I Still See It All In My Head, Burning Red
Taylor Swift. The Red Tour. The best night of my entire life.
Is it alright if I tell you a little back story of my love for Taylor Swift? My love for Taylor has been infinite ever since the day I heard "Teardrops On My Guitar" for the first time back in (circa) May 2007. To this day, I have seen Taylor in concert three times: once on each of her headlining tours (Fearless, Speak Now, and now Red). The best times of my life have been experienced at Taylor Swift concerts. She is my number one idol and inspiration; I am who I am today because of her. Seeing Taylor Swift in concert is unlike anything you will ever witness. This is my night at the Red Tour.
Back in March, I was blessed with being able to attain pit passes. The pit is the best seat in the entire venue. When my best friend and I found our spot in the pit, we could not stop oh-my-goshing; I was shaking for a good ten minutes. The view from the pit is unreal. Even though I was finally there, I still could not believe it was all happening.
The first opening act of the night was Casey James. I had only heard a couple of songs of his beforehand, but when he was performing, I was dancing along. At one point, he even looked at me and smiled widely. (His eyes are stunning, by the way.) I most certainly enjoyed Casey James's set.
The second opening act of the night was Ed Sheeran. I believe Ed Sheeran is a perfect angel sent from heaven, but that's just me. I have been a major fan of him for a little more than a year now. During the summer of 2012, countless people were raving about his album +, as it had just made its way across the pond to America. I looked up the album, listened to every single song, proceeded to hit the repeat button, and the rest is history. I have seen him once before when he performed a club venue in Charlotte, North Carolina on December 12, 2012. It was an incredible experience and this performance was no different (still incredible). He is a singer and performer unlike any other. You better believe I was jamming out and dropping my jaw in awe during his entire set.
And so the night of my life begins. The one, the only, Taylor Swift.
Taylor is famous for her speeches, especially those directed towards the fans. She is such a sweetheart when it comes to telling us how excited she is to perform for us. She told us (the Greensboro crowd) that she just had to come back here because we are one of the loudest and most enthusiastic crowds she has ever played for. Hearing a Taylor Swift speech live, simply put, makes me happy. The entire time she was talking to us, I could not believe she was standing not even three feet away from me. Seeing her so up close is unreal; it felt like a dream. Taylor Swift (in my humble opinion) is flawless in every single way.
Taylor knows how to rock a sparkly guitar.
What I love about Taylor Swift concerts are spectacular theatrics. I compare Taylor Swift concerts to Broadway performances. This performance is no exception. "The Lucky One" is no doubt one of my absolute favorite songs from the Red album. Before singing this song, there is a video shown that has a lovely vintage theme surrounding it, relating to the vintage feel of the music of "The Lucky One." It is a perfect segway to the performance. "The Lucky One" is a beautiful song and this was, in my opinion, the best performance of the night.
Don't lie to me. Every single person, at one point or another, has had an all-out jam session to "22." This performance was so much fun. Taylor had all 14,000 of us break out into a massive dance party.
"I Knew You Were Trouble" is one of those songs and one of those performances you never forget. As mentioned earlier, theatrics are a major part of a Taylor Swift concert, and "I Knew You Were Trouble" perfectly exemplifies that. From elegant chandeliers to beautifully decorated furniture to stunning costume designs to an incredible lights show mixed in with an on-stage outfit change, this performance is one for the history books.
Taylor does not receive enough credit for her incomparable songwriting skills. "All Too Well" is a greatly underrated song. The emotion she put into this performance, combined with the beautiful speech she gave beforehand, definitely had me (and most of the audience) in tears.
The finale song was "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and, yet again, this is one of those songs we have all jammed out to alone in our bedrooms or cars. And yet again, Taylor had all 14,000 of us singing at the top of our lungs and dancing like no one was watching.
The final bows are given as a perfect night is forced to come to an end. While the pictures will always be held near and dear to my heart as a reminder of the memories made, nothing will ever compare to experiencing the real thing. I am forever grateful that I was blessed with a pit pass to see the person who inspires me the most. The songs she writes and the performances she puts on are truly unprecedented. A Taylor Swift performance is one you will never forget. Like, ever.
My best friend and I had a conversation with the dad of a daughter who was stood next to us; he told us that this concert was the 115th concert of his life. He said, "I've been to so many concerts, but this little lady right here [Taylor Swift] is by far the best performer I have ever seen."
I could go on and on about my emotions about September 12, 2013, but I'm going to leave it at this: Taylor Swift, you are one flawless human being. Thank you for everything.
Stay beautiful,
Andrea
