On Sunday night, Taylor Swift gave fans a taste of what they've been missing when ABC broadcast her September 2019 City of Lover Concert on TV. The special is now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu for rewatches and fans who weren't able to catch the original airing.
At 41 minutes, the special is shorter than we'd wish for but it's still packed with songs and charm in a time when we're missing live music and concert experiences. The description of City of Lover on Disney+ reads, "In a once-in-a-lifetime musical event, Taylor Swift performs songs from her award-winning album, Lover. Filmed in Paris, the City of Love, in September 2019, this show gives fans unprecedented access to behind-the-scenes moments with the artist and marks her only concert performance in 2020."
The show took place on September 9, 2019, at L'Olympia in Paris and served as a kind of release celebration of the Lover album. With a capacity of just under 2,000, L'Olympia is significantly smaller than the venues that Swift usually performs in, and because of that, the fans in attendance that night certainly got a more personal and intimate experience than they would have had at a large stadium show.
Watching the special, and comparing it to the Reputation Tour special on Netflix, really shows just how stripped down the Paris concert was. It's a giant departure from the production, theatrics, and 'wow' that usually comes when Taylor Swift takes the stage - and it's wonderful.
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images are cropped screenshots from City of LoverWe've been to a lot of small, intimate shows in little rooms, and even watching City of Lover on screen gives me the same feeling as those shows. This feels like being in a room of 500, not 2,000 and certainly not the 20,000 or more she would usually play to. It feels more like a Tiny Desk performance than a football stadium extravaganza. It's more singer-songwriter than massive pop star. And even when it does have its more performative moments, it doesn't feel like an over-the-top show.
From the start of the show with the upbeat ME!, through seven more songs from Lover, Swift is as personable and connecting as she's known to be. She knows how to do this still, the small room doesn't throw her off her game, and while that might not seem like much, it's impressive to us.
Now, because I am notoriously greedy when it comes to wanting more music that I love when I've gotten a taste of it - I really do wish that City of Lover included all 18 songs from the Lover album. There's a setlist below with the video performances of the songs from the special... but there's an In and Out list of tracks from the album.
In the special: ME!, Daylight, Cornelia Street, Death By A Thousand Cuts, Lover, The Archer, You Need To Calm Down, The Man.
Not in the special: I Forgot That You Existed, Cruel Summer, I Think He Knows, Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince, Paper Rings, London Boy, Soon You'll Get Better, False God, Afterglow, It's Nice To Have A Friend.
The setlist for the concert ( as listed on setlist.fm ) included 16 songs, but no others from Lover. If was going to add a couple more to the set from the new release, I'd have gladly taken Paper Rings and Cruel Summer ... but honestly, eight is much much better than none.
In the end, I still miss live music in massive crowds and small rooms. I'll miss it until it comes back and we all feel safe and come together in a congregation of music lovers and connected souls. But, City of Lover is a nice treat, and enjoy it like the live streams, videos posted to social media, and other TV specials that we've been given in these last few weeks is something I'm grateful for.
If you're a Taylor Swift fan and you haven't hit play yet - do it. If you love any of the songs more than others, watch the videos here. And if you use Spotify or Apple Music - you can stream them there as well.
Enjoy. I did!
Taylor Swift, City of Lover Concert Video Setlist
1. ME! 2. The Archer 3. Death By A Thousand Cuts 4. Cornelia Street 5. The Man 6. Daylight 7. You Need To Calm Down 8. Lover
