LIVE REVIEW: PITBULL + LIL JON BRING THE I’M BACK TOUR TO SPAC – SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY – SEPTEMBER 2, 2026

Saratoga Performing Arts Center was completely sold out Wednesday night, and honestly, you could tell before you even got inside. About 25,000 people packed SPAC, traffic was insane, the lawn was packed, and everywhere you looked there were people dressed like Pitbull. White button-up shirts, bald caps, black ties and sunglasses were all over the place. The crowd seemed to lean heavily millennial and older Gen Z, which made a lot of sense considering how much of the night was built around songs that were basically unavoidable in clubs and on the radio throughout the late 2000s and 2010s.

Lil Jon got things started, and his set was pretty much exactly what you would expect from Lil Jon in the best possible way. There wasn’t some complicated production or huge concept behind it. He was there to hype up the crowd, and that is exactly what he did. His set moved quickly through popular 2000s club songs, with Lil Jon constantly yelling into the microphone, getting people to jump, scream and sing along.

It honestly felt less like an opening concert set and more like being dropped into one of the biggest club nights of your life. That nostalgia ended up being one of my favorite parts of the night. You would hear one song you hadn’t thought about in years, then another one started almost immediately after it. Lil Jon never really gave the crowd much time to settle down. By the time he finished, it almost felt like some of the older people in the crowd were already tired. And Pitbull hadn’t even started yet.

When Pitbull finally took the stage, the whole thing shifted from giant throwback club night into exactly what you would imagine a Pitbull concert looking like. Six dancers surrounded him throughout the show, and they were a huge part of the performance. There really isn’t a subtle way to describe it. The choreography was extremely provocative and sexual, and at times it basically felt like a strip-show performance built into a Pitbull music video.

The crowd loved every second of it. The more provocative the dancers got, the louder people cheered. There were moments where they would bend over directly toward the cameras or work around Pitbull onstage, and the reaction from the crowd, including plenty of women, got even bigger. It was ridiculous, completely on brand, and honestly pretty funny to watch.

Pitbull himself spent most of the night looking like he was having the time of his life. One thing that stood out was something I had already seen in all those viral Pitbull videos online. After songs, he would stop, look out over the crowd with this huge smile and almost seem to take in the fact that thousands of people were standing there because of him. And somehow it never came across as arrogant. He just looked genuinely happy and proud.

That actually matched the way he talked to the crowd throughout the night too. Pitbull stopped several times for the motivational speeches he has become known for, talking about staying positive, appreciating life and enjoying where you are. I don’t remember the exact quotes, but the overall vibe was basically positive, humble party guy. Then the music would start again and everybody went right back to dancing.

Visually, the stage was pretty cool too. It was built almost like a series of steps, with LED tube lights lining different levels behind Pitbull and the dancers. From farther back, those lights ended up becoming a huge part of the look of the show, especially when Pitbull or the dancers moved lower on the stage. There were also giant video screens, smoke effects and plenty of LED lighting throughout the night, with pyro showing up toward the end. The whole thing was bright, loud and constantly moving.

Lil Jon eventually came back out near the end of Pitbull’s set and performed a couple of songs with him, which was a fun way to bring the two parts of the night together before Pitbull finished the show on his own. By that point, the crowd had been partying for hours.

For me, Lil Jon might have actually been the bigger surprise. Pitbull delivered exactly what I expected from a Pitbull concert, and that isn’t a bad thing at all. It was big, flashy, sexy and full of songs everyone knew. Lil Jon felt different because of the nostalgia.

His set immediately took me back to that whole era of club music, and for a little while SPAC didn’t really feel like SPAC anymore. It just felt like one enormous party. That was probably the best way to describe the entire night anyway.

People dressed like Pitbull. Lil Jon yelling at everyone. Six dancers doing everything possible to get a reaction. A sold-out crowd that was completely into it. Smoke, pyro, huge screens and more recognizable songs than most people probably realized they knew. The whole night was just fun.

And sometimes that’s really all a concert needs to be.

Pitbull Photo Gallery

Lil Jon Photo Gallery

Setlist

• Don’t Stop the Party
• Hey Baby (Drop It to the Floor)
• Welcome to the Jungle
• Hotel Room Service
• International Love
• The Final Countdown / Hello
• I Feel Good
• Suave
• Can’t Stop Us Now
• There It Is
• Sweet Child o’ Mine
• Rain Over Me
• I Love It
• On the Floor
• I Like It
• DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love
• We Are One
• Move Shake Drop
• Culo
• I Know You Want Me
• Gasolina
• JUMPIN
• Damn I Love Miami
• Timber
• Feel This Moment
• Time of Our Lives
• Fireball
• Give Me Everything

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Live photography by Ben Rekemeyer for No Flash Needed. © 2026 No Flash Needed. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without written permission.