Is Taylor Swift forgetting that the Midwest existed? Some fans might say this is the case as she announces only two locations for Lover Fest. Lover Fest is the name given to Swift’s upcoming U.S. events in 2020 celebrating her newest album, Lover. This is her seventh album which was released August 23rd, 2019, featuring 18 songs that include singles such as “ME!,” “You Need to Calm Down,” and the album’s namesake, “Lover.”
The two locations of Lover Fest are Inglewood, California (Lover Fest West) on July 25th and 26th, and Foxborough, Maryland (Lover Fest East) on July 31st and August 1st. From St. Louis, either location is at least 1000 miles. Hopefully she will add a Lover Fest Midwest (it even has a good ring to it!) before too many fans are buying plane tickets and booking hotel rooms to attend these massive shows. According to The Rolling Stone, Swift will be the first woman in history to open an NFL stadium – first SoFi Stadium, then Gillette Stadium.
Why did she choose this method of performance? Swift said on Instagram, “The Lover album is open fields, sunsets, + SUMMER. I want to perform it in a way that feels authentic. I want to go to places I haven’t been and play festivals. Where we didn’t have festivals, we made some.” She will also play a short European tour starting in June 2020. This is quite the contrast to her last record-breaking Reputation tour which took place just last year. This stadium tour featured 40 dates in North America, 13 dates overseas, over 2 million tickets sold, and more than $265 million acquired in the U.S. (Variety.com).
Although some may not catch a show this year, Swift is still making efforts for her fans to hear her new songs. She performed a tiny desk concert at NPR in Washington, D.C. this October. You can find the full video at the link below.
Taylor Swift NPR Tiny Desk Concert
GU junior and Taylor Swift fan Shelby Farthing gave a comment about Swift’s decision to have a limited number of shows. “I’m glad that she did a tiny desk concert because I feel like it was a really beautiful, raw performance and she played all of my favorite songs, but I am kind of disappointed she isn’t coming to the Midwest. I was planning on taking my little sister if she was going to tour again.”
Maybe it is too soon to claim that she is forgetting about the Midwest fans. The Swifties have to take into account the meaning behind the song “Soon You’ll Get Better.” This song was written for her mother, Andrea Swift. Her cancer relapse and Swift’s fears are at the core of the song’s lyrics. Many Swifties decided to give grace as Swift has claimed she is prioritizing family over touring. In an article from Buzzfeed, she said in an interview with Zane Lowe, “I can’t go on long tours and not have the ability to go home if I need to. I have priorities that aren’t just touring now, and [the fans] have been really respectful of that in the past.”
Though the fans may miss her amazing shows for a time, they will still Love(r) her the same.
Media by Ryan Nelson.
