Donald Glover is saying goodbye to his Childish Gambino moniker on the road — and tapping into his earliest hits on the road. The musician launched his New World Tour on Sunday in Oklahoma City, where he played songs from his new album Bando Stone & the New World and incorporated songs he hasn’t touched in nearly a decade into his setlist.
Gambino played nearly the entirety of Bando Stone, opening his set with “H3@RT$ W3RE M3@NT T0 F7¥,” “Got to Be,” and “In the Night.” (He performed the Bando songs for the first time during a NYC show ahead of the album’s release last month.)
At the Paycom Center Sunday, he performed “To Be Hunted” from this year’s Atavista and “Witchy” from Kaytranada’s Timeless for the first time ever.
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Gambino dedicated the late part of his set to performing a slew of tracks from his 2011 debut album Camp that he hadn’t touched live since 2015.
After playing “Sober” from his 2014 EP Kauai, Gambino surprised the crowd by playing tracks “L.E.S.,” “Heartbeat,” and shortened versions of fan-favorites “Bonfire” and “Freaks and Geeks.”
Fans shared videos from the performance that showed Gambino playing songs from different parts of the arena, and showing off a futuristic light show. The musician has been teasing a live spectacle, telling Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1 that the LP was “made for arena rock” and meant to be played live.
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“If this live show isn’t the best live show you’ve ever seen by the first song, you can have your money back,” Glover said. “When you hear all these songs, you’ll know them. I’m going to add all these new songs. I’m going to add all this new technology, but the live event is what makes it valuable to me.”
Of course, some of Gambino’s greatest hits were still on the setlist. He played songs such as “Feels Like Summer,” “Me and Your Mama,” and “This Is America.” The musician also closed his set with “Redbone” before “Lithonia” for an encore.
The musician is set to bring his New World Tour in Kansas City on Monday before stopping in cities such as Boston, New York City, Tampa, Los Angeles, and Chicago through early October. Amaarae and Willow are joining the singer on the road as openers.
