The Eras Tour was a one-of-a-kind experience for many Taylor Swift fans but some have now accused Shakira of copying it.
Taylor’s mammoth world tour is on its final leg, putting an end to the two-year journey which has so far produced two new albums, four re-recorded albums, a book, and a film.
Not to worry though as Shakira is heading on tour, already toppling an Eras Tour record with her five nights of sold-out stadium shows in Mexico City.
The Whenever Wherever legend is in such high demand she cancelled her US arena dates and rescheduled to ‘elevate’ to bigger venues.
However, as tickets went on sale for her South American leg fans quickly noticed some similarities of Shakira’s show to Taylor’s.
The stage design of the Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran tour is reminiscent of the Eras Tour’s distinctive shape, which is thought to be inspired by a key.
Shakira’s stage has a square back, with a long runway outstretched into the crowd that ends in a small diamond – differing from Taylor’s which ended in a large rectangle.
Additionally, Shakira’s runway midpoint has a slimmed diamond shape reminiscent of where the Don’t Blame Me hitmaker performs All Too Well.
‘Shakira is on a mission,’ posted a fan account on X using the Fearless singer’s pseudonym, Nils Sjöberg.
They shared the overview of the stage as well as an image, purportedly from Shakira’s website, which mimicked a previous Taylor Eras official design inspired by the Look What You Made Me Do music video.
This was much parodied at the time with fans sharing a drawing which appeared to be from a collection Shakira did last year, titled the Iconic Looks collection, which is no longer available.
Fans on X quickly accused the She Wolf singer of ‘copying’ Taylor, with comments ranging from lighthearted jokes to outright anger at Shakira.
Marius said: ‘I like Shakira but… why can’t she be at least a BIT original💀 well… at least we can say the eras tour had a SIGNIFICANT amount of impact on future tours😁.’
‘Good news guys if you missed out on Taylor Swift: the Eras Tour, you may be able to go to Shakira: the Eras Tour,’ joked MJ.
‘Imagine if Taylor had copied another artist there would have been murder,’ came one dramatic reply from Lydia.
Plenty dubbed it the ‘Shakeras Tour’ as the comparisons flew, including a potential water-themed stage dive which fans claimed copied the Eras Tour surprise song dive.
A leaked video, reportedly accidentally posted by Shakira’s team on her Pinterest, showed someone who looked like the singer wearing a mermaid tail and dropping from an anchor into a gap in the stage filled with water.
Far more complex than Taylor’s beloved jump exit, but defensive fans – such as user Paula – accused Shakira and her team of ‘stud[ying] the eras tour to make something like [it].’
However, many also defended Shakira and argued that Taylor’s Reputation tour snake set-piece, nicknamed Karyn, mirrored one used by the Hips Don’t Lie hitmaker in the 00s.
Similarities like this do crop up across tours as artists push boundaries and that inspires others to do the same, it’s rarely malicious or intentional.
While the timing of the similar stages is unfortunate, it’s unlikely Taylor or Shakira’s team are giving it as much thought as fans are.