Lights, sparkles, friendship bracelets, setlist changes, outfits, surprise songs, and performances– these are just a few aspects that make Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour the iconic tour that it has grown to be. It seems like the media has been filled with Eras Tour videos, posts, live streams, and articles for years. The first show of the tour was in March of 2023, and although it seemed to be never-ending, it is sadly coming to a finale. Swift will wrap up her tour with one final concert in Vancouver, Canada on December 8th.
After completion, the tour will have consisted of 149 shows that stopped in five continents. Swift began her tour in North America and is also completing it in North America, making it a full circle moment.
From the TicketMaster War of fighting to get tickets, to Swifties causing an earthquake in Seattle due to their jumping and dancing, the Eras Tour has been nothing short of incredible. It has been filled with record-breaking accomplishments and mind-blowing moments. For example, AP News wrote that Swift’s tour was the number one tour in North America and even worldwide, while it also made $1.04 billion. It even boosted the United States economy by $5.7 billion, The Washington Post reported. What can’t Taylor Swift do at this point?
Swifties all around the world look forward to the day they finally get to experience the magic that the Eras Tour brings. Around 70,000 fans are in attendance at each show. If you multiply 70,000 fans by 149 shows, that means over 10 million fans will have attended the Eras Tour once it is complete. To put it in perspective, almost the entire population of Sweden could have attended the Eras Tour, with these numbers.
Not only do Swifties show up, but they also show out. Fans curate perfect outfits with intricate details, friendship bracelets with messages to decode, draw the number 13 on their hands to represent Swift’s favorite number, and some even go as far as hand-making costumes to match Swift.
One of the defining aspects of this tour is the friendship bracelets that are traded. The tradition started with a lyric from Taylor Swift’s song “You’re on Your Own Kid.” The lyric says, “So make the friendship bracelets.” Fans turned the lyrics into a reality and created a beautiful sense of community through little pieces of strings and beads.
Fans have put in time, money, and dedication to get to the show which is why Swift ensures her concerts are nothing but spectacular. Swift revealed that in preparation for the tour, she would stay on the treadmill for the entirety of the three-hour set while singing the songs on the setlist to ensure she was physically ready for the tour. Furthermore, she performs no matter the weather conditions. Various videos and pictures can be found of Swift singing and dancing in the pouring rain in many cities, while other videos also show her visibly struggling in the heat in Brazil. Unless the show cannot go on for safety reasons, Swift will push through any obstacle to deliver a stellar performance.
A fan favorite part of the set is Swift’s surprise song section. It started out as Swift singing two different songs every night that were not a part of the setlist. One song was on guitar and the other was on piano. These songs did not repeat. Once they were sung, they would not be sung again. However, she made some exceptions and eventually said all songs are back on the table. She is now performing mashups as surprise songs. Swifties have “dream surprise songs” that they hope Swift will play at their show (I had those too and I am sad to announce she did not sing mine when I saw her at SoFi Stadium in LA on August 7th). Fans even guess the surprise songs each night and see if they are right. Spoiler alert, people are wrong most of the time, including me. The thrill and anticipation of wondering what songs are going to be played just for your show and making the wildest guesses based on hope is what makes it so fun.
Some shows of the Eras Tour have become especially memorable to fans. For example, Swift announced “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)” in Nashville on May 5th, 2023. She did the same thing with “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” in Los Angeles on August 9th, 2023. Similarly, she premiered the music video to her song “I Can See You” in Kansas City on July 7th while bringing out the music video stars, Taylor Lautner and Joey King. Who doesn’t love a good surprise on top of an astounding concert?
The case for many concerts is, once it’s over, it is over. However, people all around the world can still experience the mesmerizing show, thanks to “The Eras Tour Movie.” The concert film debuted in October of 2023 and allowed fans to experience the magic in theaters. Variety reported that, “Swift’s movie is officially the highest-grossing film in box office history among concert and documentary films with more than $261.6 million earned globally.” Disney+ became the home of the film in March of this year. So, next time you find yourself wishing you could rewind time and go back to your Eras concert or wishing that you got to attend the tour itself, grab your remote, and turn on the Eras Tour movie on Disney+.
Make sure you savor these last few shows. Watch the glitchy live streams, guess the surprise songs, and sing your heart out. Although the tour is coming to an end, its impact will last forever. The Eras Tour will go down in history as one of—if not the most—influential tours to ever happen.