Taylor Swift's 1989 world tour is this summer's hottest ticket...but what are you really in for if you've snagged a coveted seat? And what if you WON'T be able to see Taylor at one of her sold-out shows?
1. She kicks things off with "Welcome to New York."
Everyone screams the lyrics and the arena is ROCKING. But should she really be opening the show with this song? I mean, her stage with the New York backdrop and street signs WAS awesome, but it was a little weird being welcomed to New York...in California. There are SO many songs she could have opened with, but she chose this one.
And the cherry on top of the sundae: She probably will NEVER sing this song on this tour in NYC unless she adds new dates at Madison Square Garden — her New York tour dates were actually at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. PROBLEMATIC.
I rest my case.
2. Then she launches into the SEVERELY underrated "New Romantics."
"New Romantics" is amazing. It's only on the deluxe edition of 1989 but real music fans KNOW it should be a single, and hearing it live only confirmed that notion. It's peppy, upbeat, and will have you shaking your booty. HEED OUR PLEAS, TAYLOR!!!
3. "Blank Space" is her third song of the night, and it's a good, if not knock-your-socks-off performance.
4. Next up is a hella awesome remix of "I Knew You Were Trouble" complete with these smoke jets and shirtless backup dancers.
This was probably the most risqué moment of the evening (it was definitely kind of sort of really homoerotic?!?!) — the audience DEFINITELY skewed younger, and Taylor played to that. But if you're going to be introduced to a world of rippling biceps and shredded abs, it may as well be at a Taylor Swift concert.
5. Actually, let's pause and reflect on those backup dancers for a moment.
6. She then proceeds to go through some of 1989's deeper cuts.
7. Actually, the show is REALLY all about showcasing 1989. Which makes sense...it's called the1989 world tour, after all!
8. Taylor's other outfits are 🔥🔥🔥.
This girl really has STYLE.
Please excuse my cheesy joke.
9. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Taylor's friends lend her a hand throughout the show.
During breaks in between songs when Taylor went off-stage to change, messages from her celebrity friends appeared on a big screen on stage. Lena Dunham, Cara Delevingne, Lily Aldridge, Karlie Kloss, HAIM, Jaime King, and of course SELENA GOMEZ, along with Taylor's longtime (non-celeb) friend Abigail Anderson.
At various points in the evening they talked about what it's like being friends with Taylor, what they do when they hang out, how they met, when they first heard 1989, Swift's struggles with the media, and female friendship. Swift's gaggle of female friends have famously become a part of her persona, so it made sense on paper that they were there (at least, videos of them). But with the exception of Lena Dunham (who's hilarious) and Abigail (who has known Swift for a LONG-ASS time) it didn't really feel organic to the concert-going experience, especially because their appearances weren't music-driven — it was more about Swift's public persona than her music or craft.
10. The celebs who DO show up — Taylor's famed surprise guest appearances — can be hit or miss.
There is nothing cooler than @st_vincent soloing while pyro goes off in the background. #1989TourLA
A well-chronicled aspect of the 1989 tour is that Taylor brings out a bevy of celebrity guests at each of her shows — some to perform, some just to walk the stage. The first two guests at my show were Beck and St. Vincent. Both are incredibly talented — seeing St. Vincent play the guitar live was life-changing — but their audience skews older, for sure. When they were performing, I turned around to the women sitting behind me and asked if they thought any of the largely teenage audience knew either performer. They did not.
Having a guaranteed surprise guest sounds AMAZING...in theory. The problem is since you know it's coming, you spend a lot of the show anticipating their arrival, and there is no real spontaneity to the so-called "surprise." When they do show up, you judge who you saw at your show against all of the other shows. When Beck and St. Vincent stepped on stage, I felt a little let down — I was hoping for someone more along the lines of Lorde, The Weeknd, or Selena Gomez and Justin Timberlake, WHO I MISSED BY JUST ONE NIGHT. But then I thought more about it, and realized how RIDICULOUS my disappointment was. Also, I came here to see Taylor Swift — why was I so hung up on some performers who were only on stage for five-ish minutes? To be honest, the whole "guest performer" thing probably does more experience-wise for Taylor than the audience. And that's fine, she's earned that right.
Long story: The surprise guests don't make or break the show — and they shouldn't.
11. That might be because these guest appearances are very last-minute.
John Legend sang "All of Me" later in the show, right before "Wildest Dreams." There was a MUCH stronger reaction for him than Beck and St. Vincent — sorry, guys — which shouldn't be surprising, I guess. After he performed, Taylor talked about how she had been texting Legend's wife Chrissy Teigen before the show, and she asked her if John would come on stage and perform. Apparently — APPARENTLY — he was only confirmed to perform a half an hour before Taylor went on stage. So maybe the crazy variety of names who have appeared on stage throughout the tour — everyone from Julia Roberts to Russell Wilson — has more to do with who's attending shows than anything?
12. Mid-show, she slows things down with "You Are In Love" and "Clean."
13. This is also where she starts preaching her message of endless optimism to the audience.
14. Her stage is INSANE. Like, she ends up RIGHT above you.
At the start of the show, Taylor's stage looks pretty normal, with a long catwalk. OK, she walks into the audience, cool! you think to yourself. BUT YOU ARE SO WRONG. Not only does the stage elevate high into the arena, it ROTATES, so at several points in the show, Taylor is either facing you directly OR she is right above you, no matter where you're sitting in the arena. In that sense, there's really not a bad seat in the house...which is pretty damn cool.
15. "Love Story" is one of the few throwbacks.
16. Hearing "Style" live is pretty cool.
17. And "Bad Blood" is an intense, militaristic performance that is one of the many highlights of the night.
18. But Taylor REALLY gets rocking during "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together."
19. Taylor slows things down toward the end with "Wildest Dreams."
This was right after John Legend came on stage. Taylor still kept the momentum of the show going, which is no small feat after an Oscar winner walks off stage. "Wildest Dreams" is pretty good live, and it was a great way to slow things down before the final two big numbers.
20. Then she gets majestic with "Out of the Woods."
21. 21. Finally, she'll close out the show with a rousing rendition of "Shake It Off" that will have you getting down to THIS. SICK. BEAT.
Because, DUH, and it looks amazing (her stage goes up and rotates) and sounds even better (you're dancing your ass off). And it's a great way to end the show...even though you wish she could perform for another two hours.
And that's the 1989 world tour, Swifties!
22. Correction
The writer attended Taylor's show on Aug. 25. An earlier version of this post misstated the date of the concert.