Taylor Swift Reveals Tornadoes ‘Hit Close to Home,’ Says ‘Speak Now … Help Now’ Tickets Go on Sale May 12
Taylor Swift is doing her part to help those in need by opening up her tour rehearsal to the public for the first time ever, with proceeds to benefit victims of the recent tornadoes in the south. The 'Mean' hitmaker will offer fans a chance to see her final dress rehearsal at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena through the 'Speak Now ... Help Now' event, which takes place on Saturday, May 21.
Though it won't exactly be an intimate experience, as 13,000 tickets will be sold, it will likely be a once in a lifetime opportunity, because if Swift makes a mistake you'll get to see her give it another shot -- or two. "This experience, as far as opening up a rehearsal to the public, it's going to be just like one of our regular shows. It will have the same songs, the same set list, the same production elements as the other shows on the new tour," Swift spills, according to her label, Big Machine Records. "But, because it is actually a true dress rehearsal, there might be some fine-tuning. There might be some things we'll have to do over again. I can imagine that it might be a very, very true dress rehearsal, but you know, I don't care -- it's worth it to raise money for people who really need it right now."
The recent disasters in the southern states hit home for lots of folks, but for Swift's crew, the twisters came a little too close for comfort. "I got the idea to open up the last dress rehearsal of our tour to the public and have the tickets benefit the tornado victims because the day that all of this was happening, we were all at rehearsal, and so many of the people on my crew and band and the dancers -- they have relatives in Alabama who were sending them videos of a cyclone in their local park, or down the street from them," the 21-year-old superstar says. "So we turned on the TV and we were watching the coverage, and it hit so close to home for us, including the tornado warnings in Nashville. It seemed like something that was absolutely necessary."
Fans and concerned citizens can visit TaylorSwift.com to make a donation through the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. Starting tomorrow, May 12, 13,000 lucky fans will be able to purchase tickets for the Nashville dress rehearsal event on Swift's website, and 100% of the ticket sales will go directly to help tornado victims.
After the rehearsal, Taylor Swift's 2011 Speak Now World Tour officially kicks off on May 27 in Omaha, Neb.
Watch the Taylor Swift 'Mean' Video