The ‘Swifties' fans traded friendship bracelets and dressed
in tribute costumes, and sometimes were so overwhelmed by the show that they
had brief post-concert emotional trauma.
The multi-platinum, Grammy-winning artist took over the
sold-out 65,000 BC Place on December 6, 7, and 8, but the show’s impact on the
city goes far beyond the performances.
More than half of Eras Tour ticketholders were from outside
the Vancouver area, including Bellinghamsters crossing the border from
Washington State and some flying across the country for the concerts. City
hotel rooms were sold out. The City Administration went into full security
mode, blocking some streets and fully mobilizing police, security, and
emergency response personnel. Fortunately, there were no reported incidents.
The Vancouver's Gastown steam clock temporarily changed its
tune to "Shake it Off" and will play every 15 minutes until December
13.
The vibe at the Eras Tour was designed to be all about
kindness, camaraderie, creativity, and catharsis. It was a safe emotional
'time-out' amid the reality of a stressful life. The object of worship was in
the middle of the floor at BC Place—awash in glitter sequins and rhinestone
bodysuits.
The political and social conditions that made the Eras Tour
a memorable historic international phenomenon will inevitably fade. However,
Taylor Swift and her cadre of 'Swifties' have demonstrated another mode of
creating temporary joy amid distress. Some report that the songs and lyrical
language have helped them through a dark time. The evolution of her songs over
the years revealed her emotional life, which gave intimacy to her music and cultivated
a feeling of closeness for her fans.
The cultural impact of Taylor Swift is explained at length at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_impact_of_Taylor_Swift
Her leadership and ‘show-down’ bargaining on behalf of other performers to be properly compensated by promoters changed the industry. Displaying strength and resolve, she re-recorded several albums to gain legal control of her music -the Taylor Versions. The biggest concert series in history closes in her style -Taylor Version TV (Toronto-Vancouver).
Corporate America showed what it could manufacture with the
latest technology of lights, sound, and stagecraft spectacle, all
computer-timed and finessed to touch the emotions with the image of a personal
icon.
The Eras Tour has broken numerous records. It was the first
tour to gross over $1 billion. By the time the tour ended, it was expected to
surpass $2 billion in sales, which do not include the millions made on the
resale market.
We had ‘Beatlemania’ and now we have ‘Swiftymania’. The host
cities of Toronto and Vancouver, which hosted six shows last month, brought
hundreds of millions of dollars in economic activity to Canada. Swift was named
Time Magazine’s Person of the Year, and Apple Music named her its Artist of the
Year. Spotify revealed that she was the most streamed artist globally.
Yet such an event is bound to attract an unseemly side of
human nature. The planner's decision to perform in Singapore but not in
neighboring countries caused a brief diplomatic pout in Southeast Asia. In
August, the tour was forced to cancel in Vienna because of an ISIS terrorist
threat. In Germany, police arrested a 34-year-old man accused of stalking and
threatening Swift and her boyfriend, Travis Kelce.
What could top the Eras Tour is anyone’s guess, but it will
surely be remembered as a cultural remembrance marker, on par with ‘Woodstock’
or ‘Beatlemania’.
Vancouver had two of those markers, recalling the August 31,
1957, Elvis Presley concert at Empire Stadium, his last performance outside the
U.S., and then the Beatles concert crowd stampede at Empire Stadium on August
22, 1964.
The Swift juggernaut has connected with millions from almost
every culture, where at the personal level, there can be positive vibes between
‘besties’, mother-daughter adventure, and a happy time-out.
The concerts will be forever a “remember when”.
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