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A Taylor Swift Concert, Or 1 Million Dollars? Easy Answer.
Call me crazy. Call me an idiot. Call me moronic. You can call me whatever you want, but most importantly, call me a Swiftie. Last week John Rich put out […]
Call me crazy. Call me an idiot. Call me moronic.
You can call me whatever you want, but most importantly, call me a Swiftie.
Last week John Rich put out this hypothetical tweet out there talking about the price of reselling Taylor Swift tickets. I immediately replied saying that the Taylor Swift Eras Tour concert was worth more than a measly 20K. I did not know this would set of a fire storm of controversy, at least by my social media standards. I had randoms calling me out for this “outlandish” take.
I stand by every word I am about to type.
The Taylor Swift Era’s Tour Concert Is A Priceless Experience.
Go ahead. Toss your virtual lettuce and tomatoes at me. I’ll stand on this take and listen to all the logical rebuttals being thrown my way. Yes, 20K is a lot, yes a million dollars is a lot. But sometimes it is just a matter of principle. Sometimes you need be a complete fucking idiot and stick your foot in the ground and dig in against rational thought throwing 101 heat up-and-in.
I had the opportunity to attend the Era’s Tour concert at Gillette Stadium on Saturday, May 20th. That day, for those that don’t remember, it fucking poured. It was raining as it Zeus had gone on a bender the night before. Buckets, upon buckets, upon buckets. But guess who didn’t give a damn. This fucking guy.
That day I dressed up in as much rain gear as possible and attended the concert of my life with great friends, including my fiancée and my best friend. Four hours of traffic to get to the parking lot. We set up for an hour long, rain logged tailgate and guzzled down High Noons, burgers, and snacks. We then trenched our way through the mud and sat inside Gillette for nearly 5 hours and lost our fucking minds for three and a half hours while Taylor Swift gave the performance of a fucking lifetime in the middle of a monsoon.
I would trade nothing for that experience. No amount of money can be worth something that you will remember for the rest of your life. Sure, with money I could buy tickets to other shows of hers. I could plan a whole fucking weekend and go watch three shows in a row in some sunny state where rain would never be a worry. But what would be the fun in that? I got the tickets to this concert grinding through the Ticketmaster fucking nightmare that was the lottery. I was there in the Barstool Control Room hunkered in my corner clicking through all the necessary steps to buy six tickets to what I knew would be the greatest nights of our lives.
Call me a maniac martyr. Call me a bumbling baboon or a righteous asshole. I don’t care.
What Taylor Swift does on that stage is, to put it plainly, possibly the greatest thing I have ever seen. To hold a football stadium full of rain soaked rabid fans in the palm of your hands is a talent that only a handful of people have in this world. I got to watch this renaissance women not only do what she does best, but give the best god damn performance of her life. Can you imagine how cold she was during that show? Can you imagine how badly she just wanted to go back to the hotel room with her new beau and just watch cat videos? Hell, I know people who want pickup sporting events to be cancelled if there is a chance of rain.
Taylor Swift could have had these thoughts, but she let none of them show. She soaked in every single ovation the crowd gave her. She conducted us like she was a maestro leading her greatest orchestral performance. Taylor was in control every step of the way, and she didn’t slip up once.
I can feel myself getting a little high and mighty, so let me bring it back to reality.
On today’s episode of the YAK, the crew asked me to hop on the mic about some movie things. I hadn’t seen the movies because I am perpetually behind, but then KB brought up the 20K argument.
The hypotheticals began to fly around.
$20,000. $50,000. One Million. Five Million. 20 Million.
I stand by what I said on the The Yak. Gimme the concert. Gimme Taylor Swift.
Big Cat is totally fair citing how it (maybe) would be different if the money is was on the table. But the undisputable fact of the matter is that I am not getting any type of god offer like this. Sure, 20K would be nice. 50K would be grand and 100K would be fucking delightful. Any amount of money sounds good to me right now as I am saving for a wedding. But frankly my dear, I just don’t give a damn. My staunch stance may make me sound like a rich white boy who has no troubles in the world, but I know in reality I am just an childish thirty year old whose priorities are all out of whack.
I am not saying what I think or what I say is rational. Hell, far from it. But it is a matter of principle. (Say it in a french accent, it makes it better).
I thought that I made a great point comparing this concert experience to the Super Bowl. Imagine if your team is in the Super Bowl, are you really going to sell the possibility to enjoy the most euphoric moment of your life? Dan came right back at me saying absolutely and that he would just watch it at home. To that I say, a concert experience can not be experienced on a TV! Football is better on the TV, and a concert is something nobody can feel through a screen. Hell, most sports are better on TV than live. You want to know what’s never better from your couch? A concert. You need to be among the masses singing your hearts out for 210 minutes!
Ask anyone who has been to the concert. Kelly Keegs may never recover from her trip the Meadowlands. Frankie Borelli wasn’t even a Taylor Swift fan, but he said he got emotional when he went to the concert. Big Cat presented him with one million dollars, or Taylor Swift, and he hesitated. That is all the proof that you need! This concert converts even the non-initiated! If you aren’t a fan, think about how much it means to see this concert as a fan!
If you have seen the concert, you understand. If you have not, it is hard. I understand the I wanna strange him feeling you have towards me right now. But you can ask folks who know me. I am a rational man for the most part. But when it comes to Taylor Swift, I am nothing of the sort. I am a lunatic.
After the Yak was over, I was working in the gambling cave and Big Cat literally came scootering over (yes, literally on a scooter), and he simply said “Stanko, you are crazy.” and buzzed away. It may be true. I may be crazy. But I know one thing that I for sure am.
I am a Swiftie.
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