Taylor Swift is Brilliant

On Tuesday the 11^th of February 2014, my life changed forever…

I went to the O2 along with 19,999 other people to see Taylor Swift on the last ever date of her Red Tour and it was pretty much the best thing ever.

I don’t know how you feel about Taylor Swift but let me tell you, if you don’t think she’s brilliant then you need to sort yourself out. She is an incredible popstar and, although I always thought she was ace, seeing her LIVE was completely mind-blowing.

(((Here is a drawing I did for Julia Scheele's Heroines Zine)))

Firstly, she has a great back catalogue. I’m sure you’re familiar with Love Story, 22 etc… but some of her album tracks are just as incredible. Don’t believe me? That’s cool… but I got you something!

Better Than Revenge is incredibly sassy and I personally think her up-tempo songs are where her song writing really shines. I mean, this song features the undeniably spectacular lyric “she’s not a saint and she’s not what you think – she’s an actress. She’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress.” Burn!

And then there’s Long Live – the sort of song that would be the opening music if they ever remake Dawson’s Creek. It’s full of hope, the song I would loudly listen to if I ever went on a road trip down the West Coast of California… or, perhaps more realistically, the song I would listen to in bed, reading through a series of text messages that used to mean something to me.

So yeah – Taylor Swift writes a cracking song. Admit it.

But, seeing her perform live (in a massive stadium) really drives home how accomplished she is when it comes to putting on a show. I’ve seen a lot of performances online and on the TV but witnessing them first hand is something else. She knows just what to say to get the crowd screaming at the top of their lungs. She brings out a different special guest every show and you feel like you’re seeing two BFFs having an ace time and it’s magical. She’s happy to take some time between songs to tell the audience how to deal with mean people and she does it so well that you really feel like she’s talking to you.

I tried to find a good clip to illustrate how brilliant she is in a huge stadium and probably the best is the music video for Red.

It’s made up of footage of the tour itself and you can see how hard she’s working (although it never feels like hard work) and how much the crowd are loving it (check out all the light up signs). Does it help if I tell you that I cried a little during some of her set? Does it help if I tell you that I was smiling like that creepy moon emoji for a solid hour after the show ended? Does it help if I tell you that I think I might actually be suffering Post-Taylor Blues?

Taylor Swift is the popstar (and BFF) I wish I’d grown up with. She writes a brilliant song, she sings a brilliant song and if you think you’re too cool to listen to her songs then you need to stop being a baby and buy an album! I’d recommend ‘Speak Now’ to start with!

Special shout-out to my pal John who came along with me and to Sally who helped make my dreams come true!  

PS. If you’re Taylor Swift and you’re reading this, could you please do a nice cover of ‘Hysteric’ by Yeah Yeah Yeahs? That would be ace.