On Friday, the pop star Taylor Swift released the first two episodes of her new Disney+ docuseries Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour | The End of an Era.
In the first episode, Swift discussed a thwarted terror plot that caused her to cancel her three concerts in Vienna, Austria in August of 2024. She also broke down while discussing a stabbing attack that killed three of her young fans.
Swift Breaks Down
At the time of this planned attack, three men were arrested. Afterwards, the CIA revealed that they planned to kill “tens of thousands of people.”
Swift, 35, was left stunned by this as she prepared for her first post-terror threat concert in London.
“It’s just kind of a weird feeling going into these last five shows in Europe. Because it sort of feels like we’ve done like 128 shows so far, but this is the first one where I feel like…,” Swift said. “I don’t know, like, I’m skating on thin ice or something.”
“We’ve had a series of very violent, scary things happen to the tour. We dodged, like, a massacre situation. And so I’ve just been kind of all over the place,” she continued as she became visibly emotional. “There was this horrible attack in Liverpool at a Taylor Swift-themed dance party, and it was little kids that … I have a hard time explaining it.”
Three little girls were killed in a stabbing attack that took place at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop in Liverpool, England in July of 2024. Watch Swift’s reaction to that in the video below.
Swift Bounces Back
In the docuseries, footage was shown from backstage of Swift’s August 15 show in London. She could be seen telling her mother that she felt “twitchy and fidgety” to get back onstage after the near-tragedy. However, she also made a point of acknowledging that she needs to “get back on the horse.”
“From a mental standpoint, being like afraid that something’s gonna happen to your fans at any moment, this is a new challenge,” Swift added. “I want to keep all of the nerves I have away from the crowd. Because when you’re sort of the ringleader of this show, they can sense any kind of shift energetically in you. And you have to really focus on that and factor that in, that you’re at the Eras Tour, nothing’s wrong.
Swift’s longtime friend Ed Sheeran, who performed with her at this London show, later joined her backstage to rehearse. She explained to him that she “need[ed] to do this show” to “remember the joy of this” following the violent threats.
The show went so well that Swift left the stage screaming “we’re back.” Once she got in her car, she called her now-fiancé Travis Kelce.
“I’m so happy,” she told him. He responded by saying, “I can hear it in your voice.”
Swift Meets With Victims And Families
In this docuseries, Swift was also shown becoming emotional as she prepared to meet with the families and victims of the stabbing attack. She admitted that she felt like she felt “like a pilot flying the plane” going through turbulence as she attempts to put on a show as normal.
“I’m gonna meet some of these families tonight and put on a pop concert, you know?” Swift said through tears before her London show. “I’m not gonna do this, I’m gonna be smiling. So any of this gets out of the way before you ever go on stage.”
After meeting with the victims and their families, Swift broke down in tears once again as she prepared to take the stage in London.
“I know you helped them,” Swift’s mother told her. “I know it doesn’t seem like it, but I know you helped them.”
This has clearly been an extremely difficult time for Swift. Please join us in saying a prayer for her!