Legendary artist Taylor Swift hosted the first concert of her Eras Tour March 17 in Glendale, Arizona. Swift has not gone on a tour since 2018 for her album “Reputation” due to the cancellation of the 2020 “Lover Fest” tour as a result of the pandemic. 

The Eras Tour will feature songs from Swift’s 10 studio albums. The event will unite new Swifties (impassioned fans of Swift) who were touched by Swift’s fictional storytelling capabilities in her pandemic albums with those who have been fans ever since the fresh sounds of “Tim McGraw” filled their ears. 

Emma Lavoie, a third-year chemical engineering major, is attending a show for the tour May 21 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. She is excited to attend the tour and scream along to Swift’s songs along with other Swifties. 

“I became a fan freshman year of college. I never really gave her a chance before then,” Lavoie said. “But a lot of my friends on my floor were Swifties, so I started listening to her and haven’t stopped since.” 

Kendall Schilling, a second-year environmental studies major at Middlebury College, happens to be attending the same show. 

“I became a Taylor Swift fan when her sixth album ‘Reputation’ came out. I had always been a casual listener, but this is when I really took a deep dive into her entire discography. Anyone who knows me well knows that I am one of the biggest Swifites around.” she said.

The appeal of Swift’s music is not limited by age — Schilling’s aunt, Lori Moran, is eager to attend a show with her niece. 

“I became a fan during the pandemic when ‘folklore’ came out. Then ‘evermore’ came out and, once again, I was impressed with her storytelling. I really looked at her as a true artist at that point,” Moran said.

Despite struggling to obtain seats for the event due to issues with Ticketmaster, fans are still excited to see Swift perform songs live after not holding a tour for nearly five years.

“One of my friends got to the front of the [ticket] queue so quickly but then got kicked out,” Lavoie said. “We had to wait for, like, five or six hours, but one of my friends ended up securing lower bowl tickets for us and I couldn’t believe it.”

Schilling was not able to secure a ticket nearly as fast as Lavoie, despite Lavoie’s struggles. She was one of the countless Swifties who became frustrated with the technical errors that arose during the tour’s presale.

“I was one of the unlucky, unable to obtain a presale access code to purchase tickets during the initial Ticketmaster presale,” Schilling said. “It wasn’t until [the week of March 5] that I actually obtained a ticket and I feel absolutely over the moon.”

The experience will be even more special for Schilling since she will get to share it with her aunt. Most of Schilling’s family members became fans of Swift when Schilling started introducing the artist’s work and emphasizing her compelling lyricism to them.

“I actually was shocked when I got them and had to immediately let my niece Kendall know, even though I was at work,” Moran said. “I honestly felt like I was a 13-year-old again scoring tickets to my first concert.”

To celebrate Swift’s Eras Tour, fans have taken up the responsibility to cultivate a community for Swifties across the country: They devised creative mash-ups,  created friendship bracelets and crafted a “dream setlist” for the tour.

“Honestly since this is her first tour since I became a fan. I’m most excited about seeing her perform live for the first time and screaming her lyrics.” Lavoie said. “Also, I really hope she plays ‘All Too Well (Ten Minute Version)’–– I listened to that 1,222 times last year.”

Schilling shares a similar sentiment. 

“I am beyond excited to hear Taylor perform in this cumulative tour, and to get to relive each of her ‘eras’ and engage with her music in a way not many fans can do with their favorite artists,” she said.

“I’m most looking forward to seeing the theatrical parts of the performance as she acts out certain songs like ‘tolerate it’ and ‘willow.’” Moran said. “I’m also looking forward to sharing this experience with my niece … we will be making memories, which is something I value more and more the older I get.”

Swift has accrued an impressive amount of success throughout her career through her hard work and raw passion for creating music. By uniting her fans to rediscover old gems and passionately sing along to new releases, Swift is making her mark in the music industry even brighter than daylight than before.