Evanescence frontwoman Amy Lee has never been shy about championing the women around her in heavy music, and in a new sit-down with “The Mistress Carrie Podcast” she doubled down on that, calling the bond between women in rock and metal a constantly expanding force she’s proud to be part of.
Lee kicked things off with a chart flex that summed up the point perfectly:
“We [Evanescence] had… I forget which chart — I guess it was the Active Rock or whatever, we had the Number One slot. And The Pretty Reckless had Number Two. And, I was like, ‘How bada** is that?’ Like, absolutely ruling it. Women on top. It’s really cool.”
From there she dug into what that community actually means to her, stressing that solidarity and a high bar go hand in hand:
“I need the women in my life. I love the sisterhood, and the rock and metal sisterhood is amazing because it’s an ever-growing group. It really is. But we all support and push each other, because we want there to be more open-mindedness and inclusivity in general and all of those things. We all also have a really high standard. If you’re gonna make it that far, it can’t be about being a woman. That’s not gonna get you there. It’s gotta be you’re really hardworking and talented. Like they say in New York, the proof is in the puddin’, right? So you just gotta bring it. That’s the way to make it work.”
That philosophy is baked into Evanescence‘s current run behind Sanctuary, the album that arrived on June 5. Lee pointed to the tour’s female-stacked bill as a living example of the sisterhood in action:
“This tour has been such a cool moment and statement for that exact thing, women supporting women, women in heavy music. We’ve got the Nova Twins and Spiritbox on this tour with us. We’ll have Poppy and the Nova Twins, and then also K.Flay [who features on Evanescence‘s ‘Fight Like A Girl‘ single] on the next couple [of runs]. So we’re doing ‘Fight Like A Girl‘ every night and having all the girls get up on one song, and it is just the most… It’s just the sweetest moment. It really is.”
She also pushed back on an old narrative that once pitted women in music against one another, arguing that visibility is the best way to bury the myth for good:
“How cool is it, too, to show the support? Because I really feel like one of the tools that used to be used in not-so-distant history to keep us down was always sort of show and joke about this idea that we’re all fighting each other behind the scenes, that there can only be one and catfights and that whole ridiculous ‘we’re just gonna try to tear each other down’ thing, which is just not how it is. And the more, I think, women see that that’s not how it is, the more accepted they can imagine that they will be when they get here.”
Evanescence launched their 2026 North American tour on June 11 at the iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, Florida, with that leg running through an August 2 stop in Clarkston, Michigan. A European tour follows from early September into early October, before the band circles back stateside for a one-off show at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado on October 26. Spiritbox and Nova Twins are opening the North American dates; Poppy supports across Europe, with Nova Twins joining outside the U.K.; and K.Flay takes the opening slot for the U.K. shows as well as the Red Rocks finale.
In keeping with the tour’s spirit, Evanescence has teamed up with PLUS1 so that $1/£1/€1 from every ticket sold goes toward organizations providing humanitarian aid and medical relief to people in need worldwide.
As for Sanctuary itself, the album is available as a digital release, standard CD, deluxe CD and limited-edition box set, with a double vinyl edition due September 4. The deluxe CD, sold exclusively through the Evanescence store, comes with a Blu-ray featuring a “Live In São Paulo” concert, a documentary from the band’s 2023 South America tour, and a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the “Who Will You Follow” video. The deluxe vinyl is likewise a webstore exclusive.
Remaining Evanescence 2026 World Tour Dates:
North America
- Jul 8 – Tinley Park, IL @ Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
- Jul 9 – Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
- Jul 11 – North Little Rock, AR @ Simmons Bank Arena
- Jul 12 – Kansas City, MO @ MORTON Amphitheater
- Jul 14 – Albuquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater
- Jul 15 – Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
- Jul 17 – Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
- Jul 20 – Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
- Jul 22 – Ridgefield, WA @ Cascades Amphitheater
- Jul 23 – Auburn, WA @ White River Amphitheatre
- Jul 25 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
- Jul 28 – St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
- Jul 30 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
- Aug 1 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
- Aug 2 – Clarkston, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
Europe & United Kingdom
- Sep 8 – Leeds, UK @ First Direct Arena
- Sep 10 – Manchester, UK @ Co-op Live
- Sep 11 – Birmingham, UK @ Utilita Arena Birmingham
- Sep 13 – London, UK @ The O2
- Sep 16 – Brussels, Belgium @ Forest National
- Sep 18 – Paris, France @ Accor Arena
- Sep 19 – Frankfurt, Germany @ Congress Center Messe Frankfurt – Festhalle Frankfurt
- Sep 20 – Dortmund, Germany @ Westfalenhallen Dortmund
- Sep 22 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Ziggo Dome
- Sep 23 – Hamburg, Germany @ Barclays Arena
- Sep 25 – Berlin, Germany @ Velodrom
- Sep 26 – Munich, Germany @ Olympiahalle
- Sep 28 – Bologna, Italy @ Unipol Arena
- Sep 29 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Hallenstadion Zurich
- Oct 1 – Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Olimpic Badalona
- Oct 2 – Madrid, Spain @ Palacio Vistalegre
- Oct 4 – Lisbon, Portugal @ MEO Arena
Tour Finale
- Oct 26 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
