The U.S. leg of the Eras Tour, encompassing 62 shows, 23 cities, and record- breaking numbers, ended in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Lucas Oil Stadium on Nov. 3, 2024. Beginning in Glendale, Arizona on Mar. 17, 2023, the Eras Tour was Taylor Swift’s sixth concert tour, about five years after the commencement of her Reputation Stadium Tour.
The U.S. leg initially consisted of 27 shows across 20 US cities, but the unprecedented high demand led to additional dates added soon after the tour’s announcement resulting in the tour doubling from its initial size. Not only was the tour long in its number of shows, it’s runtime was unusually long too, at about three and a half hours.
The tour explored her different musical eras throughout her career and covered a wide range of her discography, including her top hits “Love Story,” “All Too Well,” “Bad Blood,” and many more. The concert was originally divided into 10 sections, eventually 11 with the release of Swift’s new album, “The Tortured Poets Department.” Each act representing one of her albums, including “Folklore,” “Speak Now,” and “Red” but excluding her Debut album. This immersive experience allowed fans to witness every era and hear their favorite songs, old and new. The tour also allowed fans the chances to hear some of her new releases, some being songs she’s never performed live.
The tour took place over various pivotal moments in Swift’s career, both on and off stage. The journey of Swift reclaiming her music, known as “Taylor’s Version,” where she announced the re-recording of her albums “Speak Now,” “1989,” and more. Swift also announced and released her 11th studio album “The Tortured Poets Department” and eventually added it to her setlist.
Throughout the tour, fans and Swift created traditions and catered experiences. Based on a lyric from her “Midnights” album, “So make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it,” friendship bracelets with acronyms and song titles were made to be traded throughout the stadiums. The most looked forward to part of the night was the surprise song section, where Swift performed a song or mashup on the piano and guitar from her discography that wasn’t on the setlist. This surprise allowed Swift to keep the hours-long performance fresh while ensuring that each concert experience was new, different and thrilling. It also gave fans the chance to say they got something unique to their concert night.
However, her surprise song sets weren’t the only surprise. Swift had become known for hinting at musical releases through her diction and costumes. Fans at the concerts have watched intently for any hints of new releases, such as a change in set color or a new costume. The “Reputation” era during the tour had consisted of one outfit, despite how her other sets had various interchangeable outfits.
During the last shows of her U.S. leg, Swift inaugurated a new reputation outfit, consisting of gold snakes instead of the usual red ones of her previous costume. This change has led to conspiracies regarding Swift’s release of “Reputation (Taylor’s version)” in the coming months.
Despite Swift’s large concert capacity and performance dates, many fans were left without tickets and others were scammed into fake seats. As a result of those devastating scenarios, fans began to band together and listen to the concert from outside the stadium in the parking lots, grass areas, and hills surrounding the venue. Therefore, the number of fans attending wasn’t just the estimated 70,000 at each night of the venues but also included the thousands of fans that participated from outside the stadium.
Overall, the U.S. leg of the Eras Tour has become a phenomenon of tradition, community, and release. A tour that broke records, sold out shows, and was about so much more than the music itself. It was about the experience of the fans and the sharing of Swift’s beloved discography, and this once- in-a-lifetime experience has come to an end.
