Super Swifties: Three Taylor Swift superfans and their appeal to the artist

The concert of a lifetime. A three hour set, 44 songs and one of the biggest stars at age 33 — Taylor Swift superfans were willing to wait in an online queue for hours to buy tickets.

On Nov. 1st, Swift announced that she would be going on the “Eras” tour — featuring songs from each of her “eras”. Her last tour was in 2018, so Swift fans have been waiting, starved of a concert for nearly five years.

Swift’s fans who were lucky enough to score a ticket for one of her 52 shows now just have to decide on their concert outfit. Across the country, superfans have been dressing as Swift herself — more specifically, one of her iconic eras. Three self-proclaimed East “Swifties” can’t wait for her local July show.

MS. JORDAN:

Sitting in her Ford Focus on the way home from high school, now-history teacher Jenny Jordan turned on her radio to “Tim McGraw” by Swift. Her combination of twang and pop began Jordan’s obsession, leaving the same Swift song stuck in her head for days.

She loves how Swift has a song for every mood. When Reputation was released in 2017, Swift’s confidence inspired Jordan.

It isn’t just Swift’s music that Jordan loves though, it’s who she is as a person. It’s the fact that Swift can speak up and help others feel comfortable to talk about their own stories.

“She shows that you can just reinvent yourself all the time,” Jordan said,  “I like that she’s really had some hard times with different things, and she always stands up for herself.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift released a surprise album, “Folklore.” For Jordan, the album couldn’t have been released at a better time. Feeling isolated because of the pandemic, Jordan related to Swift’s melancholy lyrics and felt less alone listening to songs like “Mirrorball.”

Plus Jordan is an eager follower of the hints that Swift drops before new releases.

The Easter eggs [are] so fun to talk about,” Jordan said, “She put this on Instagram, what do you think it means and how come the number five is in the picture?’ 

During Memorial Day weekend, Jordan will be attending her first Swift concert in New Jersey. She’s had her outfit planned since the day she got her tickets: a cropped t-shirt and mini skirt with bright pink heart-shaped sunglasses.

CAMPBELL BRINTON:

As a toddler, now-freshman Campbell Brinton stumbled around the living room, listening to the rising pop artist Taylor Swift while her parents played their favorite song, “Sparks Fly.”

Now, Brinton pays close attention to Swift’s lyrics and how each song has a deeper meaning beyond her peppy lyrics like, “Our song is the way you laugh.” Her favorite lyric is, “You drew stars around my scars” because of the personal connections. She connects this to growing up and growing apart from lifelong friends.

“I feel like she’s kind of tapping at every genre,” Brinton said. “[The songs] all hold a lot of meaning.”

On Spotify, Brinton has listened to over 100,000 minutes of Swift in 2022. If it’s in the car on the way to school or getting ready to go to breakfast on weekend mornings, she’s a constant listener. She’ll analyze Swift lyrics to relate them back to her own emotions because she has a song for each mood like “this is me trying” or “illicit affairs.”

In July, Brinton will attend both concerts in Kansas City wearing a silver dress and cowgirl boots. Her outfit is inspired by Swift’s song “Mirrorball”, which depicts the features of a disco ball in it.

SOFIA WEHNER:

Reputation, Red and 1989. Junior Sofia Wehner danced by her mom’s side during all three of Swift’s past concerts in Kansas City. Taylor Swift was their absolute favorite artist.

At the Red concert, Wehner held up a sign saying, “I love Taylor” while wearing red-framed heart sunglasses. She felt a strong connection to Swift who started her career at a young age.

“She started when she was a teenager,” Wehner said, “That’s why people like her music because she was their age. She writes about stuff that everyone goes through.”

Wehner can recognize any Swift song in the first few seconds of it playing. Whether the songs are new or old, she can sing along to every word. Sitting in school or driving, she presses shuffle and lets any era play.

Wehner will be in Arrowhead stadium this July 7th, dancing in her black “Reputation” themed outfit with bedazzled black boots.