It’s the End of an Era for Taylor Swift. What Comes Next?

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Like so many others, I’ve spent way too much of my life trying to analyze . When a childhood friend played “Should’ve Said No” for me on the school bus in fourth grade, it kicked off 17 years of combing through the singer’s works for meaning. It began with for hidden clues and has since evolved into to predict what re-recorded album she will release next. As a Taylor Swift fan, it’s easy to become and how they forecast her next move. But with the in her career thus far—her record-shattering —finally coming to a close, I’m realizing that Swift’s next chapter might not be so easy to predict. In fact, her next move might be to disappear from music entirely, at least for a bit.

This past weekend, I went to one of the final Eras Tour shows in Indianapolis. The energy was just as electric as when I first saw the concert a year and a half ago. The success of the Eras Tour has been covered ad nauseam—how it , , brought on a , and more. But while you might expect audiences to have Taylor fatigue, the energy at Lucas Oil Stadium on Friday night was unmatched. A gathered to see the singer as she kicked off her final trio of U.S. shows, and all of them seemed hyped to be there.

I can still remember when Swift first announced the Eras Tour, kicking off to score tickets. I suspected that this would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and that hunch was right. Each time I saw the show, I was amazed by the hordes of fans in elaborate outfits, their ages ranging across decades, trading friendship bracelets and sharing a sense of genuine love. Now, I find myself lucky enough to have attended the show twice.

Still, amidst my excitement, it was hard not to feel like this is a final bow (for now) of sorts for Swift. “We got to bring this tour in front of the most dedicated, passionate, enthusiastic, excitable, loud fans,” she told the crowd that night. “So we decided that the very last U.S. city on the Eras Tour would, in fact, be right here in Indianapolis, Indiana. And I can already tell we made the best decision possible.”

Since March 2023, Swift has managed to run her show like clockwork. But she is not the same woman she was when she started the Eras Tour almost two years ago. Currently, Swift finds herself the only artist to have , the only artist to have from a single tour, and the only artist to have in a single week. She finds herself with perhaps the most supportive partner she’s ever had, , who’s unafraid to join Swift on stage or tell journalists . Business-wise, she started quietly working on her , from a screenplay she wrote herself, while also , called Taylor Swift Publications. Even politically she’s taken more risks, having —her first public endorsement of a presidential nominee.

When Swift first announced the Eras Tour, many commented on the surprising format. It’s not often that musicians do a tour highlighting their various releases unless they’re embarking on something akin to a retirement tour or a Las Vegas residency. For Swift to revisit her former records at the top of her critical and commercial game was a twist, but one that obviously paid off in the long run. As Swift told the crowd at Indianapolis, she envisioned this tour as a way to please her longtime fans, while also inviting in the new ones. While some followers have been coming to Swift’s shows for years, she envisioned the Eras Tour as a way for everyone to catch up.

Now, with millions celebrating almost two decades of musical output, I feel like Swift is ready to let that legacy simmer. For the last two years, she’s had the heat turned all the way up, but once the Eras Tour wraps and she releases the “Taylor’s Version” of Reputation and her debut, I think her biggest surprise yet—without any sort of Easter egg or outfit hint—would be to step back.

Earlier this year, Swift when her team released various acoustic versions and remixes of songs from her latest album, , seemingly as a way to keep that record at number one and prevent other artists from reaching the top of the chart. Throughout her career, Swift’s relationships with fellow artists have often been examined, and as she sang herself on “Nothing New,” she’s often feared that young starlets would eventually replace her. “And will you still want me when I’m nothing new?” she on the Red vault track.

But when choosing her openers for Eras, Swift notably picked a number of rising stars, like , , and , whose careers have all considerably blown up since, in part thanks to Swift’s endorsement. For Abrams’s second album, Swift even collaborated on one of the tracks, titled “Us,” which Abrams called a “dream” to make when she opened for the singer in Indianapolis. Clearly, with age and wisdom, Swift has gotten more comfortable in herself and her position, and more willing to champion new artists. Now, maybe she’s ready to take a pause and let these newcomers shine.

I mean, who could blame Swift if she wants to sink into romantic bliss with Kelce and enjoy her relationship away from the spotlight? Maybe she’s ready to make films behind the scenes for a few years or put money behind burgeoning authors. Imagine if she adopted a Fiona Apple-style music release strategy, waiting a decade to return with a tight collection of new songs, a move I’m convinced would actually break the internet. With the Eras Tour, Swift has given us her everything, for three hours a night for over 21 months, and fans have been trying to soak up every minute. Now, we’re all getting the feeling that she could quickly step away.

Of course, Taylor was born to make music, and even if she does leave, she’ll eventually return to grab that pen and old napkin and craft even more great American hits. When she does, the world will be ready to listen.

For a chance to see Taylor Swift’s final Eras Tour show in Vancouver, Canada, you can enter a sweepstakes through Marriott Bonvoy, which features two concert tickets, air travel, hotel accommodations, and a welcome gift. The sweepstakes closes on November 4, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Learn more and sign up .

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