Could any other artist create headlines such as “Taylor Swift’s concerts in Seattle caused an earthquake equivalent to a 2.3 magnitude on the Richter scale?” The singer-songwriter is on “The Eras Tour,” a journey through the musical eras of her career in a concert setting. She kicked off the tour on March 17 in Glendale, Arizona and will conclude in 2024, making it an extended tour.
Swift will cover the United States, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Japan, Australia, Singapore, France, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Poland, and Austria. The tour was originally slated to end in Wembley Stadium, London, but Swift recently announced encore shows in several United States locations. Thus far, the tour has featured opening artists such as Paramore, Sabrina Carpenter, Phoebe Bridgers, Gayle, girl in red, Haim, and Gracie Abrams.
Swift performed at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey from May 26 to May 28. Amongst thousands of adoring fans, I was lucky enough to get tickets for the concert with good seats. I saw Swift live on May 26, the first night she performed in the Garden State. I had the time of my life watching her sing all the songs that I grew up listening to.
To me, it was the event of the century. I appreciate how all the Swifties were exchanging friendship bands and making friends with people sitting next to each other. The community of fans was so pure, and screaming “All Too Well” with more than 80,000 people was an out-of -world experience.
The perfect quote to describe both my view and the concert is “This scene feels like what I once saw on a screen,” from Swift’s “Snow on the Beach.” The first night was by far the best because Swift sang “Maroon” and “Getaway Car” as the surprise songs. Additionally, the new “Karma” music video featuring Ice Spice debuted, and the artist herself came to perform with Swift.
That night, Swift had a new outfit for her “Lover” and “evermore” eras. The “Lover” outfit came with a deep purple accent with many tassels; on the other hand, the “evermore” dress seemed to have a dark gold touch that looked like glitter on her cape. Swift’s new “Speak Now” gown looked so gorgeous that it felt like she was a Disney princess.
The opening song, “Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince,” had me in such awe that I wasn’t able to sing along because I couldn’t accept that I was in the same arena as Swift. After completing the “Lover” era, she moved to “Fearless,” and I got intense middle school flashbacks as she belted “You Belong with Me (Taylor’s Version).” The guitar and her choreography for this piece yanked me back to my pre-teen era.
Towards the end of the concert, Swift gave concertgoers shocking news by introducing the new “Karma” music video. After we digested this news, she bombarded us with the first surprise song of the night, which was “Getaway Car” performed with Jack Antonoff. This song from the album “reputation” surprised us all. After that, she sang “Maroon” from her latest album “Midnights,” which made me cry since I got to curse alongside Swift. After the acoustic surprise songs, she ended the concert with “Karma” and brought in Ice Spice as a surprise guest.
After it all ended, I came back to my home with no music playing just to savor the concert. Whenever I listen to any of Swift’s songs now, I automatically visualize her singing. The whole sequence was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I am so glad I attended — now I can die in peace. Five out of five crabs!
