Jon Bon Jovi has revealed that he took advice from Metallica and will be following their approach to his band’s upcoming 2026 tour.
Bon Jovi announced a run of UK and Ireland stadium shows and a New York residency for the summer of 2026 last month. The band then added further dates due to unprecedented demand.
Now in a new interview with Planet Rock, the band’s frontman said after speaking to Lars Ulrich, their tour is likely to be similar to Metallica’s ‘M72’ tour, which sees the metal veterans playing two completely unique “no repeat” sets over two nights in most cities.
Jon Bon Jovi said: “The one thing that I am in control of, the only thing I’m in control of [is the setlist], because at this point, because I do [rehearsals of] two hours a day, four days a week of sets, of shows.
“I was looking to Metallica. And I talked to Lars. I said: ‘So let me get this straight. If you’re only doing ‘Master Of Puppets’ on one night and ‘One’ on one night, is the audience mad that they’re not there [on one of the nights]?’ And he goes: ‘Nope. We have enough songs that it works.’”
He continued, “[Lars] goes, ‘And your catalog…’ And I went, ‘I’m digging that concept.’ So not that we’re gonna do that, but I have enough songs and enough hits, I could do two separate entire shows and have hits on both sides. So I’m having a lot of fun putting together shows that are multiple-night kind of shows.”
You can view Bon Jovi’s forthcoming tour dates, which include three shows at Wembley Stadium, here and purchase any remaining tickets here.
Last year, Bon Jovi released their 16th album ‘Forever’, a celebration of the band’s 40th anniversary and a follow-on from the Disney+ documentary film Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story.
Last month (October 24), they released a new version of ‘Forever’ featuring reinterpretations of the album’s songs with collaborations from Bruce Springsteen, Avril Lavigne, Robbie Williams, Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson, Ryan Tedder, Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott and more. The new tour dates come in support of this release.
Metallican meanwhile will continue their ‘M72’ tour well into 2026. You can purchase any remaining tickets here.
