Taylor Swift Shocks Eras Tour Crew with Record-Breaking Bonuses
Taylor Swift went above and beyond to show appreciation for her Eras Tour team, as revealed in her Disney+ docuseries, “The End of an Era.” Episode two, titled “Magic in the Eras,” shows behind-the-scenes moments from the tour, including Swift personally handing out massive bonuses to her dancers, musicians, and crew members. According to reports, Swift distributed a staggering $197 million to everyone involved in the tour.
The Eras Tour, which spanned 149 shows across 21 countries, became the first tour in history to earn over $2 billion by its final concert in December 2024. In the docuseries, Swift explains why giving bonuses is so important to her.
“Bonus day is so important because setting a precedent with the Eras Tour is really important to me. Because people who work on the road, if the tour grosses more, they get more of a bonus,” she says. “And these people just work so hard, and they are the best at what they do.”
Swift also wrote personal notes to accompany the bonuses. “It took me a couple weeks, but it’s fun to write them notes. It’s fun to think about everybody’s lives that they’re going to go back to, and the time off they’re going to have, and the kids they haven’t seen because they’ve been away for months,” she said. “It feels like Christmas morning when you finally get to say thank you.”
The docuseries captures Swift handing out bonuses to dancers who had recently reworked the show to include songs from her 11th album, “The Tortured Poets Department.” “This leg of this tour has been harder than anything I’ve ever done in a live setting. And you guys have taken this on with such excitement and such curiosity,” Swift tells them. “The endurance you’ve shown, but the spirit you’ve shown, how much you’ve given to these crowds — that gives to me every single night.”
Taylor Swift gives her Era’s Tour staff $197 million worth of bonuses.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) December 13, 2025
The singer has handed out massive six figure checks to her dancers and tour staff.
Swift also even handed out reported $100,000 checks to 50 truck drivers that helped keep the tour moving.
Source: pic.twitter.com/fQzW6nEyvk
Dancer Kameron Saunders reads one of the bonus amounts to the group, leaving everyone visibly stunned. Other reports confirm that Swift’s $197 million in bonuses also went to crew members like lighting and audio technicians, riggers, caterers, carpenters, and choreographers. The docuseries even shows envelopes labeled for specific departments, including “wardrobe/makeup/hair” and “venue security.”
Michael Scherkenbach, CEO of Shomotion, one of the trucking companies on the tour, said each trucker received a $100,000 check and a handwritten note from Swift. “The typical amount is $5,000 to $10,000 each,” he told CNN. “So this large amount is unbelievable.”
The massive success of the Eras Tour also boosted Swift’s net worth into the billions, according to Forbes. She recently bought the rights to her back catalog in a reported $360 million deal. “That’s how I spent that Eras Tour money,” Swift told Stephen Colbert. “My fans are why I was able to get my music back.”
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