Coming to a club near you: non-stop Taylor Swift 

If you’ve always dreamt of attending one of Taylor Swift’s concerts, but didn’t get tickets soon enough (or, let’s be honest, have the funds) then Swiftogeddon might be just what you’re looking for – and its coming to a club near you.

Swiftogeddon is self-described as a club night that is an opportunity for fans to “worship at the altar of Taylor Swift: non-stop Swifty all night”. 

After three years of total silence from Taylor, in 2017 she returned to the music scene in full force, releasing four studio albums in three years. She released albums in 2017 (Reputation), 2019 (Lover), and then two albums within less than five months of each other in August of 2020 (Folklore) and December of 2020 (Evermore). 

This massive contribution to music is one of the many reasons Swift has racked up such a fan base in the nearly 16 years she has been releasing tracks.

Due to her most recent two albums being released in 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, she has been unable to tour, which has left a hole in the hearts of her fans. In response to this desire to congregate with other fans, Swiftogeddon was born. 

Although the Taylor Swift=themed club nights were started by fans in 2019, the concept gained massive popularity on TikTok where videos of Swiftogeddon nights in Australia (where Covid-19 precautions had then been eliminated) went viral in 2020.

These videos left fans hungry to attend these themed nights in their own towns, and tickets began selling out as soon as UK Covid precautions were lifted. 

Now, Swiftogeddon runs club nights all over the UK and has held multiple nights in London. I attended one on March 13, 2022, at Troxy in South East London, and there is another one upcoming on July 1st, 2022 at the same venue.

However if London isn’t quite your area, Swiftogeddon has events as far as Glasgow, Brighton, and Dublin, as well as many other locations. Tickets can be found on their website or via EventBrite.

The concept of Swiftogeddon is simple, and not for the faint of heart: five hours of dancing, community, and of course Taylor Swift and Taylor Swift only. The DJs play a wide variety of her songs, from top of the chart pop hits to country deep cuts from 2006, as well as take fan requests.

Alongside her music, the organisers project her music videos (and the All Too Well TV Short Film) in order to double down on the experience. The song being played seldom syncs up with the chosen music video which can be confusing, but the videos add to the ambience (and, honestly, ridiculousness) of the night.

Not only is Swiftogeddon a fun night, but it is a true testament to the type of fans Swift has as the entire concept was started by the fans themselves, not Swift or any of her people.

Although Swiftogeddon’s events are widely supported, loved, and created by Swift’s fans, there is a small issue called into question by some. It’s no secret what went down between Taylor Swift and Scooter Braun (but if you aren’t sure, this article explains it), and now that Swift is free to rerecord her albums owned by Scooter (often referred to by fans as the “stolen versions”) she has begun releasing her old albums as “Taylor’s Version”.

Due to the fact that Swift makes no money off of the “stolen versions,” it is a well-accepted courtesy to only play the “Taylor’s Version” versions of rereleased songs.

Swiftogeddon is happy to comply with this, and strictly plays “Taylor’s Version” of any songs off of Fearless TV and Red TV. However there is some grey area around playing the albums owned by Scooter that Swift has yet to rerecord.

Some fans believe that it is unethical to play the songs Swift cannot make money from, but Swiftogeddon would probably struggle to find five hours of music if they didn’t play any of the “stolen versions”. Swift and her representatives have yet to comment on this matter themselves.

Despite this slight grey area, Swiftogeddon is still seen as a great opportunity for Taylor fans to congregate, celebrate their favourite artist, and dance the night away under confetti cannons and dynamic light shows.

It’s also a place for the most dedicated fans to pull more unorthodox stunts that may not fly at your usual club.

One fan at the London Troxy show brought along a life-sized cutout of Swift and held it above the crowd most of the night. Others take the opportunity to dress up in accordance with the Taylor theme, some decked out in handmade “Junior Jewels” gear or donning shirts that declare “Not a lot going on at the moment”, or simply dress up to match their favourite era of Taylor’s music.

Whether you’ve been a die-hard Swifty since her debut album was dropped or have become a fan in the last few years, Swiftogeddon is for you.

Not only is it a place to scream along to your favourite hits, but is a place to meet other fans and bask in the glow of Taylor’s musical genius knowing everyone around you is just as excited to hear the first notes of ‘All Too Well 10-Minute Version’ play at the club.

Photos by Sophie Patrick.