis to change up the setlist at some shows but not others, with ideas ranging from Louis’ mood, to responding to X (formally known as Twitter) trends. It has even been suggested that Louis could possibly be choosing special shows or moments to change the setlist in order to draw attention to that date or show. This is certainly an interesting idea, but whether Louis has a reason for changing the setlist or just does it to match his mood, there’s no denying that fans are loving the results!
Another factor that arose when fans were discussing the setlist was the cover songs that Louis has performed on this tour. As can be seen from above, Louis has performed several One Direction songs, 505 by Arctic Monkeys, and 7 by Catfish And The Bottlemen. When No Stunts Magazine asked fans which of these covers were their favourite, the results were overwhelmingly split between three – 505, 7, and Drag Me Down, with 505 in the clear lead by several votes. @Stacemcw chose 7 as their favourite cover, arguing that ‘it’s an incredible song and showcases his vocal range.’ Team 505 put forward similar arguments, with @Satellitelover03 stating that ‘He sounds so good singing it! I like it better than the original.’ Lastly, team Drag Me Down suggested that the memories held by the popular One Direction track was why this cover was the superior one, with @Lovelovemelou stating that ‘It’s clearly him reminiscing about the One Direction days and Harry.’ No matter which team you’re on, we can all agree Louis performs these songs amazingly. As much as we love Louis changing the setlist now and then, we hope these songs don’t disappear on us.
While Louis has been on tour since May, there are still many shows to go before the tour is over, meaning that there is potential for more set changes and surprises. We asked the fans which songs they wished to hear in upcoming shows and, while most of them reiterated that they were happy for Louis to sing anything, nearly everyone who responded to the questions stated they hoped to hear Paradise live. We then asked fans which songs they would pick to be added to the setlist, nearly everyone responded with Only The Brave, the final song from Louis’ debut album Walls. Apart from Only The Brave, fans also hoped for Habit and Defenceless from the Walls album, as well as No Control from Louis’ One Direction days. If any of these songs were added to any future shows, we’re sure the response would be positively manic!
Lastly, we asked fans if they had any predictions for what might happen at future shows and, not surprisingly, the majority of the responses were hopes that one of the other One Direction members would come to watch one of Louis’ shows. Of course, it’s not surprising that most of these predictions came with the hope that Harry would be the One Direction member to come to a show – I’m sure the internet would break if this did happen! Another popular prediction was that Louis would play guitar on stage before the end of the tour. This hasn’t happened yet on any show that Louis has done so far, but we can only imagine that Louis would look like a God if he sang and played guitar. Whether all or none of these predictions come to pass, we know that each and every show that’s left on this tour will be amazing and immensely enjoyed by all. As @Ihopetheywin28 stated in their response to our question: ‘He is the mastermind and I am here for the ride.’
*picture from @flickeroyals*
