When the Eras Tour was announced in November last year, it was safe to say that nobody knew what to expect. It feels like a decade ago. I vividly remember the numerous theories on the setlist and the many live streams that were flooded with viewers on opening night. But something that no fan could have predicted was the surprise song section. When fans realized that they could “lose” the chance to hear their all-time favorite song played acoustically, the only thing left to do was wait with anticipation every night to hear what two songs would be sacrificed next. All songs were up for grabs, even the ones that nobody knew could be lost such as “I Don’t Wanna Live Forever.”
It sounds dramatic, but it sure didn’t feel like that every time I heard another one of my favorite songs played on a glitchy livestream without me in the audience. With the Eras Tour coming to an end on its first U.S. leg, I’ve decided to rank how much each state won based on all their Eras Tour surprise songs.
- California
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We’re starting off strong with California, who was lucky enough to get eight tour dates in their state. Not only did they get 16 surprise songs in total, but they also got the 1989 TV announcement. All of this combined. I have to give them their rightful spot at number one.
I wasn’t strong enough to stay up until 2 A.M for the surprise song section, but let’s just say my morning was ruined every single time I opened TikTok and saw that they got lucky once again.
The best combination they got was “Dress” and “exile.” The crowd singing the second part of “exile” truly made me wish I was there in the audience.
- Tennesse
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Tennesse deserves its rightful number two place for countless reasons.
The Speak Now TV announcement is the first reason. The second reason is that a storm occurred during night three and caused the show to be delayed for almost three hours. Not only did the concert continue, but Taylor continued to perform in the rain for the entirety of the show. This reason alone is why I can’t be too mad night three had the ruthless combination of getting “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” and “Mine.” That audience deserved songs such as “Out of the Woods” and “Sparks Fly” for the awful turn of events they experienced. - New Jersey
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Now I have to warn you, I may be a bit biased for this ranking since my show was in New Jersey. I went on night two with my friend and we made the decision to drive six hours to and back from the show. Of course, this could only have been accomplished when my friend’s dad willingly agreed to drive us which I will forever be grateful for.
New Jersey had the special treat of experiencing Jack Antonoff perform “Getaway Car” with Taylor Swift and afterward have Ice Spice as the surprise guest for “Karma.” The anguish I felt when New Jersey night one got “Getaway Car” and “Maroon” a day before my show almost brought me to my knees.
My surprise song combination was “Holy Ground” and “False God.” It worked out so perfectly since my friend was hoping and praying for “False God” and I was hoping for “Holy Ground.” Plus, the similarity between the two with having religious themes in their title is something that is so satisfying.
- Florida
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Aaron Dessener became enemy number one when he was brought out to play “The Great War” and “mad woman.” The combination of “mad woman” and “Mean” worked out so perfectly.
- Minnesota
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Minnesota probably has the best combination of surprise songs. Getting “Daylight” and “Dear John” in one night would’ve given me emotional whiplash. I don’t know how the audience would’ve still been alive after that.
“Daylight” is one of my favorite songs Swift has ever created, along with the entirety of the Lover album. So, you can imagine just how hard of a hit this was for me.