The Eras Tour

During her promotion of Midnights on talk shows such as The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and The Graham Norton Show in October 2022, Swift hinted at an upcoming tour.[7][8] On November 1, she announced on Good Morning America and through her social media accounts her sixth concert tour, the Eras Tour,[note 1] describing it as "a journey through the musical eras of [her] career".[10] She first announced 27 shows across 20 US cities, beginning in March 2023 in Glendale, Arizona, and ending in August 2023 in Inglewood, California. The opening acts were Paramore, Haim, Phoebe Bridgers, Beabadoobee, Girl in Red, Muna, Gayle, Gracie Abrams, and Owenn, each two of whom shared a tour date.[6] Messina Touring Group, an Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) partner, served as the tour's promoter.[11]

Popular demand led Swift to add eight shows at some US cities on November 4,[12] and 17 more the following week, making the Eras Tour the most extensive US tour of Swift's career (52 shows), surpassing the Reputation Stadium Tour (38).[13] Billboard described the tour's announcement as "the most chaos-inducing tour announcement of the decade."[14] Among the tour's prospective partners were the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange company FTX; a US$100 million sponsorship deal with Swift was in talks but did not materialize.[15][16] On January 31, tour merchandise inspired by all of Swift's ten album "eras" were made available for purchase on her website.[17][18] On August 3, Swift announced a second US leg, featuring three more cities in October and November 2024, with Abrams as the opener.[19]

On June 2, 2023, Swift announced the Latin American shows of the Eras Tour, with Sabrina Carpenter as opening act.[20] A third show in Buenos Aires was announced on June 6, hours after the public sale commenced, due to high demand.[21] Additional shows in Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo were announced on June 12.[22] Shows in Asia, Australia, and Europe were announced on June 20.[23]

Several politicians and government officials demanded the tour be brought to their country or city.[24] Places such as Canada and Chile were expected to be part of the tour but were absent in Swift's announcement on June 20, drawing dismay and demands from fans and officials.[25][26] Across Southeast Asia, fans decried the lack of shows in countries like the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand and demanded the tour be brought to there. In particular, her return to the Philippines had been highly anticipated.[27] Some journalists and fans opined that unlike venues in Japan and Singapore—the only Asian countries part of the Eras Tour—those in Hong Kong, the Philippines and Thailand might not have the infrastructure required to host the tour.[28] In addition, Hong Kong and mainland China reopened to foreigners much later than most other places following the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have affected touring plans, as per South China Morning Post.[29] In Malaysia, legal opposition to LGBT rights and the ban on pop concerts during Ramadan were cited as potential reasons.[30][31][32]

From June to August 2023, new shows were added to the tour. The total number of Singapore shows were increased to six;[33] eight shows were added in Europe;[34] two extra shows were announced for Australia;[35] another 14 European shows were added, with Paramore announced as the leg's opening act;[36] and six shows were announced in Toronto, Canada, with Abrams as the opener.[37]

The first US leg was set to go on sale to the general public on November 18, 2022. Due to Swift's multi-year partnership with Capital One, cardholders had presale access, which was set to begin on November 15.[43] Fans registered for the Ticketmaster Verified Fan program from November 1 through 9 to receive a presale code that granted exclusive access to the TaylorSwiftTix Presale on November 15; those who purchased merchandise from Swift's website received "boosts", and previous Lover Fest ticket holders also received preferred access to the presale if they registered using the same Ticketmaster account.[44][45] Swift confirmed ticket prices in advance, abandoning the "platinum ticket" model; they ranged from US$49 to $449, while VIP packages ranged from $199 to $899.[6] According to Ticketmaster, the TaylorSwiftTix Presale provided "the best opportunity to get more tickets into the hands of fans who want to attend the show" by evading bots and scalpers.[46] It also noted that if demand from the program "exceeds supply", it is possible that "verified fans may be selected at random to participate in the presale."[47] It later reported that it received a record 3.5 million verified fan registrations for the Eras Tour.[48] Ahead of the second leg's presale on August 11, Ticketmaster estimated that 14 million users were vying for roughly 625,000 tickets.[49]

Ticketmaster handled the Canadian sales as well, using the Verified Fan program.[50] Members of the Royal Bank of Canada's Avion Rewards program received exclusive access to a separate presale.[51] An estimated 31 million people registered for the Verified Fan presale, equal to over 77 percent of Canada's population.[52]

The United States Federal Trade Commission proposed to outlaw junk fees in the country following the controversy.[53]

On November 15, the day of the first US presale, Ticketmaster's website crashed following what Variety called "historically unprecedented demand".[54] Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster, said they prepared for 1.5 million verified fans, but 14 million turned up;[55] published a statement saying they had been "unprepared" to accommodate them;[9] and cancelled any further sales, citing inability to meet demand.[56] The fiasco was the subject of public criticism and political scrutiny. Customers and fans criticized Ticketmaster for its allegedly flawed systems and inefficient technical resolutions.[57][58] US lawmakers, including attorneys general and members of Congress, took notice of the issue,[59] which became the focus of multiple state, federal and congressional inquiries.[60][61]

On December 12, 2022, Ticketmaster began notifying select fans—"identified as [fans] who received a boost during the Verified Fan presale but did not purchase tickets"—of a second ticket-buying opportunity to purchase a maximum of two tickets per user through Ticketstoday.[62][63] Ticketmaster sold the first US leg's remaining 170,000 tickets over four weeks.[60]

Latin American tickets went on sale in early June 2023.[20] Presale access was granted to Banco Patagonia clients in Argentina on June 5;[64] around one million customers were reported to have queued for the 24,000 available presale tickets for the Buenos Aires shows,[65] and over three million during the general sale.[66][67] DF Entertainment served as Swift's tour promotion partner in Argentina; CEO Diego Finkelstein called the demand "unprecedented",[68] based on which Perfil opined that Swift could fill the stadium 36 times if she wanted to.[69]

In Brazil, previous Lover Fest ticket holders and C6 Bank Mastercard holders gained access to presales on June 6 and 10, respectively. Instantly after the announcement of the shows on June 2, people camped outside Allianz Parque to purchase physical tickets to the São Paulo shows that would not go on sale to the general public until June 12.[70][71] The Mastercard presale tickets sold out in 30 minutes, with over one million customers queueing.[72] Unrest was reported on June 11 in the queues outside the venues' box offices as scalpers attempted to bypass fans, including some armed scalpers who threatened violence; police arrived at the scene to maintain order.[73] On June 12, over two million users queued for the general sale online.[74] Ticket sale agency T4F – Time For Fun was reported over 100 times to authorities.[75] On June 20, federal lawmakers in Brazil filed the "Taylor Swift Law", which would penalize scalpers with up to four years in prison and a fine of up to 100 times the value of the ticket.[76]

In Mexico, ticket presale was handled by Ticketmaster's Verified Fan program; registrations ran from June 2 through June 7, followed by a general public on-sale.[77]

In Australia, tickets were only available via Ticketek.[78] Guardian Australia reported that the Australian leg was met with unprecedented demand as well.[79] Within 12 hours, over one million people signed up for presale codes.[80] American Express cardholders purchased VIP packages from June 26 to 28; the website crashed within half an hour, and all packages sold out on June 26.[81] Following the scalping highlighted by Australian consumer organization Choice, the Victoria State Government declared the Eras Tour in Melbourne a "major event", a legal provision penalizing scalping and misleading advertisement in Victoria. Because reselling a ticket for more than 10% above the original price had already been illegal in New South Wales, the government investigated the ticket resale platform Viagogo after the scalping reports. On June 28, those registered with Frontier Touring Company gained access to a presale for which over four million users queued, setting a national record; tickets sold out within three hours. Ticketek stated it neutralized over 500 million bot purchase attempts during the presale. The public on-sale began on June 30, with tickets selling out that day.[79][82][83]

For the Singaporean shows, United Overseas Bank (UOB) cardholders in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam had presale access on July 5, 2023, with over one million users in the virtual queue. The Straits Times reported that Swift's fans in Singapore and other eligible Southeast Asian countries began "scrambling" to sign up for UOB cards.[84][85] Around 22 million users registered for access to the 330,000 available tickets during the July 7 general sale, which happened both virtually and via Singapore Post offices; tickets sold out immediately despite website crashes.[39][41][86] Klook, an official experience partner for the Singapore leg, sold travel packages along with tickets, which were purchased by dozens of Filipino fans and instantly sold out.[87] Marina Bay Sands sold tickets coupled with hotel stays and other experiences.[88]

The Lisbon shows went on sale on July 12 and 27, 2023, via See Tickets, with transferrable access codes mailed to registered users, who were limited to four tickets per code.[89][90] Standard tickets for both shows sold out within 2.5 hours.[91] Three million people queued for tickets in Germany,[92] and 600,000 registered for the Warsaw shows.[93] All 170,000 tickets for the three Vienna shows sold out within the first few hours, marking the largest and fastest ticket sale ever in Austria.[94] All 95,000 Zürich tickets sold out within 30 minutes.[38]

In France, TF1 reported the highest demand ever for a presale. Angelo Gopee, head of Live Nation France, stated, "the demand is such that many have found themselves in a virtual queue just to subscribe to the mailing list which, potentially, will open access to the ticket office. From memory, we had never seen that in France".[95] The Paris presale opened on June 11, 2023, to over one million queued users. Ticketmaster suspended both Paris and Lyon presales within an hour after reports of login glitches.[96] They were rescheduled to July 17 to 21.[97]

Ticketmaster and AXS handled the United Kingdom sale.[98] Those who had previously pre-ordered Midnights were able to access presales from July 10 to 12.[40] London's Wembley Stadium officials described the demand for tickets as "unprecedented" and noted that waiting times were "longer than usual".[99] Cardiff's Principality Stadium tickets were pre-sold on July 14. In addition to website malfunctions, Forbes reported widespread scalping of the tour's UK tickets, with immediate re-listing on sites like StubHub and Viagogo for extortionate prices.[100][40] Viagogo responded that the demand of the tour's European leg is something the company had not seen "since the Beatles".[101] The UK general sale took place from July 17 to 19.[102] In Ireland, around 500,000 people registered for the Dublin shows.[103] On account of the website crashes during the UK sale, Ticketmaster announced staggered on-sale times for Dublin on July 20, 2023; tickets sold out in minutes. The Irish Times highlighted that, unlike the UK, "the practice of reselling tickets above face value has been illegal in Ireland since 2021", so no scalping was reported.[104]

The production consists of smoke machines, light beams, confetti shooters, coordinated serial lights, pyrotechnics, and hydraulic platforms.[108][109][110] The middle stage has mobile blocks that elevate to form different platform shapes throughout the show.[111]

The Eras Tour staging is expansive, made of digital displays. It consists of three separate stages connected by a broad ramp:[112] a main stage with a giant, curved widescreen;[113][114] a rhombic middle stage;[111] and a rectangular stage that along with the ramp forms a T-shape at the middle of the floor.[115] The stages feature various visuals and effects throughout the show.[116] The tour's concept centers on worldbuilding, featuring a diverse set of props and performing styles to convey the varying moods and aesthetics of Swift's albums.[117][115]

The staging is equipped with a "hyperactive" hydraulic platform,[110] with the main and middle stages having mobile blocks that rise from the center to form platforms of different shapes.[111] The tour's "massive" production is heavily inspired by Broadway theatre.[115][118][119] It was described as a 4D cognitive experience,[113] featuring pyrotechnics, laser lights,[109] smoke machines, fire canons,[108] indoor fireworks, PixMob LED bracelets,[110] and image projection technology,[112] such as projection mapping.[113]

Designed as a tribute to Swift's discography across her 17-year career, the Eras Tour covers all styles of music from her 10 studio albums, ranging from country and pop to folk and alternative rock genres.[120] Some media outlets dubbed the Eras Tour the "greatest hits" tour of an artist still in her commercial prime.[121][119] The set list placed a somewhat greater focus on albums Swift had not previously toured, including first-ever live performances of several tracks.[122] The concert ensemble included 14 backup dancers and a live band of six instrumentalists and four female backing vocalists.[123] The dances were choreographed by Mandy Moore.[124]

Designers such as Roberto Cavalli, Zuhair Murad and Oscar de la Renta custom-made Swift's outfits for the tour to complement each album's aesthetic.[125][126]

Swift's wardrobe at the Eras Tour was a subject of widespread media coverage.[127] Her costumes and those of her accompanying dancers, as well as her microphones and guitars, paid homage to her 10 albums.[126][128] They were inspired by previous performances, music videos, and public appearances,[129][130] intended to align with the overarching themes and palette of the era Swift referenced in an act, showcasing the various sonic and visual aesthetics she had adopted in her career.[126][130] However, crystals were an unifying fashion choice; costumes of every act were adorned with them.[131]

Attire and accessories were mostly custom-made by fashion houses Swift had worked with before, such as Atelier Versace, Roberto Cavalli, Etro, Nicole + Felicia Couture, Zuhair Murad, Elie Saab, Ashish, Alberta Ferretti, Jessica Jones, and Oscar de la Renta.[125][126][132] Swift wore variations of some costumes at different shows, usually paired with Christian Louboutin shoes.[132] Swift's black fedora from "22" was designed by Gladys Tamez.[133] Fausto Puglisi, a designer for Roberto Cavalli, stated that he took an "artisanal approach to craftsmanship" while customizing the outfits, claiming "everything must be eye-catching" when designing for concerts.[126] He incorporated Swarovski crystals in the costumes Swift wore during the Fearless, 1989, and Reputation acts, which required over 170 hours of meticulous "hand-craftsmanship by skilled artisans" to make.[134] The sequined tulle ball gown that Murad designed for the Speak Now act required "over 350 hours of atelier handwork". Ferretti used chiffon and micro-beading for the Folklore era dresses, while the Midnights Oscar de la Renta fringed bodysuit was hand-adorned with more than 5,300 beads and crystals.[131]

StyleCaster regarded the Eras Tour wardrobe as Swift's best fashion collection for a tour.[135] The New York Times' chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman considered the Eras Tour a fashion show beyond merely live music and praised Swift's "fabulous" but purposeful wardrobe choices for setting the bar high for future concerts by other artists.[127]

The Eras Tour broke ticket sales records worldwide. In the first day of the US presale alone, the tour sold over 2.4 million tickets, the most sold by an artist in a single day,[163] surpassing Robbie Williams, who had sold 1.6 million tickets for his Close Encounters Tour in 2005.[164] Billboard reported on December 15 that the Eras Tour had already grossed an estimated US$554 million, and projected the US leg to finish with $591 million, surpassing the former all-time female record set by Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour ($407 million) in 2008–2009.[60][165] Following the tour's launch, Swift rose to number one on Pollstar's Artist Power Index chart.[166] MetLife Stadium named her their "#1 best-selling artist" of all time after the tour's third East Rutherford show, which was the 100th concert in the stadium's history.[167]

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Eras Tour "on track to become the biggest in concert history, with the potential to gross over $1 billion";[106] conservative Pollstar estimates projected a $1.4 billion gross.[168] Bloomberg News reported that the average gross per show on the US leg is $13 million.[169] Variety claimed the tour had grossed $2 billion as of October 2023.[170] According to Forbes, the Eras Tour has grossed $780 million from 56 shows as of August 2023, making it the highest-grossing tour by a woman in history, surpassing Beyoncé's Renaissance World Tour, and the second highest-grossing tour of all time, behind Elton John's Farewell Yellow Brick Road.[1]

• "The 1" replaced "Invisible String" starting from the Arlington shows,[237] except at the second Nashville show, where Swift performed "Invisible String" in honor of the bench at Centennial Park dedicated to her.[238]
• "Nothing New" was added before "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)" at shows opened by Phoebe Bridgers, who performed the song with Swift.[239][240]
• "Long Live" was added after "Enchanted" as part of the Speak Now act after the release of Speak Now (Taylor's Version), starting with the Kansas City shows.[241][237]
• "No Body, No Crime" replaced "'Tis the Damn Season" at shows opened by Haim, who performed the song with Swift.[242]

Swift performed two tracks from her discography at each show as "surprise songs" in the ninth act—the first on acoustic guitar and the second on piano.[148]

• At the third Tampa show and the second Pittsburgh show, Swift reversed the order of the instruments she used to perform the surprise songs, playing the first on piano with Aaron Dessner and the second on acoustic guitar.[148]
• At the third Foxborough show, Swift performed both surprise songs on acoustic guitar due to technical difficulties with the piano caused by the previous night's rain.[243]
• Ice Spice performed "Karma" as a special guest with Swift to close the three East Rutherford shows.[244]
• At the second Cincinnati show, Swift performed "I Miss You, I'm Sorry" on acoustic guitar with Gracie Abrams on piano between the first and second surprise songs.[245]