All of the silence, patience, pining and desperately waiting has paid off as Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour has finally arrived at Metlife Stadium. Nearly seven months ago, on November 15, 2022, students across the Fieldston campus painstakingly fought the great war against Ticketmaster attempting to secure tickets to The Eras Tour. That day began the 192-day countdown till Friday, May 26, 2023, Swift’s first show at Metlife Stadium.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has made history. In only the first three months on tour, Swift has broken records in stadiums across the United States. She has made just about 620 million dollars and has sold out every single one of her shows, having more fans attend her tour than the Super Bowl (sorry football fans, swifties trump the eagles.) On her opening night in Nashville, Swift had the most people ever in attendance at a concert at Nissan Stadium in one night. She set and then broke that same record not once but twice during the following two nights of her tour in Nashville.
Many talented artists have performed alongside Swift during The Eras Tour. She has had openers such as Gracie Abrams, Gayle, Beabadoobee, Owenn (who was a dancer on her previous reputation stadium tour) and Phoebe Bridgers. Bridgers played her last show on The Eras Tour at Metlife Stadium on Sunday, May 28th. On top of touring across the country, Swift has released four new tracks on her Midnights album. These include Snow On the Beach (feat. More Lana Del Ray), Hits Different, You’re Losing Me (only available on a CD sold at the East Rutherford show), and finally, the infamous Karma feat. the beloved Ice Spice. As an added bonus, Swift brought out Ice Spice to perform Karma during the East Rutherford performances and to announce the new Karma music video.
For those fans who have yet to experience the magic that is The Eras Tour, here are some tips!
Eras Tour Tips and Tricks:
- Get to the stadium early so as not to get lost in the crowds right before the concert begins. For the MetLife shows many swifties took the train, and at least in our case we only had to wait in about a 20-minute line to get into the stadium.
- What should you bring? Check stadium policy. Many stadiums require that any bag you bring be clear or a small clutch.
- As you pass security, have your tickets ready to be scanned. They will be handing out light-up bracelets – make sure you grab one!
- Pack a few snacks to eat after the show. You’ll probably be hungry (and sore) from jumping around all night.
- Drink some water! Singing = dehydration water = hydration
- Pack. A. Portable. Charger. Having your phone fully charged and ready to take videos is a necessity, rewatching them the next day just hits different. And if your phone dies, you’re on your own kid.
- How do you get merch? The merch lines at The Eras Tour can be absolutely treacherous. We recommend arriving before the doors open and then going all the way to the top of the stadium to get merch. While it takes some stamina to get all the way up there, and you may get sick of running as fast as you can, no one else really wants to do that and it will most likely pay off. We only had to wait about 35 minutes as opposed to a few hours. Even if you think the lines are taking too long, we recommend you stay stay stay, it’s worth it in the end. There were also some really nice people in the line and it was super cool to be able to talk and get to know them.
- Make bracelets! There are so many opportunities to trade, from the train ride over, to waiting in the many lines and even once you get to your seats before the show! Trading them is part of the concert experience and it really creates a bond with the swifties around you. You can even hand out bracelets to the people who help you at the merch stands, the food lines and the security guards, it brightens their day up.
- Do everything you need to do before sitting down for the show. Once the concert begins you will not want to leave your seat and the last thing you want to do is miss a song to use the bathroom. Whatever you do, do not miss All Too Well (10-Minute Version). There is truly nothing like screaming those lyrics with 74,000 other people.
- If necessary, the best time to go is during the transition into folklore, as seven (a great song) is said as a spoken poem. If you run as fast as you can, you can make it back without missing a beat!
- As the show starts, there will be instructions to pull the tab from your light-up bracelet. Make sure you save this tab as you can insert it back into the bracelet at the end of the show, therefore being able to preserve the bracelet forever.
- Bring earplugs. As lame as it might seem, you have to protect your ears especially if you are near a speaker. Wearing earplugs will limit the amount of ringing you’ll hear in your ears post-show.
- As much as we hate to say it, leaving as Swift performs the end of Karma and takes her bows is the best way to avoid being trampled and the quickest way to arrive home before two AM, especially if your seats are in one of the higher levels or you are planning on taking public transportation home. And if you think just by being on a lower level that you’re out of the woods, you’re not.
- A final note for the hardcore swifties out there: we recommend you bring tissues because our tears did not ricochet.
Getting tickets for The Eras Tour may have been a battle, but the night was like a dream. If you are one of the lucky ones to go, make sure you cherish every moment.
