Thousands gathered outside of Tokyo Dome on a chilly Wednesday afternoon ahead of pop superstar Taylor Swift’s first show on the Tokyo leg of her world tour. They snapped photos of each other sporting Swift-inspired outfits and exchanged homemade friendship bracelets.
“There are so many songs of hers I can relate to,” Mathilde, a French fan living in Tokyo, said just after swapping bracelets with a Japanese Swiftie. “They’ve reflected periods of my life.... I feel like I’m going to cry, sorry!”
Swift, arguably the most famous musician on the planet today — and among the most well-known and influential people — brought her blockbuster Eras Tour to Asia this week for the first time since it kicked off last March. All four of her Tokyo Dome shows have sold out, with around 55,000 fans attending each concert. The line for tour merchandise snaked around the venue’s surrounding Tokyo Dome City, with some punters saying they waited three hours for a chance to buy goods emblazoned with the 34-year-old singer-songwriter’s face.