Taylor Swift
AT&T Stadium
Arlington, Texas
Photos and article by Daniel Martinez
Traveling at full speed through the eras, Taylor Swift returns to a sold out AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas with a massive 44-song concert that could be heard through out the Lone Star state. Over 70,000 “Swifties” gathered at the home of the Dallas Cowboys for an unforgettable time traveling night. Plano, Texas’ own, Gayle opened the night and headlined her set by her most song, “abcdefu.” MUNA followed with an 8 song set which was very well received by the thousands in attendance.
At 7:50pm the massive LED board lit up with a two-minute countdown timer. The Swifties were anxiously counting down. As the timer was nearing zero, the crowd kept getting louder. The clock strikes zero, the LED screen went to pitch black. A thunderous ovation as Taylor Swift emerged from the stage to a short version of “Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince” which lead into “Cruel Summer.” Welcome to the Lover era. A quick wardrobe change and Taylor Swift became “The Man.” From a tailored suit to an acoustic guitar, Swift performed “Lover,” as she welcomed Arlington, Texas to The Eras Tour. The Lover era ended with a performance of “The Archer” that captivated everyone.
Taylor Swift came back to the stage with an acoustic sparkled guitar transitioning into the Fearless era with the self-titled track, “Fearless.” Then Ms. Swift took us back to high school with “You Belong With Me,” everyone in the stadium rejoiced with the nostalgia. “Love Story”ended the three songs that were performed for Fearless. Five songs from evermore were also performed by Taylor Swift. Among those were fan favorites “willow,” and “champagne problems.”
As the night continued and we kept traveling through time, Taylor Swift had to make a stop at one of her most acclaimed albums, Red. With a montage of “State of Grace,” “Everything Has Changed,” and “Red.” Swift emerged from the giant LED screen in a white shirt with “We are never getting back together, Like ever.” on it, and a black hat. Her iconic Red outfit. Cheerleaders marched down with Taylor Swift as she performed “22,” with red confetti raining down on the stage, then transitioned into “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.” One of Swift’s memorable track. No surprise that the sound was deafening from the 70,000 of Swifties that flooded Jerry’s World. The Red portion of the set concluded with the 10-minute version of “All Too Well,” a personal favorite for me, and from what I saw and heard, the rest of the 70,000 Taylor Swift fans in attendance can agree with me.
One of my favorite eras of Taylor Swift is the 1989 era. Swift kicked it into full gear with “Blank Space,” another one of my favorites. The production on the LED screen was incredible. It showed several versions of Taylor Swift trapped in this box-like object mimicking the performance of the real Taylor Swift. The moment “Shake It Off” came on the place vibrated as the thousands of fans went on full party mode and danced only to be slow down by “Wildest Dreams” and ending the 1989 era with a short version of “Bad Blood” and pyro going off all over the stadium. There were also a couple of surprises. “Sad Beautiful Tragic” was performed live for the first time since 2013, and “Ours” made its tour debut on piano.
The night concluded with the set of the latest album release, Midnights. “Lavender Haze,” “Anti-Hero,” and “Bejeweled” were among one of the few tracks that were performed. The first night, three-hour concert ended with “Karma” as confetti rained down on and sending the Swifties home with something to talk about till the next Taylor Swift era. This was my second time seeing Taylor Swift live, the first time was during the Bad Reputation tour in 2018 at the same venue. The production on this tour has been the best I’ve ever seen in any concert. From the lights, sounds, and to the videos playing on the gigantic LED screen, everything came together to create something that was larger than life. Until the next era.
Setlist
Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince
Cruel Summer
The Man
You Need to Calm Down
Lover
The Archer
Fearless
You Belong With Me
Love Story
’tis the damn season
willow
marjorie
champagne problems
tolerate it
…Ready For It?
Delicate
Don’t Blame Me
Look What You Made Me Do
Enchanted
22
We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
All Too Well (10 Minute Version)
the 1
betty
the last great american dynasty
august
illicit affair
my tears ricochet
cardigan
Style
Blank Space
Shake It Off
Wildest Dreams
Bad Blood
Sad Beautiful Tragic
Ours
Lavender Haze
Anti-Hero
Midnight Rain
Vigilante Shit
Bejeweled
Mastermind
Karma
