Ecstatic Beyonce fans sang and danced in feverish excitement in Stockholm Wednesday in the final countdown to the superstar kicking off her first solo tour in seven years.

Among the hundreds of people thronging outside the stadium to see the global music icon — one of the world's best-selling artists — were some who had traveled halfway around the world to catch the show.

Beyonce, who has a record 32 Grammy awards; is in the top 10 biggest grossing female artists. She is also a fashion icon, with designers queueing up for her attention.

Many of the fans in Stockholm sported cowboy hats and rhinestones that sparkled in the spring sun, mimicking the look of the iconic performer's outfit in the ads announcing the 57-stop European and North American tour.

Julie Vargas, who flew in from Houston, Texas — Beyonce's hometown — confessed to having a "shrine" dedicated to the star at home.

"I don't want any spoilers, I wanted to be the first to see it and take the news back to H-town baby!," the 38-year-old surgical technologist told AFP.

"I love Beyonce, it's her style, it's her songs, it's the production, the choreography, it's everything," she added.

Gabriel Cardeal, a 27-year-old medical student, also crossed the Atlantic, from Brazil.

"She has not been there for so long and it's the first concert and we know nothing about it," he said.

"There's a mystery around it, what she will sing, what she will wear, what clothes, what dances."

'The Queen'

The "Renaissance World Tour", announced in February after being teased last autumn, is the star's first solo tour since 2016.

Tickets sold out so quickly for the opening show at the 60,000-capacity Friends Arena that tour organizers added a second for Thursday. From there, she goes to Brussels this weekend.