China | In the absence of a Taylor Swift concert, admirers console themselves at the cinema

(Beijing) Luminous fluorescent sticks, sequined dresses and colorful bracelets: in a supercharged atmosphere in Beijing reminiscent of a concert, Taylor Swift’s Chinese fans are ecstatic in front of a giant screen, despite not being able to see her on stage .

The American singer, who made history on Sunday with a fourth Grammy nomination, is preparing to kick off the Asia-Pacific part of her tour in Japan Eras Tour.

Taylor Swift will also travel to Australia and Singapore for six dates in early March. But not in China, where the 34-year-old artist who has millions of fans performed in 2019.

The disappointment is enormous for his worshipers. And for lack of anything better for the moment, it is in cinemas that they applaud their idol.

Like in Beijing, where a Taylor Swift concert was shown last weekend in a cinema.

“I go to the cinema every weekend to see” this concert, says enthusiastically Mu Guangyuan, a 25-year-old consultant, who has been following Taylor Swift “for 15 years” and will go to Singapore to see her with his own eyes.

“I hope she can (one day) come to China and meet her fans there,” he told AFP in a black and purple graduation dress, the same one the singer wore in 2022 during an honorary diploma ceremony.

Taylor Swift’s Chinese fans, the “Swifties”, know all her songs by heart. And many of them have a “13” tattooed on their hand, the singer’s lucky number.

Power over opinion

Since the release in December of the recording of one of his concerts, more than 1.8 million movie tickets have been sold in China.

In this country, it is already the highest-grossing musical work in cinema with 93 million yuan ($17.5 million) in revenue.

“Today is the eighth time I have seen the film” of her concert, declares Qi Yi, a 28-year-old educator, who with a microphone in hand and a sequined dress tries to resemble her idol.

If Taylor Swift comes to China, “I will attend all her concerts, whether in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou or Shenzhen,” assures another fan, Chen Qing, a 22-year-old university graduate.

Jess Wang, an unconditional fan of the singer and who was able to see her in concert in the United States, doubts it. Because Taylor Swift’s support for the LGBTQ+ cause and her suggestive outfits are red lines for the Chinese authorities, supposes M^me Wang.

With her hundreds of millions of followers on social media and her base of devoted “Swifties,” the singer can swing the scales of opinion without much effort.

“I don’t think Taylor Swift’s entourage will take the risk of censoring” elements that displease the Chinese authorities “just to obtain authorization” for concerts, judge Jess Wang.