When fans converge on a convention centre in downtown Toronto this week, they’ll be talking about Taylor Swift and listening to her music, but they won’t see her name or photo in any official capacity — instead, the event is both literally and figuratively adjacent to the pop star and her mega-popular Eras Tour.
Though it may seem like a sheen of Swift is coating the city of Toronto, only some of the hoopla can really be counted as “Taylor’s Version.”
“This is adjacent to the brand, but this is not about Taylor,” said Bram Goldstein, organizer of the unofficial Swiftie event “Toronto’s Version: Taylgate ’24.”
“This is about fans enjoying themselves at our bracelet exchange, at our glam beauty bar — that are not associated with anything to do with the Eras Tour.”
Indeed, the Taylgate website steers clear of mentioning the tour or the artist by name except in a legal disclaimer at the bottom of every page, which notes that the company has no affiliation with Swift or her businesses.
Instead, fans are encouraged to stop by before “the big show” and join a “TSwift Dance Party.”
They can participate in activities that have become associated with Swift’s fandom, including making friendship bracelets and singing along to her music.
Other event features are more tangential, such as a “best friends chapel” where besties can “renew their friendship vows.”
“Everything we wanted to do was about bringing people in to experience photo activations and entertainment and food and beverage that just kept people in a hangout space,” Goldstein said.
The event will take place from 1 to 11 p.m. on the days of Swift’s concerts, Nov. 14-16 and 21-23.
Goldstein said it’s meant to serve as an indoor gathering place for ticketholders before the shows, a waiting area for parents whose kids are at the concerts and a hub for Swifties who didn’t snag tickets.
“At the end of the day, this is a place where we can all congregate together to share stories, create memories, create new friendships, sing along,” he said.
Other companies are being a bit more overt.
The Bisha Hotel unveiled the Taylor suite and the “Red” floor earlier this year, referencing the singer and her 2012 album. And earlier this month, it opened its “Folklore” floor, named for her 2020 album. Photos of her hang on the walls, and her name is slathered on the hotel’s social media profiles.
A spokeswoman for the hotel said Bisha has not partnered with Swift, but “like many other venues, we have embraced the fandom around Swifties.”
“The hotel is themed after the Eras tour with Taylor Swift inspirations only,” Lori Harito said in an email.
There are also Taylor Swift-themed drag shows, a scavenger hunt at the Royal Ontario Museum, a cover night at the El Mocambo to raise money for a cat rescue, and trivia events at local bars.
Daniel Tsai, a marketing professor at Toronto Metropolitan University with expertise in intellectual property law, said that can be risky.
“She’s a very astute businesswoman,” Tsai said of Swift, noting she holds dozens of trademarks related to her name.
“She’s made it very clear that she is very particular in how her image is used and how her name is used. So the likelihood is the vast majority of this economy of Taylor Swift is likely not legitimate.”
He said companies that have paid to use Swift’s name include Rogers and RBC. In fact, the Toronto concerts are officially called “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour presented by Rogers.”
Tsai said it makes sense that companies want to tie themselves to Swift, but some companies try to do it without paying the hefty price attached to her name.
“You see this happen all the time where people want to use that hanger-on effect to commercially exploit the (trade)marks without actually paying for it,” he said. “And so there is a degree of that happening here.”