Let me preface this with the fact that I will be writing this in first person because there is absolutely no chance of writing a proper journalistic perspective of such an emotional and surreal experience.
Man…where to start?
First, I’d like to acknowledge all of the event and stadium staff involved with a show of this magnitude. The entrance into the parking lot was seamless and took about 7 minutes from the line formation of cars waiting to enter the lot to actually parking my car. Seeing that I’ve never been to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, as luck would have it, we parked and walked approximately 5 minutes to the stadium, passing fans who set up some extravagant tailgate parties. Since we obtained approval to cover the second of two shows on back to back nights and only found out that we had been approved a few days before by Taylor’s tour manager herself, we had to navigate the venue to obtain our paper tickets. This was somewhat of an ordeal since all tickets were electronic and the event staff was not aware of this atypical process. However, with the lightning speed help of one of Taylor’s staff, we were cleared to claim our tickets that were located at will call. Fast forward to the opening of the envelope and seeing the location of our seats, my 12 year old daughter (who was my date for the evening) and I were noticeably in shock, unable to hardly react.
To the fault of my own, I misread the rules for items and bags that were allowed into the venue, at which time I had to discard of my small Fjallraven belt bag and it’s contents worth approximately $100+ since I didn’t have pockets to carry a small Coach coin purse and some other normal stuff that girls carry. I was left with an envelope that held my tickets, ID, and debit card. (Note: I tried to take it back to my car and couldn’t find the damn thing within enough time to make it to our seats before the start of Gracie Abrams, the first opening act. More on her in a bit.
Fans standing in line for merchandise waited patiently for over 2 hours to secure their must-have souvenirs, and upon speaking with a few of them, the prices of said merch was no object. Fans were walking away with clear bags emblazoned with “Taylor Swift Eras Tour” nearly bursting at the seams. The excitement in their eyes exuded nothing but blissful joy.
As a newcomer, navigating a stadium with approximately 70,000 other people before the show was an adventure in and of itself. Of course that’s to be expected. However, the scrambling crowd of thousands dressed in their chosen Taylor-inspired outfits were so polite and helpful to a mother and daughter who were utterly confused as we searched for the path to the ground floor of the stadium. Here is a photo of my daughter and I in our respective era-inspired outfits. I went for the Red era and she nailed the Fearless era.
In excited anticipation, we descended what felt like the Everest of steps to the ground floor where our seats were located, anxiety began to calm and elation began to build. We were guided to our seats by a cheerful and friendly usher (Center section, row 12, aisle seats) with about 4 minutes to spare before Gracie Abrams took the stage approximately 7 minutes early.
Many people may not yet be totally familiar with the 23 year old singer/songwriter, but so many definitely know her father, J. J. Abrams. You may have heard of him. He has written and produced films such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker among so many others. Look him up and be in awe of that man’s resume. Holy cow.
Gracie, an artist and activist, began her career in 2019 and is on a strong trajectory as she continues to write music and build her fanbase. She’s made one full length album and 2 EPs and in addition to opening for Taylor Swift, she has also opened for Olivia Rodrigo.
Abrams and her band played a 23 minute, 6 song set and received a very warm welcome by fans, old and new. Her set included “Where Do We Go Now”, “21”, “Block Me Out”, “I Should Hate You”, “I Know It Won’t Work”, and “I Miss You, I’m Sorry”.
Only 10 minutes later, Taylor’s second opening band, MUNA, came out loud, vicious, hard, and super sexy. Described as Indie Pop, the trio met at the University of Southern California and formed the band in 2013. They’ve since released three studio recorded albums in 2017, 2019, and 2022.
MUNA is also revered in the LGBTQ+ community as all three members identify as queer, with guitarist, Naomi McPherson identifying as non-binary. The band’s inspires younger people to feel safe coming out, as well as to embrace and be proud to be queer.
At the end of MUNA’s set, Gracie Abrams joined the band on stage for their final number, “Silk Chiffon”. The band played an 8-song set including, “What I Want”, “Number One Fan”, “Home By Now”, “Taken”, “Anything But Me”, “One That Got Away”, “I Know A Place”, and “Silk Chiffon”.
And here we go. …
Concertgoers flooded the bathrooms and concession stands in hopes to stock up on whatever they felt they’d need during Taylor’s three and a half hour show so that they ensured that they wouldn’t have to leave their seats and miss one second of her performance. I mean, this is the first time she’s been on tour since 2018’s Reputation Stadium Tour. Five years is a long time for a “Swiftie” to wait. Just sayin’.
People took to their feet (where they would remain throughout the entirety of the show) 5 minutes before the countdown clock appeared on the screen. There was exactly two minutes and twenty-two seconds before everything and everyone in the stadium became completely unglued.
And then it happened.
It was what everyone has been waiting for for the last five years. It was what some people were paying thousands of dollars to witness. It was what everyone has been talking about, whether it be in admiration or controversy over the resale ticket price situation. It was what girls, boys, women, and men have prepared for since the announcement of the tour. It was exactly what everyone wanted. Taylor. She’s arrived and she’s on…the…stage, in the flesh. Live. In person.
She was escorted on stage by supporting performers slowly fluttering gigantic flower petals. (At least that’s what I thought they were.) As soon as the monstrous petals had all appeared on stage, they unveiled the female phenom and decibels seemingly skyrocketed to 3,000. Tears were shed by many as they sang along with Taylor’s opening number, “Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince”, wearing a stunning light blue, silver, and gold accented costume with knee high boots, appearing mythical and flawless with her beautiful, long blonde hair flowing with her every move.
In definitive fashion, The Eras Tour featured songs from every one of Taylor’s albums and the stage production and costuming for each “era” was built, lit, and choreographed to represent them respectively.
During her setlist for the third era, Evermore, she played her thirteenth (coincidence?) song, “Champagne Problems”. At the end of the song, the crowd erupted, seemingly more now than for other songs, which led to Taylor sitting at her piano in silence, visually exploring the crowd, and noticeably affected by the love that was being projected toward her from every side and by 70,000+ people. After about thirty seconds, she bowed her head briefly before looking back up at the crowd with what appeared to be tears in her eyes. Man, that hit different for sure. It felt like she projected her love to every single one of her fans in that moment.
Next, after her 1989 era, but before her final era, “Midnights”, Taylor sang two surprise songs which is something that she’s done at each show, leaving fans eager to hear if they’re their favorite will be performed. The two surprise songs that she sang Saturday night were “Last Kiss” from her album Speak Now and “Dorothea” from her album Evermore.
Taylor’s final ‘era’ featured songs from last year’s album Midnights as she donned a dark purple, shimmering costume with fringe and black thigh high boots. “Anti-Hero” and “Vigilante Shit” metaphorically lit the stadium on fire.
It seemed as though 99% of people stayed until she exited the stage upon the end of her final song; something that I’ve never witnessed in my 46 years of life and hundreds of shows that I’ve attended over that course.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour will make history as she, herself, already has.
Set list: Taylor Swift – Eras Tour 2023 – GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium – Kansas City, Missouri – July 8, 2023
LOVER
- Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince
- Cruel Summer
- The Man
- You Need to Calm Down
- Lover
- The Archer
FEARLESS
- Fearless
- You Belong With Me
- Love Story
EVERMORE
- ‘Tis the Damn Season
- Willow
- Marjorie
- Champagne Problems
- Tolerate It
REPUTATION
- …Ready For It?
- Delicate
- Don’t Blame Me
- Look What You Made Me Do
SPEAK NOW
- Enchanted
- Long Live
RED
- Red-Intro
- 22
- We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
- I Knew You Were Trouble
- All Too Well
FOLKLORE
- Seven
- The 1
- Betty
- The Last Great American Dynasty
- August
- Illicit Affairs
- My Tears Ricochet
- Cardigan
1989
- Style
- Blank Space
- Shake It Off
- Wildest Dreams
- Bad Blood
SURPRISE SONGS
- Last Kiss
- Dorothea
MIDNIGHTS
- Lavender Haze
- Anti-Hero
- Midnight Rain
- Vigilante Shit
- Bejeweled
- Mastermind
- Karma
