For the first time in nearly a decade, Anohni will embark on a North American tour, this time backed by her group, the Johnsons. Last year, Anohni and the Johnsons released one of the most arresting albums of the year, My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross, which contained the single “Why Am I Alive Now?” whose music video was directed by Hunter Schafer. Rolling Stone dubbed the LP one of the 20 best albums of 2023. The tour dates mark Anohni’s first tour with the Johnsons since 2010.
“I am presenting a series of concerts in Mexico, the U.S., and Canada this fall,” Anohni said in a statement. “It is my first time touring since 2016, and first time with a band in 14 years. I feel like I want to sing for people, to affirm that these times are unprecedented, and to hold and express a sense of what’s really happening.”
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. local time on June 14.
Anohni spoke with Rolling Stone last year about some of the role models who have shaped her life as a musician and an activist. These include Butoh dancer Kazuo Ohno, singer Grace Jones, and activist Viva Ruize, among others.
Although the album cover for My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross featured trans activist Marsha P. Johnson — namesake for the Johnsons band — Anohni spoke to Rolling Stone about Johnson’s partner, Sylvia Rivera. “She founded a group called Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries in the early Seventies, right after Stonewall,” she said. “Sylvia was a fighter. At one point, she threatened to execute a puppy on the steps of City Hall to get attention to the gay-rights agenda in the early Seventies. And she put out a press release as a practically homeless person saying she was going to do that. I don’t think Sylvia actually did that, but it’s just an illustration of the fight within her, the grit. She had a bitter resilience and a calcified spine that we walked across. That’s like the name of the album, My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross — like Atlas, almost.”
Anohni and the Johnsons Tour Dates:
Sept. 24 – Mexico City, MX @ Teatro Metropólitan
Sept. 27 – Los Angeles, CA @ Walt Disney Concert Hall
Sept. 28 – Los Angeles, CA @ Walt Disney Concert Hall
Oct. 1 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater
Oct. 5 – Vancouver, BC @ The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
Oct. 7 – Seattle, WA @ The Paramount Theatre
Oct. 12 – Chicago, IL @ Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center
Oct. 15 – Toronto, ON @ Massey Hall
Oct. 18 – Brooklyn, NY @ BAM Howard Gilman Opera House
Oct. 19 – Brooklyn, NY @ BAM Howard Gilman Opera House