Gen Z Speaks: How Taylor Swift week in Singapore brought out the best — and worst — in all of us

If you’ve never heard a Taylor Swift song in your life, you must not have left your home for the month of March.
The pop sensation set off major waves when she first announced not one, not two, but six shows in Singapore as part of her behemoth Eras Tour. In the lead-up to “Taylor Week”, her music quickly became the soundtrack of our nation, blasting on the radios, in shops, malls, even as background music to countless social media posts.
The megastar even made her way to our Parliament, where members of parliament took turns exchanging mentions of her hit songs.
“Are you going to see Taylor Swift?” was the number one question from the lips of fans and non-fans alike. (For the record, yes, I queued outside a Singpost outlet for nearly 24 hours for my tickets).
Reflecting on the past week as I try to recover from my PTSD — Post-Taylor Swift Depression — one thing’s for sure: Swift’s presence here has brought out the best and the worst in all of us.
You wouldn’t need to be one of the lucky ones that made it into the National Stadium to know the joy that Swift’s six shows have brought.
The pop star herself wasn’t the only reason to smile: A fan sold his tickets to two foreigners who were crying outside the stadium after being scammed, people cheered wildly for the lucky Swiftie who got Swift’s coveted 22 hat during the concert, and the list goes on.
The spirit of togetherness wasn’t limited to just Singaporeans, either. Economists estimate that about 70 per cent of concert-goers were visitors from out of town — not surprising, considering the way their shouts overpowered those of Singaporeans’ during the shows whenever Swift asked who travelled from abroad.
On one night, I entered a stadium restroom to find two Swifties from China giving out temporary tattoos to concert-goers from Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia. Fans from around the world spent the long hours waiting for Swift to appear on stage complimenting each others’ outfits and singing their hearts out to the same songs together.
Attendees eagerly participated in the friendship bracelet trading trend kickstarted by Swift’s song You’re On Your Own Kid, swapping the handmade accessories with friends and strangers alike. 
I saw several children with bracelets stacked up halfway to their elbows. One mother told me that fans had been giving her children the bracelets without asking to receive one in return. Their kindness warmed her heart, she said — and mine too.
Some concert-goers also dressed up in Swift’s “Junior Jewels” pajama outfit from her You Belong With Me music video, armed with markers for other attendees to doodle their names or favourite song title or lyrics on the shirt.
The hype was no less outside the stadium, where hundreds of fans held picnics to sing along to Swift’s performance.
Videos of their reactions to her surprise songs flooded social media, and many gave tips on the best spots to watch the stadium light up online. 
It seemed that with or without a ticket, everybody who wanted to join the fun managed to find a way to do so.
In the midst of all these, it struck me that there’s nothing quite as enchanting as watching people from so many cultures and countries coming together to celebrate the same occasion. 
But not all was sunshine and rainbows last week. 
If there’s anything to take away from the viral videos of people crying outside of the National Stadium and countless warnings from the police, Taylor Week was a free-for-all for scammers.
At least 334 people fell for these scammers in the first two months of the year, with total losses then amounting to at least S$213,000. A 29-year-old was also charged with allegedly cheating fans with tickets to Swift’s sold-out show on online marketplace Carousell.
Also killing the vibe was the fact that some fans had been forced to buy their tickets for upwards of three times the price, as they lost out to computer bots programmed to help scalpers snag seats faster than us plebeian humans could.
Scammers and scalpers aside, another source of negativity was some Swifties themselves.
When Eras Tour ticket sales launched in October, millions jostled in the virtual queue for a spot in the National Stadium in what was quickly dubbed the “Great Ticketing War”. Due to the hyper-intense competition, some Swifties have dealt with disappointment by showing hostility towards those that managed to snag tickets.
The recording of a woman complaining how concert-goers did not know the surprise songs — tracks not on the regular concert set list that Swift sang each night — became a trending TikTok sound. Embittered fans complained how some attendees sat down as Swift sang slower songs from albums such as Folklore and Evermore.
Even some concertgoers not dressing up for the show had a small portion of Swifties up in arms over who “rightfully deserves” tickets.
As someone who sat down for parts of the concert, I’m defending my decision. It’s exhausting to stand and dance for more than three-and-a-half hours straight — props to Swift for doing so all throughout the tour. Even despite taking a break during All Too Well, my legs were aching for days after.
Several Swifties also got snobby about the trading of handcrafted bracelets, stating online that they only wanted to trade with people who had “nice” bracelets too. But where’s the fun if it’s only about looks? They’re friendship bracelets, after all — not fashion bracelets.
Outside the Swiftie community, stories of people enjoying their time at The Eras Tour inevitably drew party poopers chiming in with a disparaging “Ew, who is Taylor Swift anyway?” 
But you don’t have to love Swift nor her music for yourself. It doesn’t hurt to let her many fans have some fun — while benefiting our economy too.
From what I saw, Swift’s presence here alleviated some of the rigours, tensions and fragmentations of everyday life. 
Taylor Week wasn’t just a bunch of bejewelled concerts. It was a reminder that despite the pressures and stresses of the challenges we face today, we can still come together as friends, neighbours, or even as strangers to have fun, or even just to share in each other’s excitement for the same thing.
So what now? How do Singapore’s Swifties move on from the greatest week of their lives? 
It’s anyone’s guess what the next big thing will be to sweep us all off our feet — but, when the time comes, what would greatly enhance the experience is not having to deal with this level of ill intent and contempt towards the throngs of people excited about having some good-natured fun. 
For now, I’ll relive the joys of Taylor Week in Singapore by streaming The Eras Tour concert film on Disney+.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Loraine Lee is a journalist at TODAY covering politics and people. She lost her voice attending two nights of The Eras Tour shouting the bridge of Illicit Affairs, cried when Taylor Swift performed Long Live, and will never get over the swimming transition.