Jon Bon Jovi is deep in preparation for his massive 2026 “Forever Tour,” and he’s taking setlist inspiration from an unlikely source: Metallica. In a new interview, the Bon Jovi frontman revealed he personally consulted Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich about their “M72” tour and is “digging the concept” of playing entirely different shows on multi-night stands.
Speaking with Ian Danter of the U.K.’s Planet Rock, Jon Bon Jovi discussed the logistics for the upcoming tour, which includes a six-night, sold-out residency at New York’s Madison Square Garden. While he dismissed the idea of an in-the-round stage setup (“No. That much I think I know… I’ve seen a couple of diagrams [of the stage] that they’d like to go and build”), he confirmed he is deep in vocal and setlist rehearsals, working “two hours a day, four days a week.”
This intense preparation for the multi-night stops led him to research how Metallica handles their successful “No Repeat Weekend” format.
“The one thing that I am in control of… is the setlist,” Jon said. “I was looking to Metallica. And I talked to Lars. I said, ‘So let me get this straight. If you’re only doing ‘Master Of Puppets‘ on one night and ‘One‘ on one night, is the audience mad that they’re not there [the next night]?’ And he goes, ‘Nope. We have enough songs that it works.’ He goes, ‘And your catalog…’ And I went, ‘I’m digging that concept.'”
Jon clarified that while he might not adopt Metallica‘s exact model, his band’s extensive catalog gives him the freedom to ensure every show is unique.
“So not that we’re gonna do that, but I have enough songs and enough hits, I could do two separate entire shows and have hits on both sides,” he said. “So I’m having a lot of fun putting together shows that are multiple-night kind of shows.”
However, he noted that fans shouldn’t expect the band to perform any of their classic albums in full, a stunt they’ve rarely, if ever, pulled.
“We’ve done those in situations… but not a lot,” he said, citing one-off tapings. “But no, we’ve never performed Slippery [When Wet] in its entirety or New Jersey in its entirety or Keep The Faith in its entirety.”
The “Forever Tour” marks Bon Jovi‘s much-anticipated return to live touring and kicks off in July 2026.
Bon Jovi – “Forever Tour” 2026 Dates:
- July 07 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
- July 09 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
- July 12 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
- July 14 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
- August 28 – Edinburgh, UK – Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium
- August 30 – Dublin, Ireland – Croke Park
- September 04 – London, UK – Wembley Stadium
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