One year ago this month, Taylor Swift's Eras Tour began. For her fans, it's been an unforgettable year full of surprises and mishaps. Here are the 13 best Eras tour moments from the tour that got everyone talking that got her haters shaking it off.
#1 It's been a long time coming
Perhaps, the first most memorable part of the tour was on the first night of the Eras Tour at Glendale's State Farm Stadium. Nobody knew what to expect. Everyone dressed in their Eras tour outfits, sporting friendship bracelets, and waited eagerly as the countdown hit zero.
Then, a vibrant clam-shaped banner appeared on each dancer's back, emerging from the big screen. Taylor Swift's iconic moments from her different Eras began to play, starting from her debut album up to “Midnights”.
Literally, it got everyone crying, screaming and throwing up. From that moment, a Swiftie cult began.
#2 The bridges of Eras tour
Swift welcomed fans into the first bridge of the evening with Cruel Summer. Not only did it boost the streams of the songs. It also sold her non-fans into super fans. Because, after all, Swift is not celebrated enough for her powerful bridges.
Over the night, her bridges get stronger. With illicit affairs that got everybody screaming and the Karma bridge that soon became a nod to her now-boyfriend, Travis Kelce.
#3 A 3-hour concert
While many more watched grainy Instagram and TikTok Live streams. Swifties worldwide were unsure what to expect from the Eras tour. Since her last tour in 2018, she had released four albums of original music and re-recorded two previous albums. Would she focus on her latest album, “Midnights”? Could “Folklore” and “Evermore”?
Turns out, we get everything with a 3.5 hours of Swift performing songs from all her albums except her debut.
#4 Evermore is not her neglected child
One of the best Eras tour moments is when Taylor does fan service.
Now, Evermore is often compared to Folklore by fans. it's seen as the younger sibling constantly in competition with its older counterpart. Evermore Swifties, however, stand firm in their love for the album, defending it fiercely, flaws and all.
Some fans even speculated that Taylor Swift herself didn't favor Evermore when she didn't acknowledge its one-year anniversary on social media.
But Taylor proved them wrong during the Eras tour in Glendale, Arizona. After performing Marjorie, she addressed the crowd, stating, “We're currently in the middle of the Evermore album, which is an album I absolutely love, despite what some of you say on TikTok.”
#5 Champagne problems ft tears of joy
Every night during the Eras Tour, Taylor Swift takes a seat at the piano for her solo performance of Champagne Problems, and it never fails to ignite the crowd.
This moment literally stops the show, as fans scream and cheer for minutes on end, leaving Taylor unable to continue. Some standing ovation even lasted for more than 10 minutes.
Since Taylor doesn't do a traditional encore break, this becomes the audience's opportunity to take the spotlight and go all out—an unconventional but completely natural occurrence.
#6 Joe Alwyn is not an invisible string
In the world of Taylor Swift, everything happens for a reason. So when the romantic Invisible String song disappeared from the Eras Tour setlist and was replaced by the equally poignant the 1 from the same album, it should have sparked curiosity at the time.
However, it wasn't until certain headlines about Swift's personal life emerged a week later that the significance of the change became clear. It turned out to be a very welcome swap indeed.
#7 Did Joe Alwyn met someone on the internet and took her home?
Not a single soul was complaining that the 1 wasn't heartbreaking enough.
But during the live version, Taylor adds what fans call The Note, delivering the emotional blow. Perched on the mossy roof of her Folklore Cottage of Solitude, she adds an extra touch to the line, “You meet some woman on the internet and taaake her home.”
Interestingly, this note change came just shortly after the breakup.
#8 Surprise songs with Aaron Dessner
Another solid part of Eras tour moments is the surprise songs. One acoustic and one on piano. But the most devastating always came when she sings with Aaron Dessner.
From an acoustic rendition of The Great War to the touching piano ballad Mad Woman, Dessner and Swift delivered. However, the real standout moment came during Would've, Could've, Should've, with Dessner on guitar. While the entire Nissan Stadium echoing Swift's powerful lyrics, “give me back my girlhood, it was mine first!”.
#9 Another surprise re-recorded album
Two years prior, the Swiftie community got Swift's Red (Taylor's Version). It earned her a Grammy too. Another re-recording album got her a trending with the announcement of Speak Now (Taylor's Version) in her hometown on May 5. She even treated fans to a performance of Sparks Fly.
Long before the Eras Tour began, fans were eagerly trying to decode Taylor Swift's hints to figure out which of her first six albums would be out next. While many debated between Speak Now and 1989, those who guessed Speak Now turned out right early in the tour.
Then, Swift dropped several hints suggesting there could be more music on the way. Including sightings at recording studios on her days off. Ending the first US leg of the tour on 8/9 in Los Angeles felt like too much of a coincidence.
Fortunately, everyone's decoding efforts paid off. Swift revealed 1989 (Taylor’s Version) in true Taylor fashion, wearing blue versions of each Eras costume—a nod to the adopted color for 1989.
After singing fan-favorite bonus track “New Romantics” during the surprise-song set, she finally revealed the new cover and release date. It was the perfect conclusion to the first leg of her more Eras tour moments.
#10 Taylor Lautner and a new music video
Despite Taylor Lautner's somewhat clumsy entrance into the Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) conversation on social media (remember #prayingforjohn?), his appearance with Taylor Swift in Kansas City was a cool and full-circle moment. Swift surprised fans by bringing him out on stage, where he even pulled off an impressive cartwheel—something he claimed wasn't planned.
The spontaneous acrobatics reminded some of Lautner's flip in the 2010 movie Valentine’s Day.
But that's not the end of it.
During her tour stop in Kansas City on July 7—the release date of Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)—Taylor Swift surprised fans by debuting the heist-themed music video for I Can See You. The video featured Taylor Lautner, Joey King, and Presley Cash attempting to steal her third album. It was a meta reunion for the I Can See You stars, as King and Cash had previously appeared in the music video for Mean.
#11 Long live for fans…and future fans
The Eras Tour is not without moments of nostalgia. While some fans jumped on board with Folklore, there are many diehard fans who have grown up with Taylor Swift. From middle school to college. That's why lines like “tell them how the crowds went wild / tell them how I hope they shine” in Long Live resonate so strongly. And why Swifties were thrilled to have it included in the setlist.
What's even cooler is that Swift is using the koi fish guitar from the Speak Now era. Only OG swifties knew at the time, but now everyone in the fandom got the memo.
#12 A tribute to Kobe Bryant
Taylor Swift's grace and generosity have become legendary that some of her Eras tour moments captured it.
At her So-Fi Stadium show in Los Angeles on Aug. 3, the pop star made a touching gesture by gifting her Red-era bowler hat to Bianka, daughter of Kobe and Vanessa Bryant. During a performance of 22. The heartwarming moment, where Swift hugged Bianka and placed the hat on her head, quickly went viral.
The moment also made it into the final cut of her record-breaking Eras tour film.
#13 Karma is the guy on the Chiefs!
Now, who could forget? Taylor Swift first started Karma with a “guy on the screen” lyric. But that all changed when Travis Kelce publicly pursued her. From theories that they've been seeing each other to her first Chiefs stadium appearance, it's straight off of Wattpad.
Every time Travis Kelce watches her live from her VIP tent, Swift will make sure everybody knows that Karma is the guy on chiefs coming straight home to her.
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