Taylor Swift Breaks Silence on Planned Vienna Attack: ‘I Have a Tremendous Amount of Guilt…’
Taylor Swift feels a "tremendous amount of guilt" over the planned attack on her Vienna concert.
The 34-year-old pop star was forced to cancel three dates on her Eras Tour in the Austrian capital earlier this month due to a planned attack at the Ernst Happel Stadium before officials arrested three teenagers, and Taylor took to social media on Wednesday (Aug. 21) evening following the conclusion of the European leg of her tour to release a statement.
She wrote on Instagram: "We have officially wrapped the European leg of The Eras Tour. With it came the most passionate crowds I’ve ever played for, new traditions in the show, and an entirely new era added in. It was a more hectic pace than we’d done before, and I’m so proud of my crew/fellow performers for being able to physically perform that show and build our massive stage, take it apart, and make magic with so few days in between for recovery and travel.
"They’re the most impressive people I know and I’m so lucky they gave The Eras Tour their time, their energy, and their expertise.
"Walking onstage in London was a roller coaster of emotions.
"Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows. But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives. I was heartened by the love and unity I saw in the fans who banded together."
The "Anti-Hero" singer decided to put "all of [her] energy" into keeping all those who came to subsequent concerts as safe as possible and her efforts all resulted in receiving the "most giant bear hug" from all of her audiences at Wembley Stadium.
She said: "I decided that all of my energy had to go toward helping to protect the nearly half a million people I had coming to see the shows in London. My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us. Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows.
"In cases like this one, ‘silence’ is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when it’s right to.
"My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.
And then London felt like a beautiful dream sequence. All five crowds at Wembley Stadium were bursting with passion, joy, and exuberance. The energy in that stadium was like the most giant bear hug from 92,000 people each night, and it brought me back to a place of carefree calm up there."