Diana Ross rocked a packed Hollywood Bowl on July 25 and 26 with a setlist that spanned her six-decade career. The nights included intimate on-stage moments with her children and grandchildren, as well as a nod to Motown record label mogul Berry Gordy, the father of her eldest daughter, Rhonda Ross.
On Saturday night, a nattily-dressed Gordy stood up from his box seat after Ross and her daughter called on him—just before Rhonda Ross performed songs, including one she wrote for her mother, “Count on Me,” from Ross’ 2021 album, Thank You.
Ross’s daughter, Tracee Ellis Ross, also joined her mother. Together they sang verses of “Endless Love,” originally sung as a duet in 1981 by Diana Ross and the song’s author, Lionel Richie. “I have to get over my fear of singing with her on stage,” joked Ellis Ross, known for her roles on the TV shows Girlfriends and Black-ish.
Ross’ daughter Chudney Ross and sons Evan Ross and Ross Naes also joined her on her stage, along with grandchildren Ziggy and Jagger, the children of Ashlee Simpson and Evan Ross.
True to her legendary status, Ross ruled the stage in top diva form, her voice sailing over the 17,500-seat venue even before she appeared on the stage: “If you need me, call me. No matter where you are, no matter how far.” Of course, those are the opening lyrics to “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” her first number-one solo single, released in 1970.
Ross Makes A Regal Entrance
Ross appeared in a snow-white dress of cascading tulle that flowed upward to a lattice-work of sequins. A black tulle mantel flowed to either side. The queen had indeed arrived, and she got down to work delivering a setlist that started it all: her string of a dozen 1960s Motown hits sung as a member of The Supremes: “Baby Love,” “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” “You Can’t Hurry Love,” “Come See About Me” and “Stop! In The Name of Love,” among others.
Ross appeared in three other dresses during the night—a red gown and billowy red feather cape, a bronze form-fitting dress with a lamé jacket, and, during her encore, a silvery crystal-encrusted gown paired with a wrap-around mantel of white tulle.
Ross was backed by seven dancers clad in black, and a full roster of white-jacketed musicians. A white grand piano was set to one side of the stage. The black and white aesthetic broadcast the legend’s timeless appeal, while the background visuals were a blast of vintage color, summing up the singer’s image through the decades.
A Legend In Her Ninth Decade Of Life
“You know I’m 81, right?” Ross said partway through her performance to an explosion of cheers.
One of Ross’ standout moments was “Amazing Grace,” sung in a slower-than-usual tempo with undercurrents of gospel sound. Ross first hummed, vocalised, and finally sung the lyrics, delivering ethereal, heart-opening moments. She followed the contemplative song with her 1980 hit, “Upside Down,” reinfusing the venue with electricity.
Ross showcased moments from her film career, singing “Don’t Explain” from Lady Sings the Blues, the 1972 film about jazz singer Billie Holiday, which earned Ross an Academy Award nomination. She also sang “Theme from Mahogany (Do You Know Where You’re Going To),” featured in her 1975 film Mahogany, telling the audience in a pre-performance video, “Mahogany gave me the opportunity to design the clothes and the wardrobe for Tracy Chambers, the character I played.”
Where To See Diana Ross Next
After the Hollywood Bowl concerts, Ross will next perform at a cozier venue—the 2,500-seat outdoor amphitheater at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga, California (August 16). Ross’ 2025 tour has been marked by huge crowds packed into vast arenas, paired with intimate venues like Saratoga’s. After her performance at the winery, Ross performs in San Francisco the following night, and in St. Louis later in August. October concerts include those in Durham, Atlantic City, Newark, and Lynn, Massachusetts. Concluding the tour, November concerts will be held in Mashantucket, Connecticut and Lincoln, California.
Ross launched her 2025 tour in the United Kingdom, performing in Birmingham, Nottingham, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Glasgow and London. The July 2 London concert was held at the 20,000-seat O2 Arena.
“The United Kingdom holds sacred memories for me,” Ross wrote on her Facebook page. “This tour in the UK has been a very special journey from inspiration to love.”
Ross performed at Paris’ Accor Arena on July 6, packing the 20,000-seat venue, and later in the month, at Athens’ Panathenaic Stadium, the site of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. The 50,000-seat venue dates to 330-229 BCE.
Also on Ross’ July schedule: Switzerland’s Montreux Jazz Festival, held on the Lake Geneva shoreline. Lionel Richie headlined the two-week festival, held since 1967.
Ross In Her Raiment Stops Traffic
Earlier this year, Ross attended the 2025 Met Gala in a Ugo Mozie-designed snowy masterpiece, a layered gown and cloak with an 18-foot crystal-encrusted and beaded ensemble. The outfit was embroidered in silver with the names of the singer’s children and grandchildren. The Nigerian designer Mozie collaborated with Ross and her son Evan on the design. Ross, in her raiment, “effectively stopped traffic in all directions,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. The 2025 Met Gala’s theme was “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
The Best-Charting Female Group In History
Diana Ross began her legendary career in 1959 as lead singer of The Primettes, joining forces with Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson—all three born out of Detroit’s housing projects. The group debuted as The Supremes in 1961 after signing with Motown Records, with Ross instrumental in defining what was termed the “Motown Sound.” She led the group to become the most commercially successful Motown group. Their string of 12 number-one hits dominated Billboard’s Hot 100 Chart between 1964-1969, helping to make The Supremes the best-charting female group in history.
According to Billboard, The Supremes is “arguably the greatest girl group of all time.”
Will Diana Ross Ever Retire?
Billboard’s “Female Entertainer of the Century,” Ross has become a timeless icon. Will she ever retire?
During her Hollywood Bowl performance, she noted that she would have to “be dragged off stage” before she would ever consider the option. That answer first came, however, shortly before her 81st birthday on March 26 of this year, when Ross told Brooklyn concert fans at the Kings Theatre, “I’ll never retire,” according to the New York Post.