Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour came to an end on December 8th, 2024, after almost two years. Her three-and-a-half-hour-long concert prominently featured all eras of her music from her eighteen-year career. Her music showcases a lifetime of creativity and depicts her life and stories. Swift has not only left an impact on modern music and performance but also a lasting economic impact on all the cities she’s visited.
By July of 2024, Swift had already surpassed one billion dollars in revenue from ticket sales alone with an expectation of surpassing two billion by December 2024. Overall revenue from the tour is expected to be over four billion dollars. While Swift has made money, she has also given back money in various philanthropic pursuits. She has given millions of dollars to food shelters in cities across the globe. Her donations contribute enough to feed people for almost a decade. Additionally, every single city Swift has visited has experienced a large economic boost. Many fans have shopped or dined locally while attending the tour, giving local businesses an exceptional amount of profit. Countless businesses have reported that the income from Swift’s shows has helped them get out of rough patches.
Swift also gave each member of her team, from backup dancers to transportation, a life-changing amount of money. Swift and her father hand-delivered checks of $100,000 to each team member. Those who worked with her reported that this money has helped improve their lives.
Additionally, Swift just released a Target-exclusive book about the Eras Tour, estimated to make over eight million dollars on just the first set of prints, greatly benefiting Target’s stocks.
While Swift may have more money than thought possible from the Eras tour, there is no doubt that she used a large chunk of it to help others. Although there is debate about whether she deserves these profits, many fans agree that the concert was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, whether witnessed at an actual event, through the movie version, or TikTok live streams. As someone who attended the concert in May of 2024 at MetLife Stadium, I fully agree with them.
The Eras Tour is a one-of-a-kind concert; everything from the scenery, costumes, dances, and song choices is well thought out and creates such a beautiful story. Her costumes are all custom-made and pay homage to even the smallest details of her career. Many fans enjoyed guessing what outfits she would wear and became very excited when a new outfit appeared. When featuring her Reputation Era, inspired by her sixth studio album, Reputation, she wore only one outfit, and fans were convinced that she would announce the re-recording of the album once the outfit changed. Although this did not happen, Swift has certainly achieved fame in part due to her initiative to re-record many of her previous albums. Throughout multiple concerts in the Era’s Tour, Swift announced the re-recording of various albums, giving fans in the audience a sneak peek.
I also fully believe that this concert experience brought fans together from across the world and helped people form amazing connections. From encouraging fans to make and share friendship bracelets—a tradition harkening back to the early days of her career—to giving various deserving fans her signature ‘22’ hat, Swift created a positive environment for so many people across all generations. Personally, I attended a concert with one of my close friends and our moms. When the movie about the tour—Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour—was released, I went again with my mom. The tour created lasting memories for my mom and me, as it did for so many others across the globe.