One of the great things about having kids is that it expands your world. Before our young son and daughter were born, my concert experiences had been limited to The Stones, The Who, Springsteen, Seeger, Fleetwood Mac and the like. But last night I had the unique pleasure of going to the Taylor Swift concert with our nine year old daughter Caroline. And it was one of the best nights of our lives.
From the moment we walked through the front door of the Pepsi Center the vibe was relentlessly positive. It was like that scene out of the movie “Airplane” where everybody has a big smile on their face while they sing “Kumbaya”. And it was the ultimate crossover audience. From little girls with their mom or dad to college guys, and everyone in between. The fact that all these different folks could be so happy together renewed my faith in humanity, and made me very curious about Taylor Swift. What is it about her that makes all these different groups of folks so amped?
It didn’t take long to find out. Yeah, she’s beautiful. But there are lots of beautiful girls who sing great and can’t draw flies. Yeah, she’s a talented performer, but those come and go like Tiger Wood’s girlfriends. I think that what makes Taylor Swift a phenomena is that she CONNECTS with her audience. It really looks, feels and sounds as if she RESPECTS her audience, is GRATEFUL to them for their support, and wants to WORK HARD to please them.
And she did work hard. It wasn’t just a concert. It was a theatrical production, with the songs serving as the plot line for each story. It was also a very athletic performance by Taylor Swift. She was obviously hustling to make it all work, including a nifty maneuver mid-show when she snuck off stage and then appeared out in the middle of the crowd to sing and hug. That move was one of the cool ways she tried to show the audience that she cared about them, and considered herself one of them.
I think you will leave the concert feeling great. It will always be a tremendous memory for this father and his nine year old daughter to share.
