Shimmering Taylor Swift fans filled U.S. Bank Stadium with sequins Friday for a concert that marked not only a major cultural moment but an intimate, shared experience — between mothers and daughters, longtime besties and, after the exchange of bracelets, new friends.
All day, they formed long, snaking lines outside of the venue, trading outfit compliments and predictions about what tunes Swift might pick for the night's so-called "surprise songs."
They had arrived to see the Eras Tour concert, buzzed about for weeks. Swift sold out two shows at the stadium, which holds 60,000, after an infamous Ticketmaster debacle that disappointed those who didn't get in. Gov. Tim Walz proclaimed Friday and Saturday's concert dates official "Taylor Swift Days," following Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey's unofficial renaming of the city to "Swiftieapolis."
Her fans, famously devout and detailed, dressed in elaborate outfits, many bespoke, that referred not only to Swift's "eras" but to specific lyrics, quotes and inside jokes.
Abigail Greenheck and her friend and old college roommate Chelsie Flatness surprised their 7-year-old daughters with tickets and matching red, sequined jackets. The pandemic brought Greenheck and her daughter, Sidney, "together in Swiftie nation," she said. Together, they devoured the albums, the documentaries.
"Now it's a shared love between us."
Fans can relate to Swift's different genres and eras because they, too, move through phases in their own lives, Greenheck said, her cheeks sparkling with silver glitter. "There's a commonality in that I think is cross-generational."
Outside on the plaza, two women in their 20s wearing bright red lipstick and heart-shaped sunglasses performed "All Too Well" on their harps.
"We're the unlucky ones," said Hannah Flowers, 27, as her friend and fellow harpist Anna Maxwell, 29, laughed. Unable to find tickets they could afford, the pair decided to perform for Swifties.
A girl apologized for not having money to tip them, offering a bracelet with letters spelling "August," a song from "Folklore," and "Bejeweled," from "Midnights," instead. Their tip basket contained dollar bills and a few butterfly temporary tattoos.
A mom in line to get into the stadium thanked the pair for lowering her blood pressure.
"We're happy to help," Flowers said.
Fans drove from the suburbs, from Iowa, from Manitoba. Susie Imhof and her mother, Annie, flew in from Denver to celebrate her 18th birthday. Friday's show would be her fourth time seeing Swift on this tour.
"We can't stop," Annie Imhof said. "We're addicted now."
Dozens of fans started their day at the Mall of America, which was offering free bracelet-making and face-painting in the north atrium, as well as $13 rides in yellow school buses to downtown Minneapolis.
Anaya Sierra threaded green beads onto elastic, spelling out "Our Song."
The 27-year-old has loved Swift since 2008, when she first heard that tune on the radio, she explained, beaming. She and her sister, Marcella, 20, drove up from Mason City, Iowa, on Thursday with their mother, Raquel Ponce, to see Swift for the first time.
The sisters love how Swift is true to herself, fights for her fan and appreciates her mother. In them, Ponce sees herself as a young, Prince-loving music fan. "To me, she's like Prince," she said of Swift. She writes her own songs, does her own thing and "is on her own level."
"I'm so happy to see them so excited," she said of her daughters, snapping photos of them on her phone.
Just as Anaya Sierra was tying off her bracelet, the DJ played "Our Song." The sisters squealed, then sang along, rocking their hips.
On the bus to the stadium, fans traded friendship bracelets, a trend based on a lyric in "You're on Your Own, Kid" — "So make the friendship bracelets / Take the moment and taste it." Emma Pufahl, 23, made smaller friendship rings after spotting them on TikTok. As someone blasted "Cruel Summer" on their cell phone, a few folks debated possible "surprise songs."
Hailey Willson, 21, predicted "Exile," a song that features Bon Iver, aka Justin Vernon, who is based out of nearby Eau Claire, Wis.
"If Bon Iver came out, I would collapse," she said with a dramatic sigh.
The day tickets went up for sale, Willson refreshed Ticketmaster from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. She was about to give up when four tickets appeared. "I sobbed hysterically," she said. Willson, of St. Cloud, has been a fan "since birth," she said. Sitting beside her, her mother Katy Dols, 42, explained: "I'm the OG Swiftie."
Her wrists were covered in colorful bracelets the pair had crafted the night before. The mother-daughter pair had seen a lot of concerts together, Dols said, but "this is the most special."
Her voice caught and tears formed. "She's my best friend, my partner in crime."
After fighting Ticketmaster and traffic, concertgoers grinned after finally entering the stadium, snapping selfies and singing songs.
"gather" - Google News
June 24, 2023 at 07:56AM
https://ift.tt/7na85ZV
Taylor Swift's Minnesota fans gather to laud their queen - Star Tribune
"gather" - Google News
https://ift.tt/npVKfUl
https://ift.tt/cCE9jue
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Taylor Swift's Minnesota fans gather to laud their queen - Star Tribune"
Post a Comment