Tuesday, August 18, 2015

3 Reasons Taylor Swift is the Perfect "First Concert" choice & 2 Reasons She's Not!

The Headlines:

My daughter went to her first concert.

Taylor Swift.  

Here's what I learned:




My daughter is 8... almost 9.  She had never been to a concert.  Until now.


We heard a while back that Taylor Swift was coming to Arizona.  Both my husband and I thought it would be such a treat to have our daughter go see her... but alas, we never got tickets.  A couple days ago that changed and someone wanted to know if we'd like to buy some.  So my wheels started turning.  She had dance that night so I decided to surprise her in the middle of classes.  I yanked her out and her daddy told her on the phone where she was going.  Then she quickly changed (the night before I asked her what she would wear to a movie premiere if she went to one) and we met up with some friends and headed over the the arena.

Nice plan but it kind of back fired.  She was super confused about where she was going... I think she may be a planner like me.  But once she got into it... the girl had fun!

Here's what I learned:

3 Reasons Taylor Swift is the Beast 1st Concert (for a girl) Ever: 


The Girl's Got Class!
She just does... it ooooozes from her.  There are no bad words coming from her mouth, no overt sexual madness, nothing that Moms want to cover their children's eyes from.  Her show is simply good, clean (goofy) dancing fun!  Sadly, that's really hard to find these days.  But here's the deal: our society is better off with some T-Swift types.  Swift seems very aware of her position as a celebrity and the responsibility that goes with it.  It's a big one.  I dare to say most young stars squander it... yet she seems to revel in it.  She's assumed a high, important, anomaly of a position that is usually used and abused this day in age.  I'm thankful it is NOT lost on her... a good role model, she is.

Her Music is Really Fabulous (even for parents).
The last song she performed at her 1989 concert is probably my favorite... I just can't Shake "Shake it Off"... but there's about 10 or more other songs that are close, meeting and exceeding that caliber.  And this being said from a non-music reviewer.

She also played a special, touching song written by her and co-written by a Phoenix Mom who lost her son to cancer several years ago.  The woman started a blog, called RockStarRonan,  as she was going through the devastatingly, slow march to her son's eventual death.  The mother, Maya, was painfully and brutally honest in her words and it caught the attention of many, including Swift, who first performed the song on a Cancer Television Special a few years ago and vowed never to do it again... until last night.  Maya, her family and her recent addition, Poppy, were in the audience.

Here's just a little taste of it.  The video doesn't do her or the song justice.  Sorry my camera work is horrible.  I couldn't see half the time through the tears...



Finally, the last reason I'd take my daughter to see Taylor Swift as a First concert is this:

Her Messages Are Even Better (or maybe just as good) as Her Music...
There are a lot of trials and tribulations that go on in a young person's life.  Break ups, break downs, losses, gains, wins, failures, friends, enemies, heart aches, home work, the list goes on and on and on and on... throughout her show Swift talks about them.  She talks about positive girl friendships, relationships versus "situation-ships," being who you are and nobody but... and a funny thing happens when you head out the door: you leave feeling just a little more empowered to take on the world the next day.

And who can't use some extra positive juice in their soul?  No matter what your age?




2 Reasons Why Taylor Swift Wasn't the Best 1st Concert Choice:

The Music is Really Loud.
I know, it's a concert.  Music has to be loud.  But for a little girls ears it's really hard to handle.  I should have brought some ear plugs.  My bad.

It's a Late Night. 
The concert started at 7:30, that's when Vance Joy (sings Riptide - cutie BTW - good choice for an opener) hit the stage... Swift came on a little after 8:30 and played until about 10:45.  My daughter, almost 9, loved most of the minutes but there were a few when she asked, "when's it over Mom?"  and the other 8 year old we were with was done about an hour before it ended.  Like DONE.  We got home (because of traffic and we live across the valley) at MIDNIGHT and she's now back in school with just a few hours of sleep under her belt.  #motheroftheyear

She really didn't want to take this picture... it was AFTER the show!


Bottom line:  Taylor Swift is a phenomenal performer and dare I say: person.  All I could think of, being in the stage of life that I am right now is simply:  Man, her parents must be proud of her.  I grew up wanting to make my parents proud of me.  I'm pretty sure she did too.  She succeeded.  She's got this celebrity thing down in a way not many others do... so that makes her special and different than any others.  If you ask me, that should be celebrated as much the music she makes.  

For us, her concert was a memory that will last forever.  I'm glad we did it (even though I need coffee right now)!  Because in some way, I know my little girl's a better person because of it... and maybe... so am I.

***Want to see my 1st Periscope attempt on this blog topic?  Periscope is the LIVE video feed sweeping the world!  Be kind.  It was a bit of rough first go!



6 comments

  1. I love all of this.. I can totally see how Taylor would be a great 1st concert... and fun for us moms too! ( I also happen to LOVE Vance Joy!) I love seeing your periscope!!! :)

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    1. periscope is a work in progress! Taylor is fairly well oiled machine... ;)

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  2. Congrats on the Periscope...I think I'm going to just stay away! ha!! At any rate, so cool that you surprised your daughter - how cute is she!?!? I think your "cons" aren't even really that..just comes with concert territory, but it's not something you do everyday, so it's all good! I love how you enjoyed Taylor too...I've met her once and watched a small show she put on, on a cruise ship and she was great and sweet and enjoyable!! :)

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    1. peri was actually kind of fun! weird tho just "hanging out" vs having a very solid 3 minute, concise talking point plan, i.e.: tv news! hmmmm.... i wonder what a (your) BOYS first concert choice would be????

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  3. I love this post and totally want to take my girls! And I LOVE your scope! Great job!!

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    1. you should... but wait until they're like 10/11 years old. it's a LATE night! thanks... working on the scope!

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