Concerts Makes Me Cry
On the New York Times podcast, Popcast, during their final episode of 2018, Joe Coscarelli explains why he sometimes gets misty-eyed listening to music. For him, it is not a particular song that brings it on, but concerts, or rather, the audience that attends them, “Seeing large groups of people enjoy something in, like, the most earnest way.”
I am the first person to call myself sensitive, not that I think it is a bad thing, mostly it is just plain fact. I am a known crier when it comes to Google commercials, sappy movies, and 60 Minutes segments. My first cry of 2019 was to the Taylor Swift reputation Stadium Tour streaming on Netflix.
I have loved Taylor Swift since she was a curly headed girl with an acoustic guitar, and I was just a girl with an iPod Nano listening to “I’m Only Me When I’m With You” on the bus ride to school. Like many of her fans, I have watched her grow and change and explore different genres. I had the pleasure of seeing Taylor Swift live during The 1989 World Tour which is a memory I hold close to my heart. I went with my two best friends, and the three of us held hands, shouted lyrics, and cried. I watched the reputation Tour by myself on my laptop, dancing on my kitchen floor in socks, yelling lyrics and crying all the same.
In having her performance available via Netflix, a streaming platform with millions of subscribers, Swift is making the experience of seeing her in concert accessible to fans who might not otherwise have the chance. Personally, I could not afford her tour this time around, but for others, it might not be about cost. Distance, transportation, and lack of availability can make it impossible to see an artist in a live performance. Whatever the case, in putting her concert on a streaming platform, seeing Swift live became instantly accessible to millions.
In between songs, Taylor Swift comments on the light up bracelets the audience members received upon entry into the stadium and were asked to wear. She explains that the bracelets allow her to see every single person in the stadium. It is clear that the love between Taylor Swift and her fans is mutual. You can see it on their faces during her set, as they cry to songs like "Delicate" off of reputation. And you can see it in the care Swift takes to make every fan feel important, even the ones at home in their socks.
As Joe Coscarelli pointed out, there is a certain magic to live concerts. It is rare that we get to see a large group of people in celebration, and shows are an opportunity to do just that. Watching strangers love something so wholeheartedly together is a heartwarming experience. All the fans in the audience are there for the same reasons, and they are celebrating together. As the camera pans to audience members crying, dancing, and singing their hearts out, it is hard not to feel giddy, their joy is infectious.
As her set is coming to a close, Taylor Swift dedicates her song, "Long Live" off of her 2010 album, Speak Now to her fans, saying, “This is a song, that for me, is always gonna be about you.” The reputation Stadium Tour is sprinkled with old and familiar songs off of her past albums. Seeing her sing those older songs sitting behind a piano or with an acoustic guitar in her hands, serves as a reminder of where her career began. A time when many of the fans there now, first fell in love with Swift’s sound. Though Taylor Swift has ventured into different genres, one thing has remained a constant, her gratitude for the people standing before her, listening to her music.
Even though I wasn’t there with the fans filmed in this Netflix Original, watching, I felt like I was part of their shared experience, and seeing their joy, sharing in it, caused me not to get misty-eyed, but truly sob standing in my kitchen. “Long Live” the closing song on Speak Now fades into the closing song on reputation, “New Year’s Day” making these songs markers of where Swift has been, where she is now, and the places her career can go. Together, Taylor Swift and the audience sing, “Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you.” as they make memories that both parties will be holding onto for a long time. Whether you are a fan of Taylor Swift or not, it is clear that the love she has for her fans is real, and that the people who have supported her and listened to for all these years aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.