In this series, Newsweek is recapping every show Taylor Swift has performed on the Eras Tour, city by city.
Swift poked fun at herself as she messed up the words to one of her songs during an Eras Tour show in California.
The singer told the crowd at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara on July 28, 2023, that she had been trying to perfect her rendition of “Right Where You Left Me” for some time and that she was still struggling to nail it. Swift, who was accompanied by Aaron Dessner during the song, said there was “more pressure on it” because it was a favorite.
Deciding to attempt the song anyway, she said she hoped she would “somewhat do it justice.”
“This is one of the wordiest songs,” she admitted. “I have been rehearsing this for weeks. OK, I have never ever gotten it 100 percent right. Not even one time.
“If this is the time that I get it right, you have no idea what kind of celebration I am going to be exhibiting,” she went on. “And also this goes for you. You can get all the words right to this song, you get to pat yourself on the back because you are the best. You win an imaginary prize, it’s yours.”
Swift’s first few lines went beautifully, but a little way into the track she stumbled, then stopped altogether. Groaning in mock exasperation, she looked up at the sky as fans giggled. Smiling, she admitted that she had known “it was too good to be true.”
Jeff Kravitz/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management
But she refused to be defeated, telling the audience: “We really can’t let that be it. We have really got to go back.”
She and Dessner then restarted and made it through to the end of the song, as the crowd whistled and cheered her on.
“Right Where You Left Me” was unveiled in 2020 on Swift’s Evermore album.
Taylor Swift’s Surprise Songs in Santa Clara
July 28: “Stay Stay Stay” and “All of the Girls You Loved Before”
July 29: “Right Where You Left Me” and “Castles Crumbling”
Learn more about all the record-breaking, sentimental and just downright hilarious moments from Swift’s Eras Tour with Newsweek’s interactive timeline and map here.
Were you at any of Swift’s Santa Clara shows? Tell us your favorite moment in the comments.
