Speak Now World Tour
Tour by Taylor Swift
Promotional poster for the tour
Location
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • North America
  • Oceania
Associated albumSpeak Now
Start dateFebruary 9, 2011 (2011-02-09)
End dateMarch 18, 2012 (2012-03-18)
No. of shows110
Supporting acts
Attendance1,642,435
Box office$123.7 million ($157.68 million in 2022 dollars)[1]
Taylor Swift concert chronology

The Speak Now World Tour was the second concert tour by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, who embarked on it to support her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). It ran from February 9, 2011, to March 18, 2012, and covered 110 shows across Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania.

The set list consisted mostly of songs from Speak Now, with a few numbers from Swift's first two albums, Taylor Swift (2006) and Fearless (2008). Two songs were performed as medleys with music of other artists: "Hey, Soul Sister" by Train, "Apologize" by OneRepublic, and "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz. On several US shows, Swift invited special guests to perform duets onstage with her. Multiple US shows were recorded for a concert film and live album, both titled Speak Now World Tour – Live, released on November 21, 2011.

Music critics generally praised the production and Swift's showmanship and interactions with her audience. According to Pollstar, the Speak Now World Tour was the fourth-highest-grossing tour and the highest-grossing by a female artist of 2011. Billboard ranked it fifth on their list of the top tours of 2011.

Background and development

Taylor Swift performing live during the Speak Now World Tour.
View of the stage for the concert at Pittsburgh

I’m so excited to go back out on tour again in 2011! The 'Fearless Tour' was so much fun and even more unforgettable than I ever imagined, and I can't wait to get back out and play my new music from Speak Now! The fans have been so amazing and I'm thrilled to play in new cities around the world and meet even more of my fans in 2011![2]

While promoting Speak Now, Swift mentioned her excitement for her upcoming tour. She stated that the tour was going to be "big" and "extensive".[3] On November 23, 2010, various media outlets, including Billboard magazine, announced the second tour by Swift.[4] It followed her successful Fearless Tour, which played over 100 dates in five countries. The Speak Now World Tour marked Swift's first in multiple stadiums. Before it commenced, she performed "The Allure of Taylor Swift" show aboard the MV Allure of the Seas at the Allure of the Seas Aquatheater, as a part of Royal Caribbean Cruises on January 21, 2011 in Cozumel, Mexico.[5] Swift used Tom Petty's "American Girl" as her entrance song.[6]

It ranked tenth on Pollstar's "Top 50 Worldwide Tour (Mid-Year)" list, earning over $40 million.[7] At the end of 2011, the tour placed fourth on the magazine's annual "Top 25 Worldwide Tours" list, earning $104.2 million from 100 shows,[8] making it the highest-grossing female and solo tour of 2011.

Arm lyrics

Taylor Swift performing live. The quote on her arm reads "Go cut through the noise so you can know what love sounds like".
Swift performing during the Speak Now World Tour in 2012 with lyrics from Natasha Bedingfield's "Neon Lights" on her arm

During the North American[9] and Australasian tour legs, Swift wrote different song lyrics, and occasionally quotes from famous speeches and movies, on her left arm for each show. She stated that the lyrics should be viewed as a nightly "mood ring",[10] and The New Yorker has cited the practice as an example of Swift's "keen understanding of what fuels fan obsession in the first place: a desire for intimacy between singer and listener".[11]

Acoustic cover versions

Swift performed many acoustic cover versions during the North American leg. In each city, she paid tribute to a homegrown artist.[12] She stated that the cover versions allowed her to be "spontaneous" in an otherwise well-rehearsed show: "You'll have a lot of people who will come to more than one show, and I want them to get a different experience every time."[13]

Set list

The following set list is from the May 27, 2011 show in Omaha, Nebraska. It is not intended to represent all shows throughout the tour.[14]

  1. "Sparks Fly"
  2. "Mine"
  3. "The Story of Us"
  4. "Our Song"
  5. "Mean"
  6. "Back to December" (contains elements of "Apologize" and "You're Not Sorry")
  7. "Better than Revenge"
  8. "Speak Now"
  9. "Fearless" / "I'm Yours" (contains elements of "Hey, Soul Sister")
  10. "Last Kiss"
  11. Surprise cover
  12. "You Belong with Me"
  13. "Dear John"
  14. "Enchanted"
  15. "Haunted"
  16. "Long Live"
Encore
  1. "Fifteen"
  2. "Love Story"

Notes

Surprise covers

Swift and her band performing "Mean"

Swift is well-known for paying homage to other artists that have inspired her; after "Last Kiss" was performed, she went on to perform the following surprise tribute covers:

Special guests

While touring, Swift is well-known to surprise her audiences with specially-invited musical guests, who join her onstage in singing a duet.

Tour dates

List of 2011 concerts[59]
Date (2011) City Country Venue Opening acts Attendance Revenue
February 9 Singapore Singapore Indoor Stadium Sezairi Sezali 8,964 / 8,964 $916,850
February 11 Seoul South Korea Olympic Gymnastics Arena — 4,725 / 4,725 $385,374
February 13 Osaka Japan Osaka-Jo Hall 6,953 / 6,953 $758,113
February 16 Tokyo Nippon Budokan 15,955 / 15,955 $1,738,227
February 17
February 19 Quezon City Philippines Smart Araneta Coliseum Sam Concepcion 12,667 / 12,667 $859,037
February 21 Hong Kong AsiaWorld–Arena Saito Johnny 12,573 / 12,573 $1,030,633
March 6 Brussels Belgium Forest National Tom Dice 4,622 / 4,622 $219,212
March 7 Rotterdam Netherlands Sportpaleis van Ahoy 4,799 / 4,799 $248,314
March 9 Oslo Norway Oslo Spektrum — 8,650 / 8,650 $815,246
March 12 Oberhausen Germany König Pilsener Arena Martin & James 6,082 / 6,082 $370,028
March 15 Milan Italy Mediolanum Forum Emma Marrone 3,421 / 5,585 $153,303
March 17 Paris France Zénith de Paris — 3,598 / 8,500 $201,781
March 19 Madrid Spain Palacio de los Deportes The Bright 3,962 / 3,962 $251,864
March 22 Birmingham England LG Arena Martin & James 9,339 / 9,339 $508,854
March 25 Belfast Northern Ireland Odyssey Arena Ryan Sheridan 8,058 / 8,058 $379,001
March 27 Dublin Ireland The O2 8,681 / 8,681 $419,806
March 29 Manchester England Manchester Evening News Arena Martin & James 10,488 / 11,622 $580,558
March 30 London The O2 Arena 15,265 / 15,681 $891,152
May 27 Omaha United States Qwest Center Omaha Needtobreathe 26,992 / 26,992 $1,717,104
May 28
May 29 Des Moines Wells Fargo Arena 13,149 / 13,149 $862,771
June 2 Sunrise BankAtlantic Center 24,077 / 24,077 $1,582,951
June 3
June 4 Orlando Amway Center 12,262 / 12,262 $791,980
June 7 Columbus Nationwide Arena 14,817 / 14,817 $955,259
June 8 Milwaukee Bradley Center 13,748 / 13,748 $897,042
June 11 Detroit Ford Field 47,992 / 47,992 $3,453,549
June 14 Saint Paul Xcel Energy Center 28,977 / 28,977 $1,913,737
June 15
June 18 Pittsburgh Heinz Field 52,009 / 52,009 $4,009,118
June 21 Buffalo First Niagara Center 14,487 / 14,487 $966,749
June 22 Hartford XL Center 12,436 / 12,436 $810,165
June 25 Foxborough Gillette Stadium 110,800 / 110,800 $8,026,350
June 26
June 30 Greensboro Greensboro Coliseum 14,789 / 14,789 $990,701
July 1 Knoxville Thompson–Boling Arena 13,754 / 13,754 $903,875
July 14 Montreal Canada Bell Centre 13,439 / 13,439 $1,254,230
July 15 Toronto Air Canada Centre 30,144 / 30,144 $3,036,000
July 16
July 19 Newark United States Prudential Center 51,487 / 51,487 $3,875,463
July 20
July 23
July 24
July 28 Grand Rapids Van Andel Arena 11,012 / 11,012 $724,854
July 29 Indianapolis Conseco Fieldhouse 13,329 / 13,329 $877,175
July 30 Cleveland Quicken Loans Arena 14,873 / 14,873 $976,954
August 2 Washington, D.C. Verizon Center 29,303 / 29,303 $2,068,789
August 3
August 6 Philadelphia Lincoln Financial Field 51,395 / 51,395 $4,268,678
August 9 Rosemont Allstate Arena 26,112 / 26,112 $1,909,603
August 10
August 13 St. Louis Scottrade Center 27,965 / 27,965 $1,850,159
August 14
August 18 Edmonton Canada Rexall Place 25,336 / 25,336 $2,136,270
August 19
August 23 Los Angeles United States Staples Center 54,900 / 54,900 $3,927,154
August 24
August 27
August 28
September 1 San Jose HP Pavilion 24,827 / 24,827 $1,825,448
September 2
September 3 Sacramento Power Balance Pavilion 12,432 / 12,432 $934,326
September 6 Portland Rose Garden Arena 13,610 / 13,610 $903,445
September 7 Tacoma Tacoma Dome 19,904 / 19,904 $1,289,430
September 10 Vancouver Canada Rogers Arena 26,030 / 26,030 $2,190,680
September 11
September 16 Nashville United States Bridgestone Arena 28,178 / 28,178 $1,841,134
September 17
September 20 Bossier City CenturyLink Center 11,510 / 11,510 $728,546
September 21 Tulsa BOK Center 12,546 / 12,546 $907,573
September 24 Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium 48,562 / 48,562 $3,148,046
September 27 Denver Pepsi Center 12,908 / 12,908 $834,916
September 28 Salt Lake City EnergySolutions Arena 13,720 / 13,720 $896,946
October 1[a] Atlanta Philips Arena 26,244 / 26,244 $1,726,661
October 2[a]
October 4 North Little Rock Verizon Arena 13,566 / 13,566 $856,123
October 5 New Orleans New Orleans Arena 12,943 / 12,943 $830,289
October 8 Arlington Cowboys Stadium 55,451 / 55,451 $4,337,062
October 11[b] Louisville KFC Yum! Center 14,848 / 14,848 $1,003,828
October 14 Lubbock United Spirit Arena 10,419 / 10,419 $710,426
October 15 Oklahoma City Chesapeake Energy Arena 11,592 / 11,592 $758,364
October 20 San Diego Valley View Casino Center 10,834 / 10,834 $792,634
October 21 Glendale Jobing.com Arena 27,029 / 27,029 $1,826,025
October 22
October 25 San Antonio AT&T Center 13,851 / 13,851 $901,535
October 26 Austin Frank Erwin Center 11,999 / 11,999 $752,078
October 29 Lexington Rupp Arena 16,237 / 16,237 $1,041,935
October 30 Memphis FedExForum 12,604 / 12,604 $820,036
November 5 Houston Minute Maid Park 42,095 / 42,095 $3,435,756
November 11 Jacksonville Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena 11,785 / 11,785 $749,099
November 12 Tampa St. Pete Times Forum 13,695 / 13,695 $914,300
November 13 Miami American Airlines Arena 12,153 / 12,153 $786,904
November 16[c] Charlotte Time Warner Cable Arena 14,272 / 14,272 $920,903
November 17 Raleigh RBC Center 13,567 / 13,567 $866,056
November 18 Columbia Colonial Life Arena 12,807 / 12,807 $828,231
November 21 New York City Madison Square Garden 26,652 / 26,652 $1,988,411
November 22
List of 2012 concerts
Date (2012) City Country Venue Opening acts Attendance Revenue
March 2 Perth Australia Burswood Dome Hot Chelle Rae 15,142 / 15,142 $1,878,530
March 4 Adelaide Adelaide Entertainment Centre 8,589 / 8,589 $1,075,370
March 6 Brisbane Brisbane Entertainment Centre 19,870 / 19,870 $2,416,030
March 7
March 9 Sydney Allphones Arena 27,900 / 27,900 $3,420,360
March 10
March 12 Melbourne Rod Laver Arena 33,793 / 33,793 $4,151,650
March 13
March 14
March 16 Auckland New Zealand Vector Arena 32,585 / 32,585 $2,888,560
March 17
March 18
Total 1,639,137 / 1,649,435 (99.38%) $123,678,576

Cancelled date

List of cancelled concerts, showing date, city, country, venue and reason for cancellation
Date City Country Venue Reason
March 14, 2011 Munich Germany Olympiahalle Scheduling conflict.[60]

Notes

  1. ^ a b The shows on October 1 and 2, 2011, in Atlanta at the Philips Arena were originally scheduled for July 9 and 10, 2011; however, due to illness, the shows were postponed.
  2. ^ The show on October 11, 2011, in Louisville at the KFC Yum! Center was originally scheduled for July 2, 2011; however, due to illness, the show was postponed.
  3. ^ The show on November 16, 2011, in Charlotte at the Time Warner Cable Arena was originally scheduled for July 8, 2011; however, due to illness, the show was postponed.

References

  1. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
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  8. ^ "Top 25 Worldwide Tours" (PDF).
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  10. ^ Becca (August 11, 2011). "Taylor Swift's Arm Art is a Mood Ring – The Country Vibe News". Thecountryvibe.com. Archived from the original on August 7, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
  11. ^ Widdicombe, Lizzie (October 10, 2011). "You Belong With Me". The New Yorker. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
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  13. ^ Roland, Tom (December 2, 2011). "Taylor Swift: Billboard's Woman of the Year". Billboard. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
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  15. ^ "Taylor Swift Performs Rare 'Speak Now' Track 'Superman' in Concert". Taste of Country. September 25, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
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  17. ^ Tunis, Walter (October 31, 2011). "Pop princess rules Rupp and willing subjects". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
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  21. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Justin Bieber In Concert (Alanis Morissette and Tal Bachman, Too)". Dose. July 18, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  22. ^ Taylor Swift - Canadian Medley at the ACC in Toronto (July 16th, 2011) on YouTube
  23. ^ Johnson, Maura (July 20, 2011). "Live: Taylor Swift Sparkles And Survives At The Prudential Center". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  24. ^ "Flashback: Taylor Swift Mashes Up Bruce and Bon Jovi at 2011 Jersey Gig". Rolling Stone. November 5, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  25. ^ "Taylor Swift Sums Up How The Chicks Changed Music With One Line". Refinery29. July 23, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  26. ^ "Watch Taylor Swift cover Eminem's hit 'Lose Yourself'". The News International. October 26, 2022. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  27. ^ Karabatkovic, Ivor (August 9, 2011). "Taylor Swift Wows A Sold Out Quicken Loans Arena Crowd". Lakewood Observer. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  28. ^ Taylor Swift singing "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" and "Ghetto Superstar" in Washington D.C. on YouTube
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  30. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Pink's 'Who Knew' and TLC's 'Unpretty' Live". PopCrush. August 8, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  31. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Fall Out Boy Song in Chicago". Taste of Country. August 10, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  32. ^ "WATCH: Taylor Swift Covers Nelly's 'Just A Dream'". MTV News. August 18, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
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  35. ^ Newman, Melinda (August 24, 2011). "Concert Review: Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber rock Staples Center". Uproxx. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
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  38. ^ Harrington, Jim (September 1, 2011). "Review: Taylor Swift brings fairy tale to San Jose". The Mercury News. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
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  41. ^ Taylor Swift covering Dave Matthews Band Tacoma Dome 9/7/11 "You and Me" on YouTube
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  43. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Alan Jackson's Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning) AT 9/11 Show". Taste of Country. September 12, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  44. ^ Mead, David (November 2011). "Cover Girl: Taylor Swift And The Unbearable Likeness Of Singing". American Songwriter. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  45. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Britney Spears' 'Lucky'". MTV News. September 22, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  46. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers 'Swing Swing' by the All-American Rejects". PopCrush. September 22, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  47. ^ "Taylor Swift Learns 'How to Save a Life' at Denver Concert". The Boot. September 28, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  48. ^ "Taylor Swift Performs Sugarland's 'Baby Girl' + Sings With Usher On Stage". Taste of Country. October 2, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  49. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers Brooks & Dunn Classic". The Boot. October 10, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  50. ^ Spera, Keith (October 6, 2011). "Taylor Swift was true to herself at the New Orleans Arena". The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
  51. ^ "Boys of Summer," Taylor Swift at Cowboys Stadium on YouTube
  52. ^ Lee, Josephine (October 18, 2011). "Taylor Swift shines in 'Speak Now' tour". The Louisville Cardinal. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  53. ^ Kerns, William (October 14, 2011). "Swift delivers one-of-a-kind, entertaining concert". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  54. ^ "Taylor Swift Covers the Dixie Chicks and Rascal Flatts Live in Concert". Taste of Country. October 16, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
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  56. ^ Taylor Swift singing "No Parade" by Jordin Sparks in Phoenix, Arizona on YouTube
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  59. ^ Attendance and gross data are adapted from Billboard Boxscore:
  60. ^ "Taylor Swift - The Eras Tour - Olympic Stadium". Olympiapark München. Retrieved October 20, 2023.

External links

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