My Daughter's First Concert: Taylor Swift's "1989" World Tour

All those crazy stories you hear about how much Taylor Swift loves her fans? Based on my own experience with the pop superstar’s team over the last few months, I’d be willing to bet good money that almost all of them are true.

My wife and I have enjoyed the singer’s work since she released her debut album way back in 2006. We’re not as die-hard as her most passionate devotees, but we’ve always appreciated her skills as a musician and songwriter. Our daughter, Addison, is a different story altogether.

She became a huge fan the moment she heard “Shake It Off,” the first single from Swift’s latest album, “1989.” Addison was only three at the time, so I was shocked at how fast she learned the words. Any time the song came on the radio, she made me crank the volume full blast so she could have a dance party in her car seat. She watched the video so much on YouTube that it eventually became the first link that popped up on my phone whenever I typed the letter “Y.”

I surprised her with a copy of “1989” when it hit stores last October, a few weeks after her fourth birthday, and marveled at how quickly she memorized almost the entire album. It was nuts. So when I learned Swift was playing the Georgia Dome during her world tour, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to take Addison to her first concert.

I was so proud of myself for planning ahead. The show wasn’t until October 2015 (she’d be five then!) and I was checking on tickets in December – almost a full year in advance. What an awesome dad, right? Not quite. Turns out tickets had gone on sale the month before and sold out almost immediately. I spent a little while perusing StubHub, but quickly decided that wasn’t a realistic option since I didn’t want to take out a second mortgage on our house.

Addison with her ticket - right
before she learned what it meant.

No big deal, I figured. Surely this Taylor Swift thing was just a phase and the kid would be over it in a couple of months. Fast-forward to July and she was still rocking out to “1989” in the car almost every day. I kept thinking about other ways to get her into the concert and I suddenly remembered all those stories about cool things the star does for her fans.

On a whim, I did some quick research and tracked down the contact info for Swift’s publicist. I wrote a brief e-mail telling her about my daughter and how incredible it would be if her first concert experience involved one of the biggest pop stars on the planet.

Sure, it was a shot in the dark. Swift’s publicist gets constant requests – often from high-profile publications and television shows – and I’m just some guy from the middle of nowhere. Still, I figured the worst she could do was politely decline or delete the message and move on.

So imagine my surprise when, just a few days later, she responded that she’d be more than happy to hold three tickets for us to pick up the night of the show. And since Addison was so young, she would make sure the seats were near the stage so my daughter would have a good view.

After picking my jaw up off the floor, I quickly wrote her back to express my gratitude and work out all the specifics. Over the next three months, by some miracle, I managed to keep my big mouth shut so I wouldn’t ruin one of the best surprises of my kid’s life. Honestly, I wasn’t sure which of us would be more excited.

Our amazing seats for the show.

When the big evening arrived, my family and I hopped on Marta and headed to the Georgia Dome. Addison, who still had no idea what was about to happen, was overwhelmed at the massive number of people milling around outside (according to estimates, it was around 56,000). When I picked up our tickets, I handed one to my daughter and asked if she could figure out what it was for. After milking the suspense for a bit, I finally told her who we were there to see.

The look of utter joy on her face as she processed the news made it one of the best moments of my life, and that was before we even went inside. A bit later, after wading through one of the biggest crowds I’ve ever experienced (and I’ve been to Disney World in July), we found our seats and gawked in amazement. Swift’s publicist wasn’t kidding; we were four rows above the floor with a prime view.

After Shawn Mendes (who served as an added surprise for my daughter since his song “Stitches” is one of her current favorites) and Vance Joy performed, Addison was so excited she couldn’t stand still. I was about to explain that sometimes there’s a long wait between the opening acts and the headliner, but before I could say anything the lights went out and the crowd erupted.

As the first few notes of “Welcome to New York” boomed, I watched my daughter’s brain attempt to process what was going on. Then, when Swift strutted onto the stage, something finally clicked and Addison understood that her favorite singer was right in front of her – this wasn’t a YouTube video she had watched a million times, it was real life.

From that moment until the end of the night, my daughter never stopped cheering or singing. I figured she’d wear herself out and sleep through the second half of the show, but I was wrong. She sang practically every word, marveled at Swift’s continuous wardrobe changes and the show’s nonstop theatrical elements, and made friends with the teenage girls sitting around us. In other words, it was one of the best nights of her life.

My wife and I had a blast too. We’ve been to our fair share of concerts, enduring more than a few burned-out artists obviously going through the motions and sticking to their greatest hits because they know the crowd will head to the bathroom when they play new stuff.

A last-minute wardrobe change.

That was definitely not the case with Swift, especially considering her latest album might be her best and every song is single-worthy. Plus, even though she was on the last leg of a global tour, meaning she’d performed this show almost 50 times already, her energy never wavered.

Through more than 20 numbers – including the entire “1989” album, new versions of old favorites like “Fifteen,” “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “Love Story,” and a surprise duet with Swedish artist Tove Lo on her hit “Talking Body” – Swift made it feel like this was the first time she was playing these songs in front of an audience. It was also clear she was feeding off of the crowd’s energy; rather than getting exhausted as the show went on, she seemed to grow more invigorated.

When she closed with a high-intensity rendition of “Shake It Off,” complete with backup dancers and a spinning stage that rose into the air, it was the perfect way to wrap up the evening. After all, that’s the song that kicked off my daughter’s love for Swift in the first place. Everything had come full circle. And, of course, days later she’s still talking about the concert and asking when she can wear her souvenir T-shirt again.

I can’t thank Tree Paine and Dana Lobb at Premium PR enough for their generosity. They were responsible for making a pivotal event in my daughter’s childhood a reality. Because of them, I got to look like a pretty great dad.