In the past year, no one has talked about the music industry without mentioning Taylor Swift. After kicking off her most recent tour titled “The Eras Tour,” which highlighted all of her albums, Swift’s stardom soared. According to Billboard, over the first ten weeks of The Eras Tour, her music increased in popularity by 80%. In 2023, Swift was featured as Spotify’s Top Artist, TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year and recently at the 2024 Grammys, she broke records by becoming the first artist to win “Album of the Year” four times with her album, Midnights. Not only has she influenced the world culturally with her music, but also she has created an economic impact everywhere that she goes. Due to The Eras Tour and her recent skyrocketing popularity, Swift has boosted local businesses, increased tourism and consumer spending and shattered records everywhere she goes.
The Eras Tour kicked off in March 2023 in Glendale, Arizona, where Swift played two sold-out shows at State Farm Stadium. She then traveled around the country to complete her 22 sold-out shows on the first US leg, and internationally to Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Rio De Janeiro and São Paulo. In 2024, Swift will travel to Asia, Australia, Europe and back to North America for the second US and Canada leg.
The tour is already historic. According to a Pollstar News article, after the 22 shows on the first US leg, the tour generated almost $301 million in gross profit. The average ticket price is a staggering $253.56, much higher than the 2023 United States average concert ticket price of $120. Over 1.2 million tickets have been sold, with many being resold for thousands of dollars. Pollstar analysts predict that the tour will surpass $1 billion in gross profit during Swift’s March 2024 shows in Singapore. If this happens, according to TIME, then The Eras Tour will become the biggest tour in music history – passing Elton John’s multi-year Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour of $939 million.
While on the road, Swift boosts the local economy of every city that she visits. For example, on the opening night in Glendale, Arizona, Swift created more revenue for local businesses than Super Bowl LVII, which was held earlier in the same stadium earlier in 2023. According to the United States Travel Association, Taylor Swift generates an amount of revenue equivalent to a Super Bowl each night that she tours, meaning that in the first leg alone she hosted fifty-three different Super Bowls.
Swift increases the tourism industry in every city that she travels to. According to CBS News, when Swift performed in Cincinnati, hotels grossed $2.6 million. Swift’s weekend in Pittsburgh increased the average daily room rate of a hotel room to $309, a 106% increase. The two nights in Denver created customer spending in the area that increased the state’s GDP by around $140 million. Swift’s weekend in Los Angeles had a total economic impact of $320 million, leading to “3,300 jobs created, $20 million in sales and local sales tax and another $9 million in hotel room taxes” (United States Travel Association). Swift’s impact on these cities has increased their tourism, dining and consumer industries to levels not seen since before the pandemic. Analysts at QuestionPro, an online research company, predicted that the US leg produced over $5 billion in “economic impact” – more than the GDP of fifty countries.
Not all of the revenue of the tour has come from ticket sales and hotel rooms. QuestionPro predicts that The Eras Tour may generate over $4.6 billion in consumer spending including outfits, merchandise and food only in the United States. According to TIME, Swifties spend an average of $1,300 to $1,500 on outfits, dining and more. Many take inspiration from songs or different “eras” of Swift’s music career. In addition, Swift mentions “friendship bracelets” in “You’re on Your Own, Kid” on her most recent album, “Midnights.” Inspired by this lyric, fans fill the stadiums with beaded bracelets full of song lyrics, album titles and more. Businesses have even reported bead and sequin shortages because of the large demand.
Governments from all stops of the tour show Swift appreciation. The governor of Illinois thanked Taylor for “reviving the state’s tourism industry,” after her leg of the tour in Chicago when she increased the city’s hotel occupancy rate to 97%. Santa Clara, California inaugurated Taylor as the honorary mayor while she toured. World leaders such as the Chilean President and the mayor of Budapest are asking Taylor Swift to tour in their countries.
With Swift’s announcement of her new album, “The Tortured Poets Department,” releasing on April 19th, and the continuation of her world tour in Tokyo and Singapore, many can expect the successful artist to shatter more records as she continues her groundbreaking role in the music industry and the economy.
