Rihanna tour taps Ke$ha for ‘Last Girl on Earth’ summer concerts

For the first time in about two years, R&B bad girl Rihanna is geared up for a headlining tour of North America. The 25-date Last Girl on Earth Tour begins July 2 at White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, WA, and wraps up nearly eight weeks later on August 25 at the United Center in Chicago, IL.

Along the way, the “Rude Boy” singer will perform sets on July 9 at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, CA; July 21 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA; August 8 at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA; August 12 at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY; and August 22 at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, MI.

Rihanna will also push her tour further north for a handful of Canada concert dates. Gigs booked north of the border are July 4 at General Motors Place in Vancouver, BC; July 6 at Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, AB; August 5 at Molson Canadian Amphitheatre in Toronto, ON; and August 7 at Bell Centre in Montreal, QC.

Presales for the late summer venture begin April 7, with the first public onsales following on April 9 in Miami, FL, and Wantagh, NY. A larger block of public onsales follows on April 10 for about a dozen markets on the tour. More details will be available through Rihanna’s official Web site.

The Last Girl on Earth Tour will receive support from two other young female artists who have been making their mark on the charts this year. Party girl Ke$ha will step in as the tour’s main support, while up-and-coming female rapper Nicki Minaj will serve as the opener throughout the late summer outing.

Rihanna will be on the road promoting her fourth studio album “Rated R.” Released in November 2009, the effort debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Though her first-week sales of 181,000 probably could have snagged her the top spot in any other week, Rihanna’s Thanksgiving week release pitted her against heavy competition from Susan Boyle (No. 1), Andrea Bocelli (No. 2) and Adam Lambert (No. 3).

The summer jaunt is Rihanna’s latest headlining stint since the 2007-2008 Good Girl Gone Bad Tour, which booked the Barbados-born singer into North American arenas for the first time. Her first-ever tour in 2006 primarily featured club and theater dates in the U.S. and Canada, though she played some overseas arena shows.

Since her 2007-2008 run, Rihanna has mainly toured as a supporting act. Her last major road commitment was as a special guest on select dates of Kanye West’s acclaimed Glow in the Dark Tour in 2008.

Rihanna itinerary:
(Dates are subject to change.)