After 21 months, 22 countries and 42 songs, Taylor Swift’s “Era’s Tour” is finally coming to an end on December 8, 2024, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Throughout her time in the spotlight, we’ve seen her in many different lights. From her exploits in folk music to her lover-girl pop eras, and her country roots, Swift has been phenomenal—releasing 15 albums in 18 years, a feat that only some artists could even dream of. This is what makes Swift stand out as an artist: she has so much passion for her trade.
After spending almost 20 years in the spotlight, most artists may think to slow down or take a break, but not Swift. To commemorate her big 20, Swift started the Eras tour. Playing her most popular songs from each of her albums or “Eras,” each concert features an additional two “surprise songs,” one on guitar and one on piano.
The tour started on March 17, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. Swift came out with a bang, playing “Mirrorball” from “Folklore” and “Tim McGraw” from “Debut”. Though we have not yet seen the end of her tour, we can only hope that she will go full circle and play the same surprise songs for her last show.
One thing that Swift has been known for is her ability to articulate her music in a way that brings people together. She uses various themes and lyrics as another tactic to resonate with everyone. A common theme is women supporting other women. This theme is commonly seen amongst concert goers. Juniper Malia, a sophomore at Wells said, “The opportunity to go to the concert with my mom bonded us a lot.”
It is apparent that Swift holds a tight grip on the students and even teachers at Ida B. Wells High School. Many of these IBW residents went to one of the Seattle nights (July 22 and July 23). Tim Loveless is a philosophy and AP Government teacher at IBW. “Where fire shoots out of stuff, that was my favorite part of the show itself,” said Loveless. Another student, freshman Owen Scelza agreed saying that, “during ‘Bad Blood’ when all the flames came up, that was really cool.”
Swift’s fans call themselves “Swifties”, a fitting name for their tight-knit community. There is a popular tradition that at the concerts, you have to dress up to represent one of the eras. Loveless said, “Just seeing all the other concertgoers like dressed up and having fun and so happy to be there, was probably the best part of the whole show.” This just shows how far the bond as Swifties goes.
Throughout the tour, many huge events have occurred in her life. Swift started dating her current boyfriend, Travis Kelce, who is a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. She has also released her newest album “The Tortured Poet’s Department”. Many will agree that Swift has been a major player in changing the music industry forever. The Eras Tour was just another step in her plan, and it is safe to say that the world is waiting to see what she will do next.
