Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour is in full swing, and Cities are Competing to Make the Grandest Gesture as she arrives. What better way to keep track of the celebrations than by ranking them from the best to the lamest in a numbered list.
1. Tampa, Florida
Tampa didn’t play around. The mayor of the city, Jane Castor, made Swift the Mayor for a day, as well as presented her with a key to the city. In a one minute video for the star, Castor stated, “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,” Castor said of the stunts pulled by other cities to make the “Eras” stops a little more special. “We want to go bigger. So I want to present you with a key to the city.” The mayor (Castor, not Swift) stated towards the end of the video, “Mayor Swift has a nice ring to it,” and we couldn’t agree more.
2. Glendale, Arizona
Swift started her tour in Glendale, Arizona, and adorably, the city “renamed” themselves for Swift’s arrival to “Swift City.” While this was a sweet gesture, little did they know that they would now set a precedent for every city to follow. Glendale was really the OG in this hilarious competition, and having a city named after you, even if it was temporary, is a very warm welcome.
3. Arlington, Texas
Swift’s next stop was Arlington, Texas, where she played three shows at the AT&T Stadium. Arlington truly went all out. The city had Swift-themed festivities going on all weekend, renamed a street to Taylor Swift Way, and, to top it all off, they gave Swift a key to the city. Given that there were multiple parts to this gift, our very scientific calculations place Arlington at number three.
4. Nashville, Tennessee
Not only did Nashville Mayor, John Cooper, proclaim May 5-7, Swift’s performance dates, as “Taylor Swift Homecoming Weekend,” (Swift grew up in Nashville), but he also decreed a bench to the “Cardigan”-singer. The bench sits in Nashivlle’s famous Centennial Park, a reference to her song “Invisible String,” which also features the lyrics “Green was the color of the grass where I used to read at Centennial Park.” Maybe not the grandest gesture, but it’s super endearing given Swift’s connection to the city.
Nashville has installed a bench in Centennial Park in honor of Taylor Swift, with lyrics from her track ‘invisible string.’
“For Taylor Swift, a bench for you to read on at Centennial Park.” pic.twitter.com/RRtcKUjThc
— Pop Base (@PopBase) May 4, 2023
5. Houston, Texas
Swift then traveled back to Texas for her Houston shows, and Houston was prepared for her. Harris County Judge, Lina Hidalgo, informed the public that NRG Stadium, where Swift was performing, would be renamed to NRG Stadium (Taylor’s Version) during the weekend she was performing. Banners and signs with the stadium’s new name were hung at the entrances. A very cute gesture, but a tad lackluster compared to some of the other cities. Isn’t everything supposed to be bigger in Texas?
thank you taylor swift for scheduling a concert in houston just for my birthday !! pic.twitter.com/MMqD2uBFMN
— Megan Menchaca (@meganmmenchaca) April 23, 2023
6. Las Vegas, Nevada
After her opening shows in Glendale, Swift made her way to Las Vegas, Nevada, to play two nights at the Allegiant Stadium. In honor of Swift’s presence in the city, Vegas lit up their iconic Gateway Arches ahead of both of her shows. The arches’ colors were specially chosen to represent the popstars 10 albums. While this was a super cute move, the celebration unfortunately looked a little lame in comparison to some of the other city’s presentations.
Las Vegas will light up their Gateway Arches in Taylor Swift eras colors every night until she performs in the city on Saturday. pic.twitter.com/ojZEObZGgJ
— Pop Base (@PopBase) March 23, 2023
Top photo: Screen grab from “Taylor Swift invited to be honorary Tampa mayor ahead of tour stop | ANC” from @ANCAlerts on YouTube
