Taylor Swift is currently traveling around the United States for her “The Eras Tour” concert. The event will run from March 17, 2023, to November 23, 2024. Late this year, she will also be expanding her tour to Europe and Asia. Aside from the celebrity’s powerful voice and energetic dance routines that catch the fans’ attention, even her guests, audience, and staff at the concert venue have recently made the entertainment scene and caused some heated discussion.
In one of Taylor Swift’s concerts in Minneapolis, a security staff member became famous on TikTok since he was caught on video by one of the audience members singing one of Taylor’s upbeat songs. Although the video only lasted a few seconds, the company fired him. Why?
In June, a member of the security named Calvin Denker went viral on the internet. An audience member standing in front of Calvin during the concert captured a video of him singing one of Taylor’s popular songs while he was on duty. He did not deny that he was a Taylor Swift fan and even worked as one of the security staff at her concert. Many people who discovered his story were envious of being able to mix ‘business with pleasure.’
On TikTok, Calvin Denker generously disclosed his identity as “Swiftie”, revealing that he is indeed a fan of the famous singer. After he participated in Taylor’s “Reputation Stadium Tour” in 2018, he applied as a security staff member in her concerts. He considered the Taylor Swift concert as his career goal. His excitement heightened when he learned about the opportunity to work in her latest event, “The Eras Tour”.
Although Calvin chose to do the job to be with his favorite singer, he has always stuck to his profession. The security detail stands below the stage. Due to their job rules and regulations, they cannot face the stage or turn their backs on the audience. Although Calvin knew that he was only meters away from the stage, he obeyed the job rules. He did not take out his mobile phone to take any photos or videos of the concert.
Since recording a video or taking photos with his mobile phone was prohibited, Calvin formulated other ways to acquire a souvenir from his favorite singer at her concert. On the second night of her concert, he prepared a small note, which he handed out to some of the audience members in the first row. It read: “Hi. I’m not allowed to use my phone. At any point tonight, could you please take a photo of me with Taylor and text it to… Thank you so much, and enjoy the show.”
Calvin revealed that many of the audience members he gave a note to were happy to help him after stating his request. They sent him photos and videos of Taylor Swift performing behind him onstage while he sang one of her songs. He was happy that they made his dream come true.
Calvin and some of the audience members who took photos and videos of him with Taylor Swift onstage had never thought of the consequences it may bring. He recently revealed on social media that the company fired him from his security job since the HR Department learned of his videos on TikTok that went viral on the internet.
Calvin frankly said: “The female HR staff member who called me couldn’t tell me exactly what I did wrong, maybe except for asking for photos, I didn’t do anything illegal. If it comes to taking photos with your idols, which is what happens at any concert, I just made sure I got pictures with me in it. I never took out my phone, and most importantly, I made sure Taylor was safe, and all the fans were having a good time. As long as I was at that concert, I was doing my job.”
Some people think that Calvin Denker’s behavior of requesting some of the audience members to take photos and videos of him at the concert while he was on duty has indeed crossed the line. If all security personnel were allowed to do this, there would be no professionalism at all. However, some fans sided with Calvin and said, “That’s Taylor Swift. I believe everyone will do it. And for things like this, a verbal warning is fine, but dismissal is too much.”
If you were allowed to work at your favorite singer’s concert tour, would you break the rules just to have a photo with them?
Images and TikTok video credits: Alisa Maloney @anmaloney/TikTok, Calvin Denker @calvindenker/Tiktok, and The New Yorkers
