One morning I was at work and my cell phone rang. It was a number that I didn't recognize but I decided to answer it anyways. Always answer your phone--even if it is a number you don't recognize! You know why? It might just be Taylor Swift calling to say hey.
I couldn't believe it! Taylor Swift was calling me! She wanted to say thank you for the present I had given her. I was sitting in my cubicle at State Street trying to contain my excitement. I finally got up and walked to the lobby area so that I could talk more freely. We chatted for a little while and then she said, "Call me if you ever need tickets or meet and greet passes." I was floored! I asked if this number was her cell phone and she said "yes." I told her not to worry about me sharing her number with anyone and she said, "I know. I trust you Ann." After we hung up, I immediately saved her number to my phone. However, I didn't want anyone to snoop around in my phone and get her number so I saved it under a fake name. I returned to my cube and one of my co-workers asked who had called. I casually responded, "Taylor Swift." ;)
Friday, June 29, 2012
March 2nd, 2007
After my first encounter with Taylor, I knew this was someone my mom had to meet! Upon hearing an advertisement for the George Strait concert on Q104, I knew I had to go. Not only would I get to see the King of Country Music, but I would also get to see Taylor again. She and Ronnie Milsap were the opening acts for George Strait. I knew getting in touch with Taylor would be more difficult than the last time. Her career had taken off and she was playing in a much larger venue.
After purchasing my tickets, I sent a handwritten letter to my favorite radio station, Q104. I explained that I had met Taylor at their charity concert in October but that my mom really wanted to meet her as well. Not only did they hook my mom up but they hooked me up as well. We were invited onto Taylor's tour bus for a special acoustic performance. We were excited! I had made Taylor a present and wrapped it in a bag. To go along with her lyric, "But in a box beneath my bed, is a letter that you never read from three summers back." I bought a wooden box from Hobby Lobby and painted it green to match the dress she wore in the "Teardrops on my Guitar" video. I decoupaged her name on it. Inside the box I included another letter and a package of Hershey kisses. It has just been announced that she would be opening up for Brad Paisley for his summer tour. The tour was sponsored by Hershey.
When we got to the venue, we had to wait a little bit because we were early. Then we met Taylor's manager Rick Barker. He was so nice and answered all of my questions about the music business. He led us to Taylor's bus. My mom and I let everyone else on the bus first. I wasn't sure if Taylor would recognize me or not. After all, we had only met once and I was sure that she had met thousands of people since that past October. I was pleasantly surprised when she greeted me by name and gave me a big hug! She said, "I was going to call you!" I remember saying, "Yeah, right!" She pulled out her cell phone and began reciting my phone number. I simply couldn't believe it! Taylor Swift had my number in her cell phone! Wow! Taylor treated everyone on the bus like they were her friends. She sang a few songs and then gave us a chance to request a song. No one was really speaking up so I raised my hand and suggested that she play something that wasn't on her set list for that night. She said, "Great idea!" and started in on "Stay Beautiful." I will never forget that! I know the song is about a boy but the lyrics just spoke to me that night.
"You're beautiful. Every little piece love. You're really going to be someone--ask anyone. And when you find everything you looked for, I hope your life leads you back to my door. But if it don't, stay beautiful."
Wow! What an experience that was! We were excited for the show. It was 'in the round.' We found our seats and got ready for the show. Taylor's stage presence had grown so much since October. She was definitely a crowd pleaser. You can hear my mom on the video, "We're kinda lucky she starts over her every time. She knows we're over here!" :) I love my mom!
At the end of Taylor's set, she tells the crowd that she will be signing autographs after the show. My mom and I already have her autograph and a picture with her but we decide to go anyway just to tell her how great the show was! In normal Taylor fashion, she greets us with a hug and spends a few minutes talking with us despite the long line of people waiting to meet her. What a night to remember!
After purchasing my tickets, I sent a handwritten letter to my favorite radio station, Q104. I explained that I had met Taylor at their charity concert in October but that my mom really wanted to meet her as well. Not only did they hook my mom up but they hooked me up as well. We were invited onto Taylor's tour bus for a special acoustic performance. We were excited! I had made Taylor a present and wrapped it in a bag. To go along with her lyric, "But in a box beneath my bed, is a letter that you never read from three summers back." I bought a wooden box from Hobby Lobby and painted it green to match the dress she wore in the "Teardrops on my Guitar" video. I decoupaged her name on it. Inside the box I included another letter and a package of Hershey kisses. It has just been announced that she would be opening up for Brad Paisley for his summer tour. The tour was sponsored by Hershey.
When we got to the venue, we had to wait a little bit because we were early. Then we met Taylor's manager Rick Barker. He was so nice and answered all of my questions about the music business. He led us to Taylor's bus. My mom and I let everyone else on the bus first. I wasn't sure if Taylor would recognize me or not. After all, we had only met once and I was sure that she had met thousands of people since that past October. I was pleasantly surprised when she greeted me by name and gave me a big hug! She said, "I was going to call you!" I remember saying, "Yeah, right!" She pulled out her cell phone and began reciting my phone number. I simply couldn't believe it! Taylor Swift had my number in her cell phone! Wow! Taylor treated everyone on the bus like they were her friends. She sang a few songs and then gave us a chance to request a song. No one was really speaking up so I raised my hand and suggested that she play something that wasn't on her set list for that night. She said, "Great idea!" and started in on "Stay Beautiful." I will never forget that! I know the song is about a boy but the lyrics just spoke to me that night.
"You're beautiful. Every little piece love. You're really going to be someone--ask anyone. And when you find everything you looked for, I hope your life leads you back to my door. But if it don't, stay beautiful."
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| Dianna Heidebrecht (my mom), me, and Taylor Swift March 2nd, 2007- Taylor's tour bus Kemper Arena |
Wow! What an experience that was! We were excited for the show. It was 'in the round.' We found our seats and got ready for the show. Taylor's stage presence had grown so much since October. She was definitely a crowd pleaser. You can hear my mom on the video, "We're kinda lucky she starts over her every time. She knows we're over here!" :) I love my mom!
At the end of Taylor's set, she tells the crowd that she will be signing autographs after the show. My mom and I already have her autograph and a picture with her but we decide to go anyway just to tell her how great the show was! In normal Taylor fashion, she greets us with a hug and spends a few minutes talking with us despite the long line of people waiting to meet her. What a night to remember!
Summer 2006
It was the summer of 2006 when I first learned about Taylor Swift. At that point, she was an artist whose first single "Tim McGraw" had just hit the radio. I remember hearing that song for the first time and being totally impressed musically and lyrically. I knew I had to find out more about Taylor. As her CD release date of October 24, 2006 got closer, I heard about a charity benefit in Kansas City.
My favorite radio station, Q104, had paired with then KC Chief Jared Allen to put on a charity concert to benefit Juvenile Diabetes. This event took place on October 29th, 2006 at "The Peanut" in Shawnee, Kansas. Of course by this point I had purchased Taylor's CD and knew all the words to every song. The benefit took place on a Sunday evening--two days before Halloween. Concert goers were asked to dress up in costume. I was scheduled to have a soccer game that evening and so my costume was easy. I was a soccer player. A few days prior to the concert, I was faced with a big problem. No one wanted to go to a bar on a Sunday night to hear a singer who was 16 years old. I was just about to go by myself when my friend Scott said he would go. I was thrilled! We got there early and drove around to the back of "The Peanut." I wanted to see if any of the tour buses were parked behind the bar. I later came to realize that Taylor had no band and no bus. It was just her and her guitar.
The show started and no one really seemed interested in Taylor or her music. However, I was one of the few people standing in front of her during her 5 song set. I felt an instant connection. To this day, connecting with fans is something that Taylor is absolutely extraordinary at. Although there were hundreds of people in the bar, I felt like she was singing just to me. And you have to remember, she was 16 at the time, singing in a loud bar to a crowd who couldn't have cared less about her or her music. At one point, near the end of her set, she mentioned her record that had just been released the Tuesday before. She pointed right at me and said, "And I know you have it and I love you for that!" I wonder how she knew I had bought her CD--perhaps it was the fact that I knew every word of every song that she sang that night. :)
Her set ended and it was announced that she would be signing autographs after the show. I immediately told Scott that I wanted one and he agreed to wait in line. I expected the line to be a lot longer but it wasn't. I had told my mom about Taylor and how great she was. I had even bought Taylor's CD for her. I remember we listened to the entire CD while lying on my bed. When I met Taylor for the first time, she gave me a big hug and thanked me for coming to the show and for buying her CD. I made a $10 donation to Juvenile Diabetes in exchange for the autograph. I asked if I could get another autograph for my mom and she said yes. So I donated another $10 to the cause. I also I had prepared a letter for Taylor. In the letter I told her how much her music meant to me and what a great role model she was for little girls. I also shared with her my dream of working in the music industry--not as a singer or musician! Let's be real, my musical talent goes no further than singing in the shower or in my car with the radio so loud that I don't have to subject myself to my voice. However, I figured she was a new artist and might need someone to run a fan club for her. So I left my name and cell phone number in the letter. What happened next is something I would have never imagined would happen.
My favorite radio station, Q104, had paired with then KC Chief Jared Allen to put on a charity concert to benefit Juvenile Diabetes. This event took place on October 29th, 2006 at "The Peanut" in Shawnee, Kansas. Of course by this point I had purchased Taylor's CD and knew all the words to every song. The benefit took place on a Sunday evening--two days before Halloween. Concert goers were asked to dress up in costume. I was scheduled to have a soccer game that evening and so my costume was easy. I was a soccer player. A few days prior to the concert, I was faced with a big problem. No one wanted to go to a bar on a Sunday night to hear a singer who was 16 years old. I was just about to go by myself when my friend Scott said he would go. I was thrilled! We got there early and drove around to the back of "The Peanut." I wanted to see if any of the tour buses were parked behind the bar. I later came to realize that Taylor had no band and no bus. It was just her and her guitar.
The show started and no one really seemed interested in Taylor or her music. However, I was one of the few people standing in front of her during her 5 song set. I felt an instant connection. To this day, connecting with fans is something that Taylor is absolutely extraordinary at. Although there were hundreds of people in the bar, I felt like she was singing just to me. And you have to remember, she was 16 at the time, singing in a loud bar to a crowd who couldn't have cared less about her or her music. At one point, near the end of her set, she mentioned her record that had just been released the Tuesday before. She pointed right at me and said, "And I know you have it and I love you for that!" I wonder how she knew I had bought her CD--perhaps it was the fact that I knew every word of every song that she sang that night. :)
Her set ended and it was announced that she would be signing autographs after the show. I immediately told Scott that I wanted one and he agreed to wait in line. I expected the line to be a lot longer but it wasn't. I had told my mom about Taylor and how great she was. I had even bought Taylor's CD for her. I remember we listened to the entire CD while lying on my bed. When I met Taylor for the first time, she gave me a big hug and thanked me for coming to the show and for buying her CD. I made a $10 donation to Juvenile Diabetes in exchange for the autograph. I asked if I could get another autograph for my mom and she said yes. So I donated another $10 to the cause. I also I had prepared a letter for Taylor. In the letter I told her how much her music meant to me and what a great role model she was for little girls. I also shared with her my dream of working in the music industry--not as a singer or musician! Let's be real, my musical talent goes no further than singing in the shower or in my car with the radio so loud that I don't have to subject myself to my voice. However, I figured she was a new artist and might need someone to run a fan club for her. So I left my name and cell phone number in the letter. What happened next is something I would have never imagined would happen.
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| Taylor Swift & Ann (Heidebrecht) Dark October 29th, 2006- The Peanut Shawnee, KS |
Introduction
Welcome to my blog, "Swift Encounters!" This blog is about my experiences with country music superstar Taylor Swift. I consider myself a "fran" of Taylor's. (friend/fan). Read on to find out how this all started.
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