April 5, 2023 by Eliza Howenstein (’24)
On March 31, Taylor Swift kicked off the third weekend of her record-breaking Eras Tour, a journey through her musical decades in Arlington, Texas. On March 17, the tour started in Glendale AZ, and the city’s mayor temporarily renamed the city “Swift City” to commemorate the historic tour starting there. The show consists of a 43-song 3.5-hour setlist that features at least one song from all ten of her unique studio albums–representing the different “eras” of her life.
In addition to the set 41 songs that Swift is playing at every show, she adds two surprise songs that will be different each evening. This is a tradition that Swift has continued through multiple tours. Swift does this to bring back old songs she does not play anymore, help keep things interesting for fans, and ensure that the setlist will always be a surprise. This tour not only highlights Swift’s songs throughout her various eras but also offers a look down memory lane for some of her most iconic fashion moments–like the t-shirt that says “not a lot going on at the moment” from her 2012 music video 22, which she brought back for the tour.
Swift also goes through many costume changes throughout each night, changing her attire every time she changes the era of the song she is playing. Not only is Swift taking her fashion game to the max, but the fans are going all out as well. People are creating their own iconic looks based on some of Swift’s most iconic song lyrics, music videos, and album vibes. Fans are also creating extensive lists to track the surprise songs Swift sings with hopes of narrowing down the potential songs Swift could sing at their show–everyone is hoping for their favorites to be played.
Swift’s set list is compiled of favorites on both ends of the emotional spectrum. It ranges from songs like “Don’t Blame Me” and “Shake it Off,” songs which are upbeat and fun to sing and dance along with, to songs like “My Tears Ricochet” and “Tolerate It”–songs designed to make you cry your heart out. She is also playing fan favorites such as All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version). Although many fans are still upset about how the sale of tickets occurred and how poorly Ticketmaster handled the bots, which led to many fans buying their tickets from resellers and overpaying, from every video I’ve seen I can honestly say the price seems worth it. Swift puts on an incredible show where you can laugh, cry, and sing along while she is playing guitar or piano–or, for the more vocally insecure, you can just dance your heart out.