Niche Online Communities
If you’re ever seeking out a pattern for my online activity (I don’t recommend it), it would be falling into odd communities for months at a time that no one in my life has a clue about. I’m slightly horrified revealing this to you. But it all leads to the most important detail: how these communities helped me score my Taylor Swift tickets!
Let’s take it back to 2022. I’ve always been obsessed with true crime, even more so with mass shootings (who isn’t?). After quitting my job, instead of relaxing on a pool floatie I found myself watching the Parkland High School shooter trial in its entirety on YouTube (hours a day) followed by visits to the dedicated Reddit group. The online group talking about the horror of it all helped me process it and of course feel “oh good I’m not the only one.” On a lighter note, when “Scandoval” hit Vanderpump Rules on Bravo this past spring, I headed over to the “pumprules” community on Reddit, returning multiple times a day to take in all the gossip and snark. I knew very few fans in real life (excluding my dad of course), so the community was a place to laugh at memes, debate the insanity of it all and recap the billion podcasts being released daily on the topic.
And the Facebook groups! After feeling like I didn’t fit into my local Culver City mom groups, I found myself in one called “Uncensored Moms of LA,” and these ladies share everything—and I mean everything! I never post for the horror that someone may know me, but I sure enjoy reading. I am a frequent viewer of my dog’s (Wirehaired Pointing Griffon) community, crying at least once a week about dogs going over the rainbow bridge, donating to some stranger’s dog’s GoFund me account and checking in on that Griff who accidently jumped out of a window, “How is Fannie’s water rehab going today?”
I love little niche spaces for my very compartmentalized brain. Each space has its own language, its own vibe, and I am here for it. Fast forward to Taylor Swift. I must have been in a fog last year because I didn’t think to register for pre-sale tickets. When the tour started, I watched clips on Instagram & had major FOMO! I needed to be there! At the same time, because I was playing exclusively Taylor Swift CDs in my car (thanks to the only place I still have a CD player and the only artist putting out exclusive CDs at Target)—I had myself a little 6yr old Swiftie wanting to be a part of the Eras Tour madness.
I knew I had to find a way for us to see her without spending 1k on each ticket. I abandoned self-imposed screen time limits in hopes that I could score some tickets. If only could find the right online communities! First up: the teenager Twitter accounts. I’m not proud of my time here, and I apologize for any friends on Twitter who witnessed my behavior. These accounts are dedicated Swifties who see it as their mission to provide a space to sell/buy tickets at face value. They also want more followers, so I often had to retweet embarrassing hashtags just for a shot at a cheap ticket. The accounts gained so many followers that all my notifications were turned on, and I had to reply to a post within a minute’s notice to have a chance. This resulted in no tickets. I never gave up, though, and I’m still following these accounts with hopes of New Orleans tickets next year.
But the award goes to my local FB Taylor Swift Eras Tour Sofi Stadium group. We watched and reported on ticket resell sites constantly. People ask and answered info about parking, hotels, traffic, merch, views from certain sections, Sofi rules, friendship bracelets, etc. One day, I saw a post mentioning a great deal on Press Box seats on Gametime, a resell site. The tickets were still $900 (way too steep), but I did think it was a pretty cool deal: free food/drink (aka the suite life), discounted for the partition between you and Taylor (hmmm, quieter sound would be perfect for my kid)—and a great view (at this time the cheapest $800 seats were all obstructed view behind the stage).
All of this led up to a Thursday night in early August, Taylor’s first night of a six-night run at Sofi. I was optimistic, but I wasn’t in a rush. I was particularly interested in that Press Box deal, so I started watching the prices for it. Tickets got down to $500 at about 4:15. I look at Kenzy and say, “You want to go? Like now?” Kenzy nods. I turned back around to my computer, and the tickets dropped to $300! BUY NOW! (Scream). I never would’ve known “press box” was a thing or that there was a Gametime site had it not been for the FB group. It was an unforgettable evening for sure.
Cheers to all the weird online communities that have brought me joy, entertainment, connection and information over the years. Where else would I go to talk about Taylor’s surprise songs every night? Who would I debate all the insane Moscow Murder theories with? Would any other group know how to best deep clean my dog’s teeth even though I’m not a vet? And no one is funnier than the Big Brother community on Twitter. #BB25. Let me know the corners of the internet where you find your people; I know it’s not just me.