NEWS
Taylor Swift makes National Stadium shimmer on opening night of Singapore concerts
SINGAPORE: “You need to calm down,” exhorted American pop star Taylor Swift during the fourth song of her sold-out Eras Tour concert at the National Stadium on Saturday (March 2), the first of six planned shows at the 55,000-capacity venue.
The line was not an admonishment to the high-energy crowd to settle down, but a lyric from one of more than 40 songs Swift played during her 3½-hour set.
The concert was a celebration of the 34-year-old singer-songwriter’s career – from her second album, Fearless (2009), to her most recent album, Midnights (2022).
Swift will also perform on March 3, 4, 7, 8 and 9, and is the second act to front six shows at the National Stadium, after Coldplay did the same in January.
When fans put up their phone flashlights for Marjorie, a tradition on the Eras Tour, Swift said she was “so moved” by the gesture, adding that the song was about her maternal grandmother.
In 1968, The Straits Times reported that Swift’s grandmother Marjorie Finlay, an opera singer, was chosen to play the part of a peasant girl in a production at the Victoria Theatre.
“My mum actually spent a lot of her childhood with her mum and dad and sister growing up in Singapore. A lot of the time when we would come here on tour, my mum would drive me past her house, where she went to school.
“I have been hearing about Singapore all my life. To get to come here and play a show this big… it means the world,” Swift told the rapt crowd.
There were a few security hiccups as people had to be repeatedly cleared from standing in the aisles between floor sections.
But Swift remained a consummate performer throughout, moving from era to era, and commanding every inch of the sprawling stage with an ease that reflected her 18 years in the music industry.
She took the stage at 7pm after an opening set by American singer Sabrina Carpenter.
Carpenter caused a brief tizzy during her performance of Nonsense, a song where she is known to customise the outro in a homage to the city she is performing in.
“Gardens by the Bay, I wanna go there. Then I’ll take you somewhere that has no hair. Singapore, you’re so perfect, it’s no fair,” she sang to cheers from the stadium, which was 90 per cent full by the end of her opening set.
Together with her army of backup dancers, singers and instrumentalists, Swift whisked fans through a song-and-dance extravaganza peppered with more local references, including a sprinkling of Singlish during We Are Never Getting Back Together.
During the song, backup dancer Kameron Saunders usually responds with “like ever” during Swift’s spoken interlude. In Australia, where Swift performed before arriving in Singapore, he said “yeah, nah” or “naur” – local slang for no.
For Singapore’s opening night, he countered with “no lah” instead – to the delight of the crowd.
Another highlight was part of Blank Space, from Swift’s 1989 era. The crowd roared “Singapore” at certain parts of the bridge – one of the chants that had been collectively agreed upon by her fandom.
Yvonne Inglin, a 16-year-old student from School of the Arts Singapore, entered the venue at 5.40pm. Her brother gave her Category 1 tickets that very morning, with a prime view of the diamond stage where Swift spent most of her time during the concert.
“I am so excited, I can’t believe I am here, and I can’t wait to trade a million bracelets,” she said.
Manmit Kumakale and Jas Thakker, both 21-year-old art students from Pune, India, were decked out in outfits inspired by Swift’s music video for her song Bejewelled. They arrived in Singapore on March 1, having purchased their Category 3 tickets during the first ticket sale in July 2023.
“We decided to get ‘bejewelled’ for the concert… we are just so ready to hear her sing and do her thing,” said Manmit.
Swift’s The Eras Tour – where she performs songs from nine to 10 of her albums, depending on what she chooses in the acoustic “surprise song” set – has been a record-breaking juggernaut from the get-go.
She played two mash-ups as part of the show – a pairing of Mine from Speak Now (2010) and Starlight from Red (2012) on the guitar, and I Don’t Wanna Live Forever – the soundtrack to the 2017 film Fifty Shades Darker – and Dress on the piano. Dress is from Reputation (2017), an album that booted Swift’s “good girl” image out the door.
At the end of 2023, The Eras Tour became the first concert tour to hit US$1 billion (S$1.35 billion) in gross revenue, after accounting for only 60 shows out of a planned 151.
Singapore is Swift’s only South-east Asia stop on The Eras Tour. The only other Asian city to host Swift was Tokyo, where she performed four shows at the Tokyo Dome in January.
Tickets for the six concerts, priced between S$88++ and $1,228++, sold out hours after they went on sale in July 2023. A second, smaller sale in January 2024 also sold out within a few hours.
Swift last performed in Singapore in 2015, playing two shows at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. She also finished off her Red Tour there in June 2014, and kicked off her Speak Now World Tour in February 2011 at the same venue.
After she closes out her final Singapore concert on March 9, she will take a short break, before kicking off a Europe leg in Paris in May.
But fans present at her opening show on March 2 are already looking forward to her return to Singapore.
“I wasn’t really a Swiftie until I saw The Eras Tour movie in November. Seeing the concert in person tonight, it gave me a whole new appreciation for her music and her as a performer. It is also my first concert in Singapore, so the experience is truly memorable. Definitely beats painting by the numbers at home,” said 27-year-old student Lee Pei Yuan. – The Straits Times/ANN
Drama
Tom cruise finally speak addressing public criticism on why he missed out on his daughter graduation for Swift concert,Suri is not my…. See more
Tom Cruise has recently made headlines for a major decision regarding his relationship with his daughter, Suri Cruise. The 18-year-old, who graduated from LaGuardia High School on June 21, did so without her father in attendance. Instead, Cruise chose to attend Taylor Swift’s Eras concert in London, raising questions about his priorities and his bond with his daughter.
Suri Cruise, who is said to have changed her last name to Noelle, a nod to her mother Katie Holmes, celebrated this significant milestone with her mother present. Katie Holmes was there to support and celebrate her daughter, but the absence of Tom Cruise did not go unnoticed. According to In Touch Weekly, this snub has led to further speculation about Cruise’s relationship with Suri.
An insider revealed that Cruise’s decision to skip Suri’s graduation in favor of attending Taylor Swift’s concert is indicative of his strained relationship with his daughter. “He was trading friendship bracelets with superfans and dancing to ‘Shake It Off’ in a crowd filled with young ladies who were around his daughter’s age,” the source said. This behavior, contrasted with his absence from Suri’s important day, has led some to believe that Cruise is living a “double life.”
The insider further elaborated that Cruise has not seen Suri for the past 11 years, stating, “the truth is for the last 11 years, Tom has chosen not to see Suri.” This estrangement appears to be a deliberate decision on Cruise’s part. Despite his absence from Suri’s life, Cruise maintains a close relationship with his other children, Bella and Connor, whom he adopted during his marriage to Nicole Kidman.
Both Bella and Connor are followers of Scientology, which has been a significant aspect of Cruise’s life. An expert on Tom Cruise’s faith, Tony Ortega, explained that Cruise’s primary loyalty is to Scientology and its leader, David Miscavige. Ortega noted, “He has proven over and over again that his No. 1 loyalty is to [his religion] and David Miscavige.”
The influence of Scientology on Cruise’s relationships has been a point of discussion for years. Ortega suggested that Suri’s exclusion from Cruise’s life might be beneficial for her. “It became more and more obvious Tom had completely cut Suri out of his life. And frankly, Suri may be better off for it,” he added.
Cruise’s prioritization of his faith and its community over his daughter has led to a complete estrangement. The choice to attend a concert over his daughter’s graduation is a public display of this ongoing separation. For Suri, who has grown up largely under the care of her mother, this might mean a life free from the complexities of her father’s religious affiliations.
CELEBRITY
Brad Pitt surprised his former wife Jennifer Aniston with a lavish $79 million mansion as a gift for… See more
In a twist that has caught everyone off guard, Brad Pitt, the Hollywood heartthrob, apparently made a remarkable move in honor of his ex-wife, Jennifer Aniston. This unexpected gesture left people staggered and sparked a flurry of speculation among fans and the media alike. According to reports of MIRROR, Pitt had purchased the former marital home the couple shared during their marriage, valued at a staggering $79 million, with the intention of gifting it to Aniston.
The luxurious Beverly Hills property, where Pitt and Aniston resided from 2000 to 2005, had been on the market following their divorce. Sources reveal that Aniston had found it challenging to part ways with the house, describing it as one of her biggest regrets not buying her ex-husband Pitt out at the time of their separation.
This four-bedroom property, adorned with marble kitchen floors, a swimming pool, a pub room with elegant wooden flooring, and a tennis court, served as a tangible representation of the dreams the once dearly in love with each other couple shared during their years together. Reportedly, Pitt and Aniston had initially acquired the residence and embarked on a three-year renovation journey before ultimately listing and selling the estate post-announcement of their split. The decision to part with the beloved home was reportedly a source of deep emotional turmoil for Aniston.
“When Brad and Jen split, she said losing their dream home worsened the heartache of their divorce, and it was one of her biggest regrets not buying Brad out,” a source close to the situation disclosed. Pitt, known for his grand gestures, allegedly purchased the property with the specific aim of surprising Aniston on her birthday. Acknowledging the FRIENDS star’s sentimental connection to the house, he reportedly intended to make a gesture that went above and beyond, aiming to exceed even her most extravagant dreams.
Brad wants to make a gesture to Jen that would go beyond her wildest dreams, so when their old home came up for sale, he knew that would be the purchase to make all her dreams come true,” the insider had revealed. The Break Up actor has, over the years, expressed a sentimental longing for their former home. Even after the divorce, Pitt reportedly missed the house and struggled to leave it behind.
Sources suggest that Aniston herself, during reunions with Pitt, often referred to the Beverly Hills estate, highlighting how her current Bel Air mansion failed to match up to the memories of their shared home. This unexpected birthday gift from Brad Pitt ignited speculation about the nature of their current relationship. As fans are eager to know their relationship status, one thing is for certain—Brad Pitt has set the bar high when it comes to amicable post-divorce relationships in showbiz. Kevin Costner, are you listening?
Music
Jennifer Lopez called herself a fool and breaks down in TEARS as she says what Ben Affleck made her go through DURING…. See More
Jennifer Lopez broke down in tears in her new documentary as she confessed what her husband Ben Affleck made her see in herself was “moving”. J-Lo’s latest newly-launched documentary The Greatest Love Story Never Told, the famous singer let down her walls as she dove into her twenty-year journey to self-love and her touching love story with her husband Ben. Even though they’ve suffered their ups and downs, the pair seem smitten, with the 54-year-old actress speaking very highly of her other half who she believes built up her self-confidence in a way no one else ever could.
Teary-eyed Jennifer confessed: “What he said and what he saw in me, and what he made me believe about myself, only comes from love. Because nobody else could have made me see that about myself. It’s very moving.” She added: “Because I didn’t think much about myself and so the world didn’t think much of me. That lined up.”
During the documentary Jennifer spoke about how her husband was the muse for her independently produced album. While creating the album she even had her musical crew read handwritten love letters from Ben over the years that inspired the project.While Jennifer admitted Ben was “uncomfortable” being the centre of the work, he still happily supported her throughout her artistic endeavour and rooted her on every step of the way.
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