At the foot of Paris La Défense Arena, Taylor Swift’s most ardent fans have been camping for several days in around twenty tents. “It wasn’t planned but I came to scout around and, when I saw the first tents, I panicked a little,” says Frenchwoman Chris, 30 years old. “As we paid a certain price for the place (180 euros on average, depending on the concert hall), we don’t want to be badly placed. And the weather allows it. »
Other fans arrived in a continuous stream on Wednesday to collect the book intended for VIP seat holders or buy souvenirs, t-shirts, sweatshirts, water bottles or bracelets.
Friendship bracelets
Aware of the public’s impatience and its appetite for derivative products after attending Taylor Swift’s Japanese shows, Paris La Défense Arena will open its doors from 3:30 p.m. for VIPs and has doubled its points of sale, Bathilde said. Lorenzetti, vice-president of the speaker. The concert starts at 8 p.m.
In the queues, young adults rub shoulders with fifty-year-old couples and children with their parents. Some exchange “friendship bracelets” made by themselves, a custom during this tour.
Languages mix, with 30% non-French, including 20% Americans, among the 42,000 spectators of each of the four concerts scheduled in Paris until Sunday, according to figures communicated by the venue.
The common point of this crowd: having been touched by the texts of an artist who has been singing about her joys and sorrows for 17 years. “We know his biggest hits which are super catchy (catchy, Editor’s note), very pop. But, when you look deeper into her discography, there are songs on which she opens up. Taylor Swift talks toxic relationships, impossible love, politics, mental health, and more I think we can all find a song that resonates with our experiences,” says Chris.
A show lasting more than 3 hours
The sixth tour of the Personality of the Year 2023, according to Time magazine, began in March of the same year in the United States. Called “The Eras Tour”, at the end of last year it became the first in history to sell more than a billion dollars in tickets. This figure is expected to more than double by the time it expires in Canada in December.
There have already been people in front of the Paris La Défense Arena for several days buying Taylor Swift-related products.
MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP
The precise 3h20 show, which the singer took across the Americas, Asia and Australia, retraced until then the ten albums (since “Taylor Swift” in 2006) which propelled her from a rising star to the American country to the biggest international pop star, with 110 million monthly listeners on Spotify (compared to 70 for Beyoncé or Dua Lipa).
In mid-April, the 34-year-old singer released her 11th opus. Sold 1.4 million copies on the first day, “The Tortured Poets Department” became the most listened to upon its launch on the music streaming platform, with a billion streams in five days. This despite mixed reviews, with British music magazine NME calling it a “rare misstep”.
The start of a European tour
“Maybe she’ll include this new album?” », asks Noah, a 20-year-old Frenchman. Images of rehearsals posted online by the artist to more than 500 million subscribers on all social networks gave a glimpse of new paintings.
ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP
Taylor Swift fans make friendship bracelets before her concerts.
After having registered with his friends “22 different emails” to obtain places, Noah will attend the four Parisian evenings. Chris had reserved a meeting room with colleagues to watch for the precious sesames. She will attend several European concerts.
