NEWS
Liverpool is set to become ‘Taylor Town’, as pop icon Taylor Swift gears up for her UK ‘Eras’ tour dates.
The city – which is home to The Beatles, A Flock Of Seagulls, The Lightning Seeds and more – is set to see over 150,000 Swifties come to visit the singer in concert, as she has three gigs lined up for her upcoming run of UK ‘Eras’ tour dates.
They will take place at Anfield Stadium on June 13, 14 and 15, just before she heads to Cardiff for one show at the Principality Stadium, and London, where she’s scheduled to play eight huge shows at Wembley Stadium.
Now, ahead of the shows next month, Liverpool has confirmed that it will be undergoing a ‘Taylor Swift-inspired makeover’ to build hype for fans.
It is set to become “Taylor Town” for a week, and will see a trail of 11 art installations dotted around the city to entertain local residents and fans travelling from outside the city.
According to the local council, areas including Liverpool One, Royal Albert Dock and the Metquarter are among the eight sites across Liverpool that will be receiving decorations to reflect on various albums that the singer has shared across her catalogue.
Each was created in a collaboration between The Culture Liverpool team and social enterprise Make CIC, and includes installations such as a moss-covered grande piano, representing ‘Evermore’, and a ‘red room’ that makes a nod towards the singer’s 2012 album, ‘Red’.
Elsewhere, it’ll include a number of giant hearts, made in tribute to the ‘Lover’ album, and a ‘Fearless’-inspired mural that incorporates the number 13 – which has a huge significance to the singer and her fans.
Councillor Harry Doyle shared a statement about the city wanting to embrace Taylor Swift’s arrival, and said that the art installations dedicated to her were fitting, particularly with Liverpool’s rich music history.
“If there was ever going to be a city that would go all-out with a welcome for Taylor Swift and the Swifties, it was bound to be Liverpool,” he said (via BBC News).
Kirsten Little, the co-founder of Make CIC, also commented on the efforts being made ahead of the ‘Eras’ tour dates, adding that the collaborative installations were a testament to the “vibrant artistic talent” in the city. “This inclusive and accessible experience invites fans and visitors alike to immerse themselves in the energy of Liverpool’s art scene, uniting Taylor Swift fans, locals and visitors to the city,” she said.
As well as art installations around Liverpool, fans will also be able to attend a ticketed workshop at the Metquarter called ‘Liverpool Loves Taylor (Craft Version)’, and the University of Liverpool will also be hosting a ‘Tay Day’ – where Swifties can decode and analyse the pop star’s lyrics.
The latter will be held on June 12 and is described as a “symposium for fans, students and academics to engage with the cultural phenomenon that is Taylor Swift”. It is also set to see academics from across Europe speaking on topics such as Swift’s place in feminism.
Finally, there will be a session of “critical karaoke” on the day, where researchers will perform one-song essays to their chosen Taylor Swift track.
“The musical, social and economic impact of Taylor Swift is undeniable,” said Dr Sam Murray and Dr Amy Skjerseth from the Institute of Popular Music (via BBC). “That’s why we’re really looking forward to starting a conversation about how Taylor is both Miss Americana and an anti-hero, to understand her style and her wildest dreams and to discuss her reputation.”
More information about the events installed across Liverpool will be available at the city’s Lime Street Station between 9am and 6pm BST on the day of the live shows. Visit here to buy any remaining tickets.
Since wrapping up the US and Asia tour dates, Taylor Swift has headed over to Europe to kick off her final run of shows.
Already, the singer has pulled out countless surprises at the European tour dates, including performing songs from her new album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’ for the first time and creating a mash-up of songs from her ‘1989’ album.
As she prepares to head to the UK, it has been reported that her concerts will boost the UK economy by a reported £1billion.
Though most of the money will most likely go on accommodation, tickets, transport and merchandise, it is estimated that one in five of the 1.1million ticketholders for the singer’s 15 UK dates across June and August will purchase new outfits specifically for the concerts.
NEWS
DX EXCLUSIVE - Yelawolf once toured Europe with Eminem and Odd Future in 2013, and he vividly remembers Tyler, The Creator flexing how deep his admiration for Em went.
Talking to HipHopDX‘s Jeremy Hecht in a conversation published on Tuesday (June 25), Yela laughed as he recalled Tyler rapping every single word to every song Em performed on the trek – joking that it was as if Tyler was looking to prove that he knew the Detroit legend’s music better than his tourmate, despite Yela being signed to Shady.
“I remember Tyler mouthing every single word of every song Marshall played,” he said. “I remember that vividly. We were all by the soundboard and Tyler just knew every word to every song and he made sure that I knew he knew.
“[It was as if he was] like, ‘You’re signed to Eminem? I’ll rap this whole song right to your face. You don’t know this song.’”
The Grammy-winner appeared on an episode of De La Soul‘s Apple Music 1 show Art Official Intelligence Radio in March to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the group’s classic debut 3 Feet High and Rising.
During the conversation, Tyler reflected on coming of age in the early 2000s and how Roc-A-Fella and Shady Records subconsciously laid the blueprint for his own future rap crew.
“Man, I grew up in the year 2000,” he began. “So I’m looking at like eight, turning nine. So let’s say it’s 2002, 10 turning 11.
“You’ve got Jay with the whole Roc-A-Fella, you’ve got Shady, Aftermath, you have all these different crews that felt like family. Nas was bringing Queensbridge group like Jungle and them out. N-ggas had this thing. So in my formative years, I’m just watching these crews.”
He added: “And I’m from Los Angeles, so gang culture is already a prevalent thing, but I feel like just the main layer of that is a family-knitted thing like, ‘No, these are my boys, you come with me.’”
Tyler, The Creator went on describe Odd Future — which also counted Earl Sweatshirt, Frank Ocean and Domo Genesis among its ranks, as well as side groups like The Internet — as a collective of “outcasts” who were all “black sheep.”
“So when I was making Odd Future, outside of the magazine thing, it just actually felt like family for a bunch of outcasts,” he said. “Everyone in Odd Future was the black sheep of their family. So us coming together and just like, ‘Nah, fuck y’all.’
“Who’s getting the opportunity first? It’s the person right next to me. It’s the family right next to me. And I was really on that for a while, and a lot of that is just because of growing up with the idea of rap crews.
“I was too young for the Native Tongues, all of that stuff in real time. I had to learn about that as I got older.
“So seeing people get Roc-A-Fella chains was like, ‘Oh, you’re part of the family.’ So I think just subconsciously emulating the sentiment that they held was easy.”
