Taylor Swift, who turns 36 on December 13, was extra generous to the crew who worked on the Eras Tour. The singer-songwriter gifted $197 million in bonuses to those who toured with her over the past two
years. The viral moment was captured in the second episode of Taylor's docuseries The End of an Era, with the crew members shaking their heads in disbelief. Take a look below.
Taylor Swift gifts team $197 million in bonuses
After completing the first leg of the tour in North America in August 2023, Taylor handed out more than $55 million in bonuses. By the end of the tour, the billionaire pop star is said to have distributed $197 million in bonuses. This bonus was given to every single member of the tour, including truck drivers, caterers, instrument techs, merch team, lighting, sound, production staff and assistants, carpenters, dancers, the band, security, choreographers, pyrotechnics, riggers, hair, make-up, wardrobe, physical therapists, and the video team.
The moment in which she gifts some members of the team was captured on camera as part of the six-part docuseries
The End of an Era. The first two episodes premiered on December 12, and the heartwarming moment from the second episode is going viral. In the docuseries, Taylor shared, "Bonus day is so important because setting a precedent with the Eras Tour is really important to me. Because people who work on the road, if the tour grosses more, they get more of a bonus. And these people just work so hard, and they are the best at what they do."
ALSO READ: Taylor Swift Announces Eras Tour Docuseries And Final Show Film: When And Where To Watch OTT ReleasesOne of her dancers, Kameron Saunders, reads out Taylor's personal note and the bonus amount to the assembled group. The amount itself is censored, and the rest of the dancers react with shock and shake their heads in disbelief. The pause is also long, indicating that the bonus must be sizable.
About the Eras Tour
By the final show in Vancouver, Canada, in December 2024, the Eras Tour became the first tour in history to gross over $2 billion. The tour spanned 149 concerts in 21 countries, across 53 cities on five continents. Sales from merchandising added around $400 million to the tour.