by betsy brody
photo by cami liberty (taken from seat)
GAYLE got the crowd started with her energetic self-written songs, including her latest single “don’t call me pretty.” She also did a beautiful cover of Elton John's classic “Benny and The Jets.” She ended her set with her breakout hit “abcdefu.”
Next, Phoebe Bridgers took the stage and mesmerized the crowd with her sweet melodic vocals. She was joined with the rest of her super talented band. Her songs are very emotional story type songs, and her setlist included her hits like “Kyoto,” “Scott Street,” and boygenius’ “Me & My Dog.”
Let's go back to arriving at the stadium, Lincoln Financial Field, for the second of three sold out concerts in Philadelphia, Taylor Swift's hometown shows. The first thing you notice is all the amazing outfits the fans are wearing from cowboy hats, cowboy boots, homemade t-shirts, and sparkly outfits each reflecting their personalities. Fans were also exchanging friendship bracelets, referring to the line from “You’re On Your Own, Kid” from Taylor’s latest album, Midnights: “Everything you lose is a step you take / so make the friendship bracelets / take the moment and taste it / you've got no reason to be afraid”
Taylor truly appreciates her fans, and it feels like 70,000 friends in a room singing songs with her for three and a half hours, not to mention the 10,000+ fans in the street outside the stadium who were listening and singing along all night. This being her first tour since 2018, Taylor has since released four brand new albums along with two rerecorded albums. The Eras Tour celebrates each era she has had since the start of her career, almost all of her albums getting their own batch of songs sung each night. Each song was an amazing production from the outfits Taylor wore to the props, to the musicians and dancers, and to the acting and emotions. Some of the outfits were the sparkly red outfits from the Red era (singing “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” “I Knew You Were Trouble,” and “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” and the beautiful flowing gown from the Speak Now era (singing “Enchanted”). Another highlight was Phoebe Bridgers returning to the stage to sing “Nothing New,” a vault track from the rerecorded version of the Red album. Taylor is a master singer-songwriter and storyteller and truly involves the audience in every song. The light up bracelets each fan was given added to the amazing production — from creating hearts during “Lover,” falling snow and leaves during “All Too Well (10 Minute Version),” and lighting up with the Pride flag during “You Need To Calm Down.” This is a tour no one should miss if you are lucky enough to score tickets.