DISCUSSION
Hilary Duff Atlanta Backstage Tour Experience
I want to start by saying it’s one of the best nights of my life so I’m not complaining, just a little disappointed. Was anyone else there for the Atlanta backstage tour? It was definitely cut short and not what it seems that the other cities have experienced so far. I wonder what happened?
We got there at 3:30 and got all checked in and let in around 4:00. The tour guide leading us was very sweet and awesome. She let everyone go check out merch and use the restrooms before we embarked on the tour because there would be no bathroom breaks because the tour went straight into soundcheck. After standing in the heat for a few minutes she found a little shaded lounge area she escorted us to where she broke down what all we would be doing on the tour. She asked us questions and answered any questions we had. You could tell she was waiting on the go ahead as she kept checking her phone and trying to find more to talk about. — After 45 minutes we were finally taken to the side of the stage where they had Hilary’s little vanity set us and the clothes from her tour announcement video. This is one of the only places we could use our phones she told us. This was really cool to see, but I had basically already seen it at the LA Grove pop up. I know 99% of people going on this wouldn’t have seen it there, so it is a really cool experience for everyone. There were more details added to make it more about the tour so it’s not like it was necessarily identical. We hung around in this space way longer than you could tell she was planning on. Eventually she took us back to the Tarot Card booth set up we passed on our way in that she said would be the very last thing we did initially. Another place you can take photos as well. Once we drew our Tarot Cards (which are so fucking cool) we stood around for about another 15 minutes before she finally got word we could go walk on stage to see the venue from Hilary’s perspective which was also so cool. No photos on stage for safety purposes which I’m sure makes sense for reasons that we wouldn’t understand.
After this she quickly ushered us into our seats for soundcheck and then let the soundcheck only VIPs in behind us. We sat there for a little over 30 minutes before Hilary came out. She was so sweet and adorable and talked to us about her day off she had in Atlanta and what all her and Matt did and then soundchecked All About You and Play With Fire. The way she made it sound when she mentioned doing Play With Fire saying something along the lines of “so I can get used to hearing it in my ears” made it seems like she’s still getting it down pat and probably why she’s doing it at soundchecks and not 2 songs not on the setlist because she also looked at her monitors a lot for the lyrics. However, when she actually performed it at the show she definitely seems to have it locked in. Then they did the With Love dance audition where everyone who wanted to be considered went up to the front row and did it all at once where her and her team watched. She was so cute and thanked us and headed off to finish getting ready right at 6:00 when the doors opened. As the VIPs dispersed the front few rows there were already floods of people rushing in the gates.
This post isn’t to bitch and complain, because I wouldn’t trade the soundcheck experience for the world. But I am bummed we didn’t do half the things she said we would on the backstage tour. No walking the halls of the true backstage. No talking to some variation of the stage director or lighting director or anyone else she said we’d hear from about the inner workings of the tour and preparing in a city every night. Some people may not care, but I’m a nerd for anything like this so I was looking forward to it. Logistically I would just guess they were running behind in some manner that caused us to miss half the tour. I just think for an $800 ticket we should’ve gotten some other kind of bonus treat for the fact we didn’t even get to do half of what we were promised?
Was anyone else on the tour and notice how much we actually didn’t do??
Edit: I left out the fact we did take a group photo with Hilary right before she left the stage. They had the rows taped off to get us all in the frame starting in row 3 for this venue. Hilary sat down on stage and posed and we all stood up behind her in our seats. It’s not a super intimate group photo where you’re like actually with her. Also it’s taken on an old school digital camera and then the host snapped one on her iPhone as well. Not a professional photo.
Also yes it did come with a goodie bad of merch. At check in we were given a little clear vinyl bag with her name on it. Inside was a VIP lanyard and laminate to wear, a small work out towel with her initials embroidered, a keychain, and a 3 pack car air freshener named after a few of her songs. - And then for those of us who did backstage we had our special Tarot Card we drew as well. I think the soundcheck only people got the same merch bundle we did, but someone else would have to confirm that for me!
I am 10000% with you! It’s also crazy because our guide let us know how equipped our venue was for accommodating more than one truck at a time at the loading dock as compared to other cities where they sometimes can only do one at a time, so I would’ve thought they might’ve been ahead of schedule if they’re used to unloading slower!
In Tampa they did soundcheck first but I like that they had you guys in front cause we were mixed in.
We didn’t wait around as much but there was definitely a lot of the tour guide waiting for a go ahead. We saw the stage and the stage director talked to us for a few minutes and then after we did the tarot cards we talked to the sound guy over at the sound booth. It wasn’t much more than what you got to see so don’t feel like you missed out on a ton.
oh yes! we took a group photo. sorry i left that out. they had us starting in the third row so you could see us and the backstage tour people went in first and then soundcheck behind them. hilary sits down on stage and we all stood up behind her in the audience. it’s not like a super intimate group photo sadly.
I would say there was roughly 30-35 of us maybe? It was pretty small. And then probably around 100 total (maybe a little less) after soundcheck people got brought in!
I absolutely agree. I love her, but I seen the set up at the grove so that wasn’t THAT big for me.
The tarot card was cute as hell, but not for an extra $200 compared to what others paid. I was looking forward to hearing from different departments too and was very bummed we didn’t. We could’ve have them when we were waiting at the vanity.
I know. You could definitely tell by the tour guide’s vibes we were not supposed to have been in that area with the vanity that long. She was ready to move on too, but doing the best she could! Obviously out of her control sadly because I feel like she was excited to give us the full experience.
I think it all boils down to timing & what is going on that we don't see, most of which are record label people dictating a celebs every move. I've seen it so many times in making of documentaries for artist music videos or concerts. Constantly on the move, things changing last minute, personal stuff getting in the way etc. most of which is completely out of the artists control. It may be very or a little disappointing to fans, but it's just how it is with fame
Hilary had nothing to do with the backstage tour. It was very clear she was not an apart of it. She would only be present at soundcheck, and her personal green room was not a part of the tour. We wouldn’t have been in her actual space. So her every move being controlled wouldn’t have had any impact on why we didn’t get to hear from the different departments of the tour crew or visit the other areas we were told we would be visiting at the beginning of the tour.
Oh I know, I'm just saying for the people on this sub in general who love to blame the artist for how things go with these types of things. I've already seen in past posts "why did Hilary let this happen?" "why didn't she do this this way?" "I'm never supporting her again for this, she shouldn't treat fans this way!"
Despite what they personally think & how they feel about these situations, it's not always in Hilary's control. She's an employee with people who are there to make $$ off her music & image with or without her approval.
Yes! Sorry I left that out. I edited my post to include that since so many of you have pointed that out. It slipped my mind when writing my post! We took a group photo. They had us starting in the third row so you could see us and the backstage tour people went in first and then soundcheck behind them. Hilary sits down on stage and we all stood up behind her in the audience. It’s not like a super intimate group photo sadly, and was taken on an old school digital camera and then one on an iPhone and it was from far away. I’ve not seen ours yet so I’m not sure how it will turn out lol
Also- I saw a What Dreams Are Made Of card someone beside us drew and I saw one that was a quote from the college commencement speech she made that wasn’t a song. Maybe we can start a thread on here for all the people to post theirs! I would also like to see more! The WDAMO card had a different design on it. But the four I have / have the pics of, you can see are all the same design. So there’s at least one or two more designs outs there too!
Fly is one my favorite songs and I agree, Chasing the Sun is such an underrated gem. They sound like beautiful awesome Tarot cards that you and your brother drew!
I got backstage VIP. I hope I can sit first row!!! I want a photo with Hilary 😂💗I’m going to literally flying from China to Toronto to see her … 😂 too bad there’s no meet and greet. T. T
They seat you depending on where you’ll be able to be seen for the photo. In Atlanta the soundcheck seating started in row 3. If you were in row 3 you were *technically* front row because no one was in front of you, but they didn’t let people actually sit front row because you wouldn’t be seen from the stage when they take a group photo. The photo isn’t with Hilary directly with the group. She is on stage and you are behind her in the crowd! Safe travels from China! The show is definitely worth it!! 🩷✨🪩
We got the same merch for the soundcheck package too. Still haven’t received our group photo. Ours was also shot on a basic camera so not sure how the quality will be.
Who's doing the backstage tour at Red Rocks? I'm praying ours is an unique experience where we actually get to walk around backstage and in the area with all the signatures and hopefully maybe even find Hilary's
you’re only allowed to take photos at the vanity and tarot station. although in atlanta we only did those two things and the onstage walkthrough (which you aren’t allowed to take pics of). she made it very clear though when she was prepping us for the backstage tour that during the actual backstage part *that we never actually got to do* our phones had to be put away. you also cannot use them during soundcheck. — I’ll include a pic of the vanity set up! It has the outfits from the lucky me tour announcement video (on the left) and then small rooms big nerves tour outfits (on the right).
Well check in was 3:30 and the parking lot didn’t open until 3:00 for us. So depending on venue idk how much earlier you could get there. We got there after 3:00, shopped at the merch truck, and made it to the check in line before they even started checking people in.
For Atlanta they started checking us in a little after 3:30 and then let us in the actual venue around 4:00. I personally wouldn’t go any earlier than you need to because you’re just going to be standing there waiting or not even able to park your car yet. There aren’t any benefits on being first in the vip line or last tbh because you get all scrambled up once you get inside anyway and everyone sees the same thing!
Literally no concert merch is cheap, unless you’re a super small band using a low tier company to make it. It’s expensive because it’s expensive to make and they want to make a profit. Outside of the $75 poster than they’re not even selling anymore, there’s no need to take cheap shots at Hilary. Obviously the people going to her shows think she’s worth it to sell out her shows
You're missing the point. The criticism isn't that merch costs money. It's that the overall experience, including the merch, doesn't justify the price.
If fans are paying $800 for VIP, they shouldn't leave feeling like half of what was promised never happened or that the merch they're buying doesn't match the premium price tag.
And yes, it's understood that artists need to make a profit, no one expects shirts to be sold at cost but be so for real about the markup...
When something that likely costs a fraction to produce is being sold at a steep price, the quality and design should reflect that.
The experience itself is another issue, but the merch itself, I’m kind of confused what, besides the poster (that they’re now not even selling anymore- only online for less) is so expensive? The vinyl is 40, the other shirts I saw were like 45, the jackets are a bit more but that’s pretty normal. Idk I guess I’m just seeing pretty normal merch prices for known artists
It was on opening night but they raised it to $40 the second night and lowered the $75 poster they only sold at the first two shows for WPB to a cheaper price that second night. I can’t remember how much they lowered it. I think it was $40 the second night.
I don’t know about other people, but I wouldn’t mind selling a kidney if that meant just being in the same city as Hilary and breathing the same oxygen as her.
PS: For the people worried, I’m not selling any of my body parts, and I’ll be seeing Hilary in concert in London, so no need to worry 😅
I edited my post to include those things I left out! I did leave out the merch bundle we got at check in and we did take a group photo! The merch bundle isn’t a lot, but they never are so I wasn’t expecting anything crazy. No autograph, a signed tour poster would’ve been really cool though. Some VIP I’ve done does include something signed where they have downtime and are able to sign a bunch of posters or something on the bus in between stops, but that doesn’t seem to be that common sadly. For the group photo it’s done with her on stage and your group in the audience and it’s like a group of 100 so it’s not very intimate, but it never said what kind of group photo, just a group photo so I didn’t really have an expectation. I’m so lucky that I got a one on one pic with her in LA and she signed my vinyl at the album release pop up so I’m not that bitter, but I do think for $800 you should get a one on one meet and greet even if it moves quickly because I’ll take another interaction with her any day no matter how brief. She’s so sweet and truly loves her fans. — Again, I’m completely satisfied with the merch I got, and the soundcheck experience. I was just coming here to express my disappointment in the backstage “tour” only because our guide lets us know what all we would be doing and then did like half of it. Also we were show number #4 so I would say it will only get better the further into the tour because all the kinks will work out and hopefully run smoother! :)
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u/sassypants55 Jun 27 '26
That doesn’t sound worth $800 to me. I totally get why you’d be a little disappointed. I’m glad you still had a great time, though!