The Year In: Taylor Swift

Zero mentions of Travis Kelce (save for this one) contained within

The two-year juggernaut Eras tour had a hold on the public consciousness unlike any other pop cultural phenomenon in recent memory. That we are still discussing her and her tour in year two - when it was mostly international dates - demonstrates her rightful place at the Zenith of celebrity.

She grossed 2B in one tour over two years (double that of previous record holder Coldplay). She doled out nearly 200M in bonuses to the crew working her shows. She made friendship bracelets a thing again. Her merch was so in demand she had to start selling the day before shows.

The tour itself was the most efficient cultural force to sweep through the globe.

Every night (there was a show), the opening notes of Miss Americana and the The Heartbreak Prince will be greeted with roars and she would be off and running.

Her song list was extremely rigid and precise, except for a mid-concert mini-set of two surprise songs. For mainstream pop actors, people come for the expected rota of songs, not for the suspense and the heartbreak of your song not being played. Taylor Swift delivers exactly what you want.

True, there are few artists with either a catalogue or a hold on their fans to play a few songs from each album. It worked specifically well with Swift given her maneuvers into different genres and personal connection to the material: this is the album that was the response to the album that said she was too pop, etc.

Like Apple, Taylor Swift doesn't invent as much as perfect the form. While many artists have hewed towards more strict setlists, maybe moving some songs around, I suspect more will emulate her exact structure. The anticipation of the needle drop is more powerful than the drop itself.

Her 22 hat moment begets Sabrina Carpenter's Juno pose and Charli XCX guest Apple dancer.

• Here's hoping her generosity to the crew becomes a commonality as well.

If you are Taylor Swift, your fans demand a moment of you in the spotlight with just a guitar singing your slow-burning dirge about Jake Gyllenhaal.

What it lacked in surprises it excelled in ruthless execution. A blunt force of regimented showmanship. Taylor did not get sick (or at least did not cancel on account of sickness), and the only interruption to the tour was a credible terrorist threat that caused her to cancel three shows in Vienna.

While I can't say I've invested much time in the forensics, I've yet to see anyone other than rival diva stans exit with anything other than glowing praise for the pageantry and the execution. She delivered every night.

Everyone was taken under the spell. Swift dads gushed about the bond it formed with their daughters. Swift grandparents flew across the country to surprise granddaughters with tickets. An E! article detailing every celebrity to attend crashes your computer.

Flavor Flav traversed the globe, exchanging bracelets with people whose knowledge of Public Enemy might be nonexistent (the man has lived many lives in the public consciousness).

She even taught some people about Canada's legal system, creating a secondary ticket market on the threshold of the Canadian border.

In summary, Taylor Swift's two-year eras tour will both emulated repeatedly, but never topped. The closest is Beyonce who may or may not tour in 2025. I cannot imagine in a continually fragmented world a super star commanding the attention she did for so long. Until her next tour.