Taylor Swift’s ‘Biggest Fear’ of Concert Attacks Resurfaces Amid Vienna Cancellations

8 August, 2024

In the wake of Taylor Swift cancelling shows over a terrorist plot, an interview has resurfaced in which she revealed such a scenario would be her “biggest fear”.

The Grammy-winning artist’s three The Eras Tour shows in Vienna were abruptly cancelled on Aug. 7 following the arrest of two suspects who reportedly planned to unleash a terrorist attack on the shows this weekend.

Swift’s reflections on this very fear were penned in a 2019 article for Elle, where she candidly discussed her anxiety about performing live in the wake of the 2017 ISIS bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, and the mass shooting at Las Vegas’ Route 91 Harvest Music Festival.

The Manchester attack resulted in 22 fatalities and injured over 200 people, while the Las Vegas shooting claimed 64 lives and left 413 wounded.

“My biggest fear,” Swift wrote at the time, “After the Manchester Arena bombing and the Vegas concert shooting, I was completely terrified to go on tour this time because I didn’t know how we were going to keep 3 million fans safe over seven months. There was a tremendous amount of planning, expense, and effort put into keeping my fans safe.”

“My fear of violence has continued into my personal life,” she said, adding that she carried “QuikClot army grade bandage dressing, which is for gunshot or stab wounds.”

These fears have unfortunately been echoed with the recent events in Vienna.

On Wednesday, Aug. 7, Austrian police confirmed the arrest of two suspects involved in planning a terrorist attack on Swift’s concerts at the Ernst Happel Stadium. The suspects, one a 19-year-old Austrian citizen, reportedly radicalized online and had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in July.

“The suspects were focused on the Taylor Swift concerts,” Austrian Director General for Public Safety Franz Ruf said via NY Post. “We discovered that he was taking action to prepare for the attack,” he added. “A clear threat has been averted.”

The planned attack forced Barracuda Music, the concert promoters, to cancel the shows scheduled for August 8-10.

“With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety,” reads a statement from Barracuda Music, also reposted by Taylor Nation on Instagram. All tickets will be automatically refunded within the next 10 business days.

Swift’s shows in Vienna were to be the second-to-last stop on the European leg of her The Eras Tour, before a five-night stint at London’s Wembley Stadium from Aug. 14-18.

She is set to return to North America in October for the final leg of her tour, concluding at the end of the year. However, the Vienna cancellations have cast a shadow over what has otherwise been a highly successful tour.

See Barracuda Music’s statement below.