– There are many other concerts where there have been scrambles for tickets, but I have never come across anything like this, says Eirill Berg Holmen. The 24-year-old from Kolbotn is currently in Benidorm with her family, but in recent days she has had little time to enjoy the lazy southern life. Tickets for Taylor Swift’s European tour next year are being released in turn this week, and therefore Holmen spent much of Monday trying to snag four tickets for the concert in Stockholm. When she logged into Ticketmaster when the tickets were posted, she was number 95,408 in the queue. You can get tired of less. Photo: Eirill Berg Holmen – But really I was lucky, because no one I know tried to buy a ticket in Paris, and she got place number 650,000 in the queue! Holmen had to wait 3–4 hours in front of the laptop before it was her turn. – Then there were only VIP tickets left, at NOK 8,000 each. But it’s not worth that much. This purchase was never completed. Photo: Eirill Berg Holmen The best-selling tour in history Music journalist for news, Pia Skevik, is also one of those who wants to get her hands on a concert ticket – for her part in Paris. She got place number 95,025 in the queue which numbered almost a million hopefuls. But before it was Skevik’s turn, the entire ticketing system was brought to a halt and all ticket sales in France have been postponed. The huge response to the tour not only in Europe, but worldwide, only underlines how big a phenomenon Swift has become. – This is already the best-selling tour in world history, says Skevik. – They have probably estimated that it will have a turnover of 1.3 billion dollars. And each city she visits earns around NOK 5 billion a day in tourist revenue. So there are huge sums of money. Skevik attributes Swift’s popularity to her honest and open way of conveying emotions, which makes people identify with and gain trust in her. – There was a recent survey in the US where people were asked who they want as president, and Taylor Swift actually came third. Pia Skevik is a music journalist at news, and one of those who are crossing their fingers that she will be able to make it to the Taylor Swift concert. Photo: news The appeal also means that some people will be willing to pay NOK 8,000 to see Swift up close. At the same time, Skevik emphasizes that not all tickets are so expensive. – You get tickets as low as NOK 600, and there are only a few of the tickets that cost many thousands. There are many people who are willing to put in a lot of effort to experience this lady up close. Photo: Ashley Landis / AP Not giving up Because she knows there are cheaper tickets out there, Eirill Berg Holmen has by no means given up the hunt. After saying yes to the Stockholm tickets, she has already queued for tickets in Gelsenkirchen, Lisbon and Munich. But here, too, she thought that the price of between NOK 3,000 and 8,000 was too stiff. Therefore, she is willing to sacrifice more of her holiday to try for tickets in Milan, Madrid, Zurich or Dublin, among others. And the time she spends in the ticket queues now comes on top of the time she has already spent registering to gain access to the ticket sales at all. Eirill Berg Holmen is in good spirits, even if she hasn’t got Taylor Swift tickets yet. Photo: Privat The Hunger Games Sales for this tour take place in such a way that you have to register in advance at the places you want to buy tickets – you had three days to do this after the tour was announced. Holmen registered at all the venues, and of course sat in a queue for a few hours to do this too. Of those who have registered, a “lucky few” are allowed to actually enter the ticket sales – although there is no guarantee that you will actually be able to buy. Eirill Berg Holmen’s overview of when tickets are released for the various venues she has gained access to. Photo: Eirill Berg Holmen Holmen says there has been a real hype around this hunt on TikTok, where people share both tips and frustrations about the ticket stress. It is often referred to as The Hunger Games or The Great War. – It’s strange and quite wild. I’m a little embarrassed of myself, but once I start, I can’t stop. – But then it’s also kind of nice, because if I get tickets and go to a concert, I know that the other 50,000 people there have fought just as hard as me for those tickets. A small sample of what people share of ticket buying drama on TikTok. Photo: Screenshot / TikTok Wants to surprise her sisters The 24-year-old admits that she has thought about whether it is actually worth it, but at the same time she really wants to surprise her sisters with tickets. – They have grown up with Taylor Swift, and on all road trips we sit and sing to Taylor Swift at the top of our lungs. It would have been incredibly nice to be able to surprise them with a concert. – You don’t spoil the surprise by being interviewed by news then? – No, then. Anyway, I haven’t received anything yet. And it’s not certain I’ll get it either. Then I just have to say that I really tried my best.
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Eirill (24) spends the southern holidays sitting in line to get Taylor Swift tickets – news Trøndelag
