Did you attend an Eras Tour date? Watched grainy livestreams on TikTok? Cried to said grainy livestreams when she sang your favorite song during the acoustic set? Well, then you might be familiar with a little game called Swiftball.
Nearly every weekend since March 17, 2023, Swifties eagerly log on to TikTok to watch livestreams of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. At first, it was to see which songs made the set list. Then, it was to see which surprise songs Swift would sing during the acoustic set. Now, it’s to see which outfits Swift decides to wear.
For each album’s set, Swift has anywhere from one to six variations of her outfits. For the Midnights set alone, there are six t-shirt dresses, three bodysuits, and four fringe jackets. Twitter (or X, as it’s called now) users started keeping track when new costumes started to appear a few months into tour. Allie, @reckedmaserati on X, even created a game to make watching TikTok livestreams of the Eras Tour even more fun.
While we wait for the Eras Tour to resume in February, I talked to Allie so she could tell us all things Swiftball!
what is Swiftball?
“Swiftball is a guessing game for the Eras Tour, where players predict the outfits and surprise songs for each night of the tour. You get points for every correct guess, and the player with the most points wins (a prize)!”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
Kind of a crazy idea – how did it all begin?
“I was lucky enough to go to a couple Eras Tour shows and remember how excited my friends and I would get when she wore a certain outfit. It got to the point by the end of Metlife Night 3 that we were sort of guessing what she would show up in next. Mix that with an idea for a giveaway, and Swiftball is born!”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
It has now crossed multiple social media platforms—X, Instagram, TikTok—Did you think it would gain as much attention as it did?
“It was truly never meant to be anything more than a 1-time giveaway. I seriously didn’t expect people to enjoy playing along so much! I’m very happy and so grateful that it’s amassed the following it has now, and I’m excited to continue expanding throughout the international leg of tour!”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
How did the Swiftball “team” come together? Who is in charge of what?
“It honestly was all volunteer! Raghav had heard me talking about spreadsheets and offered to help, same with Maya and the badges. Right now our current staff is: Raghav (@RaghavsRep) – spreadsheet grader, Maya (@folklorefrogs) – badge maker/artist, Stella (@acquasotto) – Midnights t-shirt dress expert, Erin (@swiftbunnies) – Midnight Rain bodysuit expert, Erin (@erincuo18)– will be helping with donations, and of course Tess (@tessdear) is our streamer!”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
Do you play along? What was your best score?
“I usually get too caught up in running Swiftball to actually put in a ballot myself. I don’t officially ever submit any, but I’ve certainly filled out a couple based on my hopes for the night (like LA Night 1) but I’m actually pretty terrible, and I don’t think I’ve even passed 50 points.”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
For a bit of fun… What’s your favorite outfit? Favorite moment/set of the Eras Tour? What color outfit would you still like to see?
“It’s hard to pick just one outfit, but some of my favorites are the purple tassel Lover bodysuit, the blue folklore dress, and the purple cupcake Speak Now dress! My favorite part of the Eras Tour is probably the surprise songs because it’s the most exciting part of the night, but if I had to pick an era I’d say reputation. The energy is just electric! Outfit-wise, I think it would be cool to see a green Speak Now dress.”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
Finally, do you think Taylor knows?
“I go back and forth with this! Obviously, the whole LA Night 2 speech had everyone convinced she knows (and Ryan Seacrest thinks she does, too!), but I also know people have mentioned it to some of her dancers and they weren’t aware of the game. I think it’s possible on someone’s radar, but I also would never want to be so big-headed as to assume I take up any of her brain space.”
X, Allie. Personal interview. 14 November 2023.
Well, for the record, I Think She Knows!
A huge thanks to Allie for answering these questions while we not-so-patiently wait for the Eras Tour to continue. When it does return in February, I hope you enjoy the TikTok livestreams and play some Swiftball!