Taylor Swift’s Eras tour has begun with a bang, and it’s already shaping up to be one of the most thrilling tours of the year. Taylor kicked off the Eras tour in Glendale, AZ, which was temporarily renamed “Swift City” today (March 17). Gayle and Paramore opened up for the global icon.
While performing on stage, Hayley Williams, the lead vocalist of Paramore, recalled about the time she first contacted Taylor. According to a video shared by Variety, Williams revealed that as a teenager, she saw Taylor perform at the Grammy Awards for the first time, and that was when she received Taylor’s contact number.
“I was like 18 at the time, and it felt kind of lonely, to be that young and to be doing things, like the Grammys and all that.,” Hayley said. “And I met someone [Andrea Swift] as I was leaving. And she said to me, ‘My daughter, she just played, she’s just getting started and she doesn’t really know anybody in the business. And I just really want her to be around people her age that are doing the same thing, and so I got her number.”
Williams went on to disclose the moment when she made the decision to reach out to Swift, sharing that it was after the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, where Kanye West notoriously interrupted her while she was accepting the award for Best Female Video.
“Because I’m like, the shyest freak when I’m not on stage, I did not text [Taylor] until a certain VMAs scandal. That was the first time that I felt like I have to reach out, because this person is really cool and did not deserve that. So around that time is when I got to know Taylor Swift. And the guys and I have been able to watch her as we’ve been playing shows and touring the world, we’ve got to watch her trajectory. And I’m sure you know this, because you’re here tonight, so you obviously get it, but there are moments when I talk to people and I’m like ‘I am not sure that you get how f*cking incredible this artist is,’” Williams said.