“Speak to me with gracefulness…”
The 2025 Tour has been a great success. As it concludes, we take a moment to reflect and cut through the noise by addressing some unfounded myths with the facts.
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The Daily Roxette presents ROX40
The Daily Roxette presents ROX40
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ROXETTE LIVE! 2025+2026 >
The World Tour that proved the magic never left…
67 concerts. 19 countries. Over 575,000 Tickets Sold. The extraordinary Roxette Catalogue back where it belongs…LIVE ON STAGE!
When Per walked onto the stage in Cape Town on 26 February 2025, nobody really knew what would happen next.
Per knew what he wanted. He wanted to perform his own Roxette songs again. He wanted to celebrate the extraordinary catalogue he created together with Marie Fredriksson, surrounded by the musicians who helped bring so much of that music to life. It was that simple.
For the fans, it was more complicated…
Some were excited. Some were curious. Some were cautious. Others were firmly against the idea of “Roxette” returning to the stage without Marie. That reaction was understandable. Marie wasn’t simply the voice on a collection of famous songs. She was one half of Roxette, an irreplaceable performer whose voice, strength, and personality helped turn Per’s songs into global pop history.
Nothing could change that. Nothing ever will.
But let’s be clear here, Per’s ambition was never to rewrite Roxette’s history or pretend that nothing had happened. It was to keep the music alive, perform the songs he’d written and celebrate the success he and Marie built together.
Almost eighteen months later the final concert was held yesterday in Spiez, Switzerland, the answer is now clear…
Roxette Live 2025/2026 has been a well-deserved success.
From Sweden to the World…
The Tour began with two sold-out concerts in South Africa before travelling to Australia for nine shows during March 2025. More than 75,000 Australian and South African fans attended that opening section of the Tour, with reviewers praising both the emotional heart of the production and the energy of the performances. The response was immediate.
At the opening concert in Cape Town, Lena Philipsson faced perhaps the most difficult first night imaginable. She wasn’t walking onto that stage as Marie’s replacement, and she wisely never attempted to behave like one. She was there as a guest vocalist, taking on some of the greatest and most recognisable female vocals in pop history.
By the end of the night, much of the uncertainty had disappeared.
Reviews from Australia highlighted Lena’s vocal range, confident stage presence and ability to connect with the audience. In Perth, fans were reportedly on their feet almost immediately. In Sydney, the atmosphere was described as buzzing from the opening songs, with Lena quickly winning over the crowd.
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The first European leg followed in summer 2025, moving through festivals and outdoor venues across Norway, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Finland and Sweden.
Then came the major European arena Tour in November and December: Budapest. Prague. Helsinki. Copenhagen. Valencia. Barcelona. Berlin. Hamburg. Frankfurt. Düsseldorf. London. Stockholm. Oslo.
The fully packed O2 Arena in Prague erupted. Wembley Arena welcomed Roxette back for the first time in a decade. Stockholm brought the songs home. Night after night, thousands of people stood together and sang words they’d known for much of their lives, celebrating the Roxette songs and of course the 40th Anniversary.
By the end of 2025, Per, Lena and the Roxette Band had performed 43 concerts around the world with more than 355,000 tickets sold!
What began as a brave and uncertain return had grown into a genuine international Tour.
And they weren’t finished…
South America welcomes Roxette Back
In April 2026, the Tour reached South America for concerts in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Chile.
For Roxette, South America had never been just another market on a Tour itinerary. The connection between the music and Roxette’s South American audience has always been enormous, emotional and incredibly loud. Nothing had changed.
The concert at Buenos Aires’ Movistar Arena sold out, with an enthusiastic audience welcoming Lena warmly and singing throughout the night. Reviews across the continent described concerts filled with nostalgia, emotion, dancing and some very loud participation from the crowds.
The songs had travelled across another generation, but they still belonged to everyone in the room.
From South America, the Tour returned to Europe for its third and final European leg, celebrating Roxette’s 40th Anniversary across Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, the Czech Republic and Finland.
By the time the final note rang out last night in Spiez, this remarkable journey reached 67 concerts across 19 countries, and we can now also confirm that over 575,000 tickets were sold across the whole Tour!
The Lena Question
Let’s address the obvious. The announcement that Lena Philipsson would join Per and the Roxette Band received a mixed response. Of course it did.
But Lena never arrived pretending to be Marie.
She didn’t imitate her mannerisms, copy her clothes or attempt a karaoke recreation of the original recordings. She brought her own voice, her own humour and her own personality to the stage while treating the songs, and Marie’s place within them, with respect.
That distinction mattered.
At Wembley Arena, any instinct to compare the two singers quickly became irrelevant. Lena was confident, powerful and charismatic, honouring the songs without attempting to impersonate the woman who originally made them famous.
Even more cautious mainstream reviews recognised the strength of her performance. The Times newspaper in London highlighted her vocal ability and stage presence, particularly during songs including ‘Wish I Could Fly‘ and ‘It Must Have Been Love‘.
Was everybody persuaded? Of course not…
Unfortunately, and rather unfairly, some fans had decided even before the first concert that Roxette should never appear on a stage again. No performance, however strong, was going to change that.
But the reaction from the fans who actually attended these concerts has been overwhelmingly positive. That matters far more.
Lena was given an almost impossible job. Yet she approached it with courage, professionalism, warmth and a clear understanding of what the music means to the audience.
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She didn’t replace Marie. She helped Per bring his songs back to celebrate Roxette.
Hit After Hit After Hit
At the centre of the Tour was one of pop music’s strongest catalogues.
Depending on the venue and Tour leg, the setlists shifted between full arena concerts and shorter festival performances. The backbone remained unmistakably Roxette.
‘The Big L.‘ opened the show before the opening run of ‘Sleeping In My Car‘, ‘Dressed For Success‘ and ‘Crash! Boom! Bang!‘ immediately pushed the audience onto its feet. From there came the giant ballads, the guitar-driven pop songs and the deeper catalogue choices…
‘Wish I Could Fly’
‘Fading Like A Flower‘
‘She’s Got Nothing On (But The Radio)‘
‘How Do You Do!‘
‘Dangerous‘
‘Joyride‘
‘Spending My Time‘
‘Listen To Your Heart‘
‘The Look‘
Along the way, the Tour also created space for songs including ‘Opportunity Nox‘, ‘Vulnerable‘, ‘Almost Unreal‘, ‘Stars‘, ‘Milk And Toast And Honey‘, ‘Church Of Your Heart‘, ‘Queen Of Rain‘ and, during the earlier concerts, an epic full album version of ‘Things Will Never Be The Same‘.
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‘It Must Have Been Love‘ became the emotional centre of the concerts. Introduced and performed in Marie’s memory, it provided a moment where the celebrations briefly slowed and everyone remembered the person who could never be replaced.
Then came the singalongs. The whistles during ‘Joyride‘. The guitars during ‘Listen To Your Heart‘. The opening riff of ‘The Look‘.
Thousands of voices taking over songs that have become part of their own lives.
Behind Per and Lena stood a brilliant Roxette Band: Clarence Öfwerman and Jonas Isacsson brought a direct connection to the original Roxette story, joined by Christoffer Lundquist, Magnus Börjeson, Magnus “Norpan” Eriksson and the enchanting Dea Norberg. Together, they gave the Tour its muscle, precision and unmistakable live Roxette sound.
This wasn’t a cheap nostalgia production built around backing tracks and a logo.
It was a proper band playing proper songs. And they sounded phenomenal!
The North American Disappointment
The planned North American leg should have provided another major chapter.
Live Nation USA removed the Tour from the schedule, citing logistical difficulties and hugely increased touring costs. Per, Lena and the Roxette Band expressed their disappointment, particularly as the United States remains Roxette’s largest streaming market. They’ve also made clear that they still hope to perform there in the future.
The disappointment for North American fans is real and shouldn’t be dismissed.
But it shouldn’t be allowed to rewrite the story of the entire Tour either.
One cancelled leg doesn’t erase 67 concerts across four continents. It doesn’t empty the sold-out arenas, silence the festival crowds or remove more than 575,000 purchased tickets.
North America is a missing chapter. It isn’t the whole book.
It wasn’t a “Comeback” or “Reinvented Roxette 2.0”…
The laziest words to use for this Tour would be “comeback” or “Roxette 2.0” (it would be 3.0 actually) . These don’t describe it…
This wasn’t Roxette returning. That could never happen, and the Tour was strongest when it acknowledged that truth rather than trying to hide from it.
Things will never be the same. They weren’t supposed to be…
Instead, Per found a respectful and convincing way to return his own Roxette songs to the live stage. Lena courageously accepted the challenge of singing them without attempting to take ownership of a history that wasn’t hers. The Roxette Band treated the catalogue with the energy and musicianship it deserved.
Most importantly, audiences around the world turned up. They bought tickets. They travelled. They sang. They cried. They danced. They filmed far too much of “The Look” on their phones. They welcomed the songs back.
Per’s original ambition was simple. He missed performing his own Roxette songs and wanted to celebrate the enormous body of work he created together with Marie. That ambition has been achieved.
The Tour has introduced the catalogue to new audiences, reunited lifelong fans and reminded the world just how many extraordinary songs Roxette produced.
It has also shown that celebrating the Roxette music in a different way doesn’t diminish Marie’s legacy. It strengthens it.
Every packed arena, every festival singalong and every emotional performance of ‘It Must Have Been Love‘ has reminded people why Marie mattered and why the music she created with Per continues to mean so much.
The Joyride continued… and we’re all Magic Friends.
When the Tour reached its final destination in Switzerland, Per, Lena and the Roxette Band can look back on something genuinely special.
A Tour that began under enormous scrutiny became a global celebration. A vocalist facing an impossible challenge won over audiences around the world. A catalogue that some believed had left the stage forever came roaring back to life. And a songwriter achieved exactly what he set out to do…
Per brought his own Roxette songs back to the people who love them. Marie remained at the heart of every single concert. Lena helped carry the music forward without attempting to replace the person who came before her. The Roxette Band delivered hit after hit. The audiences did the rest.
Roxette Live 2025/2026 wasn’t an experiment. It wasn’t an imitation. It was a celebration, and it was a success.
Things will never be the same. But the music remains, the legacy is alive, and the Joyride continued. Spectacularly.
“So dear friends, it’s almost time to wrap up the Roxette Summer Tour 2026.
This upcoming weekend we’ll do two fab festivals in Switzerland (Arbon + Spiez) then it’s time out for a while.
But don’t worry, folks, the band + Lena + me haven’t had this much fun for many many years
so the Roxette trek will most likely continue big time next year! 
I’m truly blessed having so many great ppl around me not forgetting YOU
who come to the shows with all that wonderful positive energy that’s totally contagious!
Keep it up! Thx.”
Per Gessle, Roxette Official Facebook, 27th August 2026
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Big Thanx to:
PER GESSLE ★ LENA PHILIPSSON ★ THE ROXETTE BAND ★ WARNER MUSIC SWEDEN
Research + Article by:
Thomas Lawrie-Clark ★ Thomas Evensson ★ Kai-Uwe Heinze
Photography by:
Thomas Evensson ★ Kai-Uwe Heinze ★ Thomas Lawrie-Clark
All other photographs via Roxette / Lena Philipsson Official Facebook
Copyright remains with original owners.
Header Image + Graphics by:
Thomas Lawrie-Clark
★ The authors:
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★ Publishing date:
August 30th, 2026
This article was posted here on TDR in these categories:
TDR:Editorial, TDR:Exclusive, TDR:Live.
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