Taylor Swift Only Cancels Her Concerts When Absolutely Necessary — Here Are the Rare Times She Has

Taylor Swift performs in March 2024 in Arizona. Photo:

Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management

Taylor Swift only cancels shows in rare instances.

On Wednesday, Aug. 7, local authorities confirmed that two men had been arrested in connection to a planned attack on Swift’s Eras Tour concerts, which were set to take place at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna on Aug. 8, 9 and 10. The three nights of the tour have since been canceled, according to a post by a promoter that was reshared by the official Taylor Nation account on Instagram.

Here are the times Swift has canceled planned performances in the past.

Taylor Swift’s 3 Eras Tour Shows in Vienna, Austria Canceled After Being Targeted in Alleged Terror Plot

Speak Now World Tour

Taylor Swift performs in November 2011.

Larry Busacca/Getty

While on her second headlining tour, Swift, then a 21-year-old rising country pop star, had to postpone four dates of the Speak Now World Tour — one in Louisville, Ky., another Charlotte, N.C., and two more in Atlanta in July 2011 — according to The New York Times.

Per Swift’s spokesperson at the time, the singer developed a illness as she performed through heavy rain earlier in the tour at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., a show that has since gained legendary status among her fans as her original “rain show” (Swift has been known to play in torrential downpour at her concerts ever since).

This was the first time the star had to postpone a performance for illness, and she recovered at her home in Nashville before resuming the tour in Montreal later in the month, her spokesperson said. The “Love Story” singer later made it up to fans, circling back to the three cities in October and November 2011 to perform the four skipped concerts.

The Red Tour

Taylor Swift performs in December 2013.

Scott Barbour/TAS/Getty

On the road to promote her fourth album Red, Swift canceled a planned tour date in Bangkok, Thailand, which was originally scheduled for June 9, 2014, following political unrest in the country and military coup the month prior

According to Billboard, the concert promoted cited “recent events in Thailand” as the reason for the cancellation, adding that it was “a difficult decision for all parties.”

“I’m sending my love to the fans in Thailand,” posted Swift on Twitter following news of the cancellation. “I’m so sad about the concert being canceled.”

The 1989 World Tour

Taylor Swift performs in August 2015.

Christopher Polk/Getty

As Swift toured her fifth album, it was news in the baseball world that forced her to shake up her tour schedule.

A surprisingly successful run for the Houston Astros led the MLB team to the postseason, and they needed their home stadium for a game — prompting Swift to move her show originally scheduled for Oct. 13, 2015, about a month earlier to Sept. 9, according to FOX Sports.

As a result, her new show conflicted with a show in Fargo, N.D., originally scheduled for Sept. 9, so she changed this date as well — to Oct. 12.

Reputation Stadium Tour

Taylor Swift performs in May 2018.

Christopher Polk/TAS18/Getty

While the “Look What You Made Me Do” singer did not have to cancel any of the 53 shows on the Reputation Stadium Tour, one of her opening acts — pop singer Camila Cabello — did have to pull out of one date in May 2018 for illness.

In a statement the performer released to Twitter, she explained that she had checked herself into a hospital after feeling very sick, and doctors found that she was dehydrated and had a low-grade fever. “I’m so sorry to let you guys down and I promise I will make it up as soon as I can!” Cabello wrote.

Loverfest and 2020 Live Performances

Taylor Swift performs in August 2019. Dimitrios Kambouris/VMN19/Getty

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift first postponed — and then canceled — all of her 2020 concert dates.

The star was initially supposed to play four dates in the United States in July and August 2020, which she dubbed Lover Fest, as well as several European music festivals, but every show was called off.

“I’m so disappointed that I won’t be able to see you in person as soon as I wanted to,” the star wrote on Instagram in April 2020. “I miss you terribly and can’t wait til we can all safely be at shows together again.”

The Eras Tour

Taylor Swift performs in May 2023.

TAS Rights Management/Getty

Back on the road for the first time in four years, Swift postponed the second night of her tour in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in November, citing “extreme temperatures” on the date of the show, which was rescheduled for the following Monday. On the tour’s first night in the city, an attendee had died shortly before Swift took the stage.

“I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this,” Swift wrote on Instagram following news of the fan’s passing. “There’s very little information I have other than the fact she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young.”

Earlier this week, the concert’s three planned nights in Vienna were canceled after news broke of an alleged planned terror attack on the venue. In a press conference on Aug. 8, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, head of Austria’s Directorate of State Security and Intelligence, said that the 19-year-old Austrian suspect admitted to intending “to carry out an attack” at Swift’s concert “using explosives and knives,” according to several outlets.

Swift is still expected to play five nights at Wembley Stadium later this month.

“There is nothing to indicate that the matters being investigated by the Austrian authorities will have an impact on upcoming events here in London,” said a spokesperson for London’s Metropolitan Police, according to the BBC.

The spokesperson added: “As always, we will continue to keep any new information under careful review.”