Welcome to Swift City: How Every Stop on the Eras Tour Is Celebrating Taylor Swift

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Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour - Las Vegas, NV - Credit: Ethan Miller/TAS23/Getty Images
Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour - Las Vegas, NV - Credit: Ethan Miller/TAS23/Getty Images

Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour started causing a commotion months before it even launched. But leading up to every performance on the 27-date tour, which goes into the summer and ends with two shows in Los Angeles this August, communities have gone big and ramped up the excitement for Swift.

Each city the star is performing in has prepared for her grand arrival, pulling out all the stops to turn her shows into huge local events. From changed names to honorary mayorships, here’s how the Eras Tour stops have rolled out the red carpet for Swift so far.

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Glendale, Arizona

Swift kicked off Eras in Glendale, so of course this Arizona city was the first to make a grand gesture in honor of the pop star. Mayor Jerry P. Weiers announced that the town would be temporarily named Swift City for the weekend she was there.

“There is no need to calm down, we’re fearless and doing something highly unusual to celebrate the fact that Taylor’s concerts start right here!” Weiers said in a statement. “We know all too well that she’s one of the most influential artists of her generation and we are writing our own love story for her and greeting every Swiftie in style!”

Arlington, Texas

For the second stop on Swift’s tour, Arlington got into a festive mood to celebrate their shows. They re-named a street “Taylor Swift Way,” gave Swift an honorary key to the city, set up red lampposts outside the arena and even hosted a $40 pet adoption event.

The city also decided to have fun with some Swiftie puns, sharing an announcement that included lines like “Arlington is ‘Enchanted’ to welcome Taylor Swift back to AT&T Stadium…” and, “‘Long Story Short,’ Arlington knows the tens of thousands of fans heading to the Entertainment District this weekend will have ‘The Best Day’ ever while attending The Eras Tour in The American Dream City.”

Las Vegas

Vegas lit up their Gateway Arches every night ahead of Swift’s performance in honor of the artist. The light show represented Swift’s albums.

Tampa, Florida

Mayor Jane Castor upped the ante ahead of Swift’s three-night run in Florida. Castor announced that she wanted to present Swift with a key to the city and offered the singer honorary mayorship.

In video shared to her social media accounts, Castor also played around with Swift puns and welcomed the singer to Tampa in a major way. “We know Glendale changed its name, Arlington made a street sign, and Vegas illuminated their Gateway Arches, but here in Tampa, we’ve got a reputation to uphold,” she said. “We want to go bigger. So I want to present you with a key to the city.”

Houston

From April 21-23, Houston’s NRG Stadium was briefly renamed NRG Stadium (Taylor’s Version) in honor of the shows. There were even banners hung around the venue to show off the new name.

“With the name change, I know it’ll never go out of style,” Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced. “Plus, it’s not only the young that enjoy your music. I hope your stay is beyond your wildest dreams, and for everyone in Harris County, let’s get ready for it!”

Nashville

Swift spent her formative years growing up in Nashville and launching her career as a country star, so her honorary hometown went all out to celebrate her return. Mayor John Cooper announced that a bench at Centennial Park had been dedicated to her, a nod to a lyric in Folklore song “Invisible String” that references the park. The May weekend she played there was also officially proclaimed to be Taylor Swift Homecoming Weekend by the mayor as well.

Philadelphia

For as much as the different cities on the Eras tour have given to Swift, she’s giving back to them, too. Over two months after she stopped in the city for three shows, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve announced that the tour boosted revenues in the hotel sector for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. “Despite the slowing recovery in tourism in the region overall, one contact highlighted that May was the strongest month for hotel revenue in Philadelphia since the onset of the pandemic, in large part due to an influx of guests for the Taylor Swift concerts in the city,” city officials wrote in the central bank’s release of its Beige Book.

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