It has been one month since Taylor Swift took her last bow on her last show of the historic The Eras Tour and many fans are feeling a void as they look back and remember.
The tour, which began on March 17, 2023 and continued for 21 months with 149 shows, grossed over $2 billion dollars, and became the highest grossing tour of all time.
The Eras Tour even boosted economies around the world and caused earthquakes. On July 28, 2023 Taylor Swift fans caused a record breaking seismic activity in Seattle during “Shake it Off.”
The Eras Tour was also noteworthy for each performance. The show ran for more than 3 hours, with songs ranging from 2008’s Fearless to 2024’s The Tortured Poets Department. Taylor Swift notes that the 3 hour long show isn’t as easy as it looks. Swift told TIME that she trained for the tour by running on the treadmill every day singing the entire 44 song setlist.
For Community School of Davidson (CSD) students, the tour wholeheartedly was impressive and more than memorable.
Izzy Bradham (‘25) was very impressed with how Swift could entertain a whole crowd for 3 hours straight.
“I think what was the most surprising thing was how she could entertain everyone in the whole stadium,” Izzy Bradham said.
The Eras Tour has become a crucial event for lifelong Taylor fans. The show included her hits like “Shake It Off” and also deep cuts for diehard fans like “tolerate it” or “illicit affairs.”
Sarah Bush (‘25) said that her highlight of her The Eras Tour experience was being able to experience the Red era.
“Definitely the highlight of my Eras Tour experience was getting to experience the Red era for the second time,” Sarah Bush said. “It was a throwback from when I went to the Red tour”
Part of why The Eras Tour was so successful is because of the nostalgia it brought for people. Taylor Swift takes audiences through each era of her 20 year long career and each era means something different for each person. It connects Taylor Swift fans of all generations and represents so many different emotions.
(Mia Kirsch)
An important part of attending The Eras Tour was making friendship bracelets. The tradition came from Swift’s song “You’re On Your Own Kid” from her 2022 album, “Midnights.” In the song she sings, ‘So make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it’ which created the culture of friendship bracelets.
From those lyrics alone, friendship bracelets became a part of the experience. Fans made them with different Taylor Swift lyrics, albums and song titles and then traded them with each other at the show. This tradition connected Taylor Swift fans in a way audiences have never seen.
While Swift’s costuming was elaborate and ornate, fans dressed specifically for their favorite era and that quickly became a necessity for attending a show.
Taylor Swift not only created the biggest grossing tour of all time, but also created a culture for The Eras Tour. Taylor Swift has a talent for not just her songwriting and being a performer but for connecting with her fans in a big way.
Arguably the most exciting part of the show was the surprise songs. Since The Red Tour in 2014, Swift has played at least one song that isn’t on the set list acoustically at every one of her concerts. On The Eras Tour, Swift performed two surprise songs every night. Every fan waited with anticipation and excitement to find out what their surprise songs were. Some fans even made lists of their dream surprise songs.
Bradham (‘25) said, “I got the surprise song ‘Gorgeous’ and I was so excited it was the first song she played from ‘reputation’.”
Tess Hobbes (‘27) also said she was excited about her surprise songs.
“I was really happy to get ‘High Infidelity’ as my surprise song because I went on April 29 and it was very symbolic. She also changed some of the lyrics so it felt personalized to my experience and special,” Tess Hobbes said.
While she is far from finished, The Eras Tour has become a career-defining victory lap for Swift. Swift has always been successful, but The Eras Tour solidified her as a timeless star.
Just ask any of the more than 10 million Taylor Swift fans who attended.
And for other artists and groups who plan to follow with global tours, Taylor Swift leaves big shoes (and boots) to fill.
