Gorillaz Concerts Setlist

Gorillaz is an English virtual band. They were created in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and graphic artist Jamie Hewlett in London, United Kingdom. A virtual band is a band whose music is presented through animated characters instead of actual musicians. Gorillaz mostly plays alt rock or pop music.

The two creators, Albarn and Hewlett first met in 1990, when an interview with Albarn, who was then the lead vocalist in the pop-rock band “Blur”, was published in the same magazine Hewlett’s cartoons were printed, Deadline. Originally, they disliked each other quite a lot. This only changed when they happened to rent the same apartment in London in 1997. While roommates, they together came up with the idea of a virtual band. Watching the American music cable channel MTV was what gave them the inspiration, as they thought a cartoon band would fit perfectly on the TV channel.

Originally under the name “Gorilla”, they recorded their first single, “Ghost Train”, but it only got released in October 2001, on the B-side of their song “Rock the House”. They spent 3 developing the project until the release of their debut album, the self-tilted “Gorillaz”, in March 2001. Hewlett based the visual design on his rejected comic strip “The 16s”. He created five characters, vocalist 2-D, lead guitarist Paula Cracker, bassist Murdoc Niccals, keyboardist Noodle, and drummer Russel Hobbs. Most of the vocals were provided by Albarn, who is the voice of the main character, lead singer 2-D.

The album became quite a success, peaking at the #3 spot on the OCC chart in the UK, and at the #14 spot on the famous Billboard 200 chart over in the US. As result, they got to go on an international live Gorillaz concert tour. Evidently, this required some creativity for a virtual band. They put together a line-up of touring musicians, as well as impressive visuals of the animated characters that played behind them on giant screens. Albarn has been the main performer in the touring band since the beginning.

Gorillaz has released 7 studio albums so far during their career. The best selling one among them is “Demon Days” from May 2005, which sold around 8 million copies worldwide. A new Gorillaz album is set to be released in February 2023, with the title “Cracker Island”.

The biggest hits in the Gorillaz setlist to date are “Clint Eastwood” (2001), “Feel Good Inc.” (2005), DARE (also 2005), and “On Melancholy Hill” (2010). They have been recognized as the most successful virtual band of all time by the Guinness Boook of World Records with over 27 million of their records sold cumulatively over the years. Check when the next Gorillaz concert is playing near you on our page above.