by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A&E Writer

ON THE RUN TOUR:
BEYONCE AND JAY-Z
SAFECO FIELD
July 30

The family that plays together stays together, right? It's looking that way for Beyonce and Jay Z. Music's coolest couple not only share a bed and two year-old daughter, but they now share the stage on a 16-city road outing that finds them performing their biggest hits in football, soccer and baseball stadiums around North America. The 'On the Run Tour: Beyonce and Jay-Z' kicked off June 25 at Miami's Sun Life Stadium to a capacity crowd and has since touched down in Cincinatti, Foxborough, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Toronto, East Rutherford, Atlanta, Houston, New Orleans, Dallas, Chicago and Winnipeg; the Seattle concert is third to the last show and the duo's only Northwest appearance.

Between them, the R&B queen and the hip-hop giant own 36 Grammys and have sold over 300 albums worldwide, and together have placed two singles on the charts, 'Drunk in Love' and 'Part II (On the Run),' both of which are expected to be on the set list at Safeco Field. Other songs that potentially will be played during the two-hour performance are 'Diva,' '99 Problems,' 'Halo,' 'If I Were a Boy,' 'Tom Ford,' 'Ring the Alarm,' 'Holy Grail,' 'Crazy in Love' and 'Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)'.

Beyonce and Jay Z are also philanthropists, raising money on this tour for the Shawn Carter Foundation, an organization that helps people facing socio-economic challenges to further their education through scholarship funds, annual college tours, study abroad experiences, counseling initiatives and holiday/toy drives. Something else to note is that both artists have also been outspokenly supportive of LGBT rights, from same-sex marriage to the coming out of fellow entertainers and athletes (Frank Ocean, Jason Collins, etc.). A year ago, Beyonce posted this message on Instagram, 'If you like it you should be able to put a ring on it,' followed by #Wewillunite4marriage equality! And Jay Z was one of the first rappers to weigh in on Gay marriage, declaring his approval shortly after President Obama spoke about it during a national address.

A very limited number of tickets remain for the concert as of press time, aside from a batch of premiere seating offered by resale. For tickets and more on the tour, go to www.beyonce.com/tour or www.livenation.com. Safeco Field personnel were very disorganized last summer when Paul McCartney appeared to a sold out audience. It took literally an hour to get from the front gate to my seat on the in-field. If you have field tickets, immediately inquire about wristbands upon entering the venue to save yourself time. Also, note that the baseball stadium has a retractable roof, so rain or shine the show will go on.

Light rail is recommended to/from the event. Seattle Gay News is hoping to attend the performance, so look for a possible review in next week's issue.

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