KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour set the world on fire earlier this year, but the closest the country singer turned pop star came to Knoxville was three hours away in Nashville.
However, she has made a few stops in the Scruffy City throughout her career.
Hot off the heels of the release of her single, “Tim McGraw," 16-year-old Taylor Swift played her first concert for the folks in the East Tennessee area at the 2006 Aquapalooza event at Lenoir City Cove Park alongside Danielle Peck and Dusty Drake.
On Feb. 23, 2007, she opened for George Strait in front of 17,000 fans at Thompson-Boling Arena. Before that show, however, she played for a packed house inside the Farragut High School gymnasium.
In January 2008, it was announced that Swift and Montgomery Gentry would perform as part of the Gridiron Bash before that year’s Orange and White game at Neyland Stadium, making it the first concert held there since fellow country artist Kenny Chesney in 2003.
Unfortunately, the NCAA canceled the event after schools raised questions about whether having players involved in pep rallies prior to the concert constituted special benefits for the student-athletes.
Taylor didn’t let her Knoxville "Swifties" down. She came back that October as the opener for Rascal Flatts at Thompson-Boling Arena in front of a crowd of around 10,000 fans.
Taylor Swift’s last show in Knoxville came in 2011, and this time, she was the headliner.
Her "Speak Now" World Tour brought out over 15,000 fans once again to Thompson-Boling Arena, including WBIR's own Katie Inman.
