Keyshia Cole Announces ‘The Way It Is 20th Anniversary Tour’ 

Keyshia Cole is celebrating the 20th anniversary of her breakthrough debut album, The Way It Is, with a 25-date arena tour headed to North American and European venues. The tour is  presented by AEG Presents and Free Lunch.

Cole aka the “Princess of Hip-Hop Soul” will be joined on tour by Tink, Wale, Fridayy, and Jeremih on select dates. Lil’ Kim will take the stage in Lincoln, CA, as well as on all UK & Europe dates. Jadakiss and T-Pain will be featured as special guests in Brooklyn, New York, and Greensboro, North Carolina.

The anniversary trek begins July 1 at CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, with North American dates running through Aug. 8 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Stops in between include  Brooklyn, Atlanta, New Orleans, Detroit, and Houston.

The European portion of the tour starts Sept. 19 at Adidas Arena in Paris and features gigs in Amsterdam, London, Manchester, and Birmingham, UK. 

This week’s announcement from AEG notes that Cole is “known for her powerful vocals, emotional storytelling, and raw authenticity” and that her debut album features her signature blend of vulnerability and strength.

“I’m so grateful to be celebrating The Way It Is 20 years later with the fans who have been with me since day one,” says Cole. “This album changed my life, and being able to take it on the road — from city to city, country to country — is truly a full circle moment, and blessing.”

Fans can get exclusive access to a presale for the North American dates for the tour by pre-ordering the vinyl of The Way It Is at https://www.keyshiacoleofficial.com. This is the first time the album will be released on vinyl since its original 2005 release and will be available on black vinyl and also on limited edition Rose Garden Pink Translucent color vinyl via A&M/UMe. The vinyl will be released on June 20, the day before the album’s 20th anniversary. 

Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday, April 25 at 10 a.m. local time. 

Cole is managed by The Santiago Firm and she’s represented by Independent Artist Group’s Joshua Rittenhouse and Kyle Carter. 

Highlights from reports submitted for Cole to Pollstar Boxoffice include an April 12, 2024, show at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans that sold 10,745 tickets and grossed $1.02 million. The show was promoted by Black Promoters Collective LLC.

“The Way It Is 20th Anniversary” Tour Dates:

Tuesday, July 1                      Baltimore, MD                         CFG Bank Arena⇎♦

Wednesday, July 2              Philadelphia, PA                  Wells Fargo Center★♦

Saturday, July 5                  Chicago, IL                        United Center★♦

Sunday, July 6                    Cleveland, OH                    Rocket Arena★♦

Wednesday, July 9              Toronto, ON                      Coca-Cola Coliseum ★♦

Thursday, July 10               Detroit, MI                        Little Caesars Arena★♦

Saturday, July 12                Brooklyn, NY                      Barclays Center★♦

Sunday, July 13                  Newark, NJ                        Prudential Center★♦

Wednesday, July 16             Greensboro, NC                  First Horizon Coliseum★♦

Thursday, July 17               Birmingham, AL                  Legacy Arena at the BJCC★♦

Saturday, July 19                Tampa, FL                         Amalie Arena★♦

Sunday, July 20                  Hollywood, FL                    Hard Rock Live★♦

Tuesday, July 22                 Atlanta, GA                        State Farm Arena★♦

Wednesday, July 23             New Orleans, LA                 Smoothie King Center★♦

Friday, July 25                    Houston, TX                      Toyota Center★♦

Saturday, July 26                Fort Worth, TX                   Dickies Arena★♦

Thursday, July 31                   Oakland, CA                           Oakland Arena♥$

Friday, August 1                     Las Vegas, NV                        T-Mobile Arena♥$

Saturday, August 2                 Lincoln, CA                             The Venue at Thunder Valley♥✝

Friday, August 8                     Los Angeles, CA                     Crypto.com Arena♦

Friday, September 19             Paris, FR                                 Adidas Arena✝

Sunday, September 21           Amsterdam, NL                       AFAS Live✝

Tuesday, September 23         London, UK                             The O2✝

Thursday, September 25        Manchester, UK                      AO Arena✝

Friday, September 26           Birmingham, UK                 Utilita Arena Birmingham✝

★ Tink

♦ Wale

✝ Lil’ Kim

♥ Fridayy

$ Jeremih

⇎ SWV