CELEBRITY
Proud ‘Swiftie dads’ who love Taylor Swift as much as their daughters do reveal the extreme lengths they went to see the Eras tour – with one even flying 10,000 MILES to attend a show
While teenage girls may be the typical demographic for Swifties, it doesn’t mean people of all ages can’t be fans of Taylor Swift.
In fact, these teenagers’ dads are now getting in on the fun as they proudly declare themselves as fans of the You Belong With Me singer.
A handful of Swiftie dads spoke with GQ about why they’re at the Eras tour and how they got into the singer’s music.
Some dads had heartwarming reasons for diving head first into the hype – with one even flying 10,000 miles from India to make sure his daughter could get the full Swiftie experience in Philadelphia.
Others even traveled long distances to soak up the vibes outside the arenas that Taylor was playing – with no guarantee of getting inside.
Kevin, a 54-year-old father from Baltimore, Maryland, explained that it brought him and his daughter closer together as she got older.
‘My daughter was a teenager, and as teenage daughters do, we started drifting apart,’ he shared with the outlet.
‘When 1989 came out, it was common ground for us to come together. It really brought us together and made us closer, and it’s been great ever since.’
58-year-old Robert, from Hampton, Virginia, said that he had been a fan ever since his 17-year-old daughter, Hannah-Lynn, became a Swiftie.
‘I was a firefighter for 18 years. Developed lymphoma cancer in 2016,’ he revealed while explaining why he was accompanying his daughter on the Eras tour.
‘Went through nine rounds of chemo, stem cell transplant, lost the left lung, went into septic shock. I almost died in the ER, so I dedicated my life to my kids.’
Others have been closeted Taylor Swift fans themselves before their kids were even born
asked how long he has been a Swiftie, 56-year-old Daren, from Baltimore, admitted: ‘I’ve probably been undercover for a couple of years now, I just couldn’t tell them, you know? Probably since she came on the scene, since when I first saw her on MTV.
For reference, Taylor made her debut in 2006, two years before his 15-year-old daughter, Assata, was born.
Some dads braved the virtual line to buy tickets for them and their daughter or son.
Benemil, 52, waited six hours to buy tickets for daughters Katherine, 15, and Candice, 13.
‘It was an experience, but it’s all worth it,’ he shared.
Meanwhile Amit, 47, flew with his daughter all the way from India after he bought tickets for Taylor’s Philadelphia stop in November.
‘We are here from a really long way away. We’re here from India. And we actually planned our whole summer vacation around this, because they are Swifties,’ he shared.
He explained that it was a surprise for his daughter, sharing: ‘So we came about 10,000 miles, to Philadelphia, to watch this show. We told her this morning.
‘She thought she was having major FOMO (fear of missing out) that she was in Philly and not able to go here. But we bought the tickets in November.’
Some dads camped out with their children even though they didn’t have tickets.
John, 37, explained that he and Hunter, seven, were ‘hoping to get seats’ after the dad started listening to Midnights and admitted that the Swifties ‘got me now.’
Kevin Costner shares his view of the Taylor Swift concert.
Everybody here is hoping to get tickets and I guess if not, we’re just going to hang out and listen to the concert from here,’ he shared.
Daren also admitted that he and Assata didn’t have tickets, and had been trying to get some for the entire weekend during Taylor’s Baltimore leg.
‘Yeah, we’ll be outside, definitely. Taking in the vibes, taking in the energy. Already sharing and trading bracelets. And then probably be back tomorrow or Sunday,’ he stated.
While Assata had gotten in at that point, he didn’t and still wanted his chance to see Taylor.
He added: ‘So, she got to go in. She got to get in. Those are sacrifices we make, right? For the Swifties. So I got to be a nifty Swiftie daddy, you know?’
Kate, 14, convinced her 55-year-old dad, Dieter, to drive six hours from Buffalo even though they didn’t have tickets.
‘I made a Google slideshow presentation with 13 reasons that he should take me, and it had music synced to it,’ she explained.
‘And I’m like, “I’m not going down there without tickets,”‘ her dad chimed in.
‘I really buttered him up the last day. And then we booked the hotel, and I was like, “Well, it’s too late to refund it, so we got to go,”‘ she explained.
‘And she told me she’d be happy to be just in the parking lot, breathing her same air space,’ Dieter added, explaining why he obliged.
One signature aspect of attending Taylor Swift concerts is dressing up and the dads did not disappoint.
Among the shirts included ones that read ‘It’s me, hi. I’m the best dad. It’s me’ and ‘Swiftie Dads are like regular dads… only better.’
Kevin wore a Hawaiian shirt with Taylor’s face patterned all over it.
When asked how he found it, he revealed: ‘Actually, I was watching What to Do at Taylor Swift Concerts on TikTok, and I saw an ad for it.’
Benemil’s shirt referenced his six-hour process of buying tickets with it reading, ‘I survived the great war,’ alongside a laptop screen that said ‘you are in the queue. 2000+ people ahead of you.’
Meanwhile, Robert’s shirt referenced his battle with cancer.
‘I beat cancer so I could bring my daughter to see Taylor Swift,’ the sweet shirt read.
Dieter rocked a ‘D.O.S Pass’ shirt, which stood for Dad of Swiftie.
Other dads accessorized to show their support.
Dave, 36, bought his nine-year-old daughter Adelynn snake earrings in reference to Taylor’s Reputation era for the occasion.
‘We found them on sale somewhere so we had to get them. There was a lot of planning going into this,’ he explained.
Dave got in on the fun, sporting his own beaded friendship bracelets.
Amit not only flew all the way from India, but he donned a purple tie-dye bucket hat in the style of a ‘I heart New York’ hat with Taylor’s name instead.
Meanwhile, 42-year-old Daniel wore an entire coordinating costume with daughter Joey, eight. He wore a seagull onesie while his daughter donned a dress with clouds on it.
He explained: ‘So, on the cover of 1989… Taylor Swift has a shirt with clouds and seagulls on it. So [gestures to family dressed in sky-patterned outfits], we’ve got all my sky here.’
Naturally, these Swiftie dads all have their favorite songs and eras.
Anti-Hero and Midnights were popular selections as favorite songs, while most men identified with Taylor’s 2006 self-titled album or Red.
However, 53-year-old Tom, from Landsall, Pennsylvania, showed his appreciation for Wildest Dreams, while 50-year-old Bryan, from Perkasi, Pennsylvania, expressed his love for Shake It Off.
All in all, these dads are happy that there such a positive environment for their daughters at these concerts.
‘The thing I love about Taylor Swift, as much as her lyrics, is the fact that she makes that effort to reach out to her fans and make that personal connection,’ Kevin shared.
He added: ‘You can see it really changes people’s lives. I think anybody that’s put themselves in a place where they can make somebody’s life better just by showing up, it’s just amazing.’