What do Julia Roberts, Joan Baez, and Little Mix have in common? Don't worry, this isn't some obscure riddle about the star of Pretty Woman, the "Diamonds and Rust" singer-songwriter, and the British girl group... Instead, the answer is simple: All three became part of Taylor Swift's ever-growing squad at her concert in Santa Clara on Saturday night. Even though these names otherwise seem dissimilar, they share a common thread — joining the girl-power movement that is the 1989 World Tour. Through her shows, Taylor Swift unites a variety of women who all fall under the category of "kick-ass females," and it's empowering to watch.
If you've been to T. Swift's concert, you know that in-between songs, there are video clips of her best friends candidly answering questions. Gal pals — including Selena Gomez, Cara Delevingne, Lena Dunham, Haim, and more — talk about what friendship means to them and why it's important for women to support one another, instead of bringing each other down. It's a valuable message and the setting, a place where thousands upon thousands of (predominantly) young women come together, couldn't be better.
In addition to those messages, the fact that each show features numerous guests makes it even more special. Magic lies in the fact that no two nights on the 1989 Tour are exactly the same, even if they take place in the same venue.
Saturday's show was the perfect example of this girl-power theme: Little Mix is known for embracing female empowerment in their hit songs, like "Wings." (Even in their personal lives, they have each other's backs. Especially lately with the whole Perrie/Zayn split.) Julia Roberts embodies strong characters on-screen, and Joan Baez makes killer music. Swift later referred to Roberts and Baez as "heroes" and said it was an honor to share the stage with them. Chances are that Swift grew up watching Roberts movies and listening to Baez's songs. (Plus, let's also not forget Roberts and Swift starred in the 2010 movie Valentine's Day together!)
While Swift's latest concert featured Little Mix, the previous night included another great girl group— Fifth Harmony made a guest appearance. Afterward, Swift tweeted about wanting to join their band, best known for songs like "Worth It" and "BO$$." This all-female fivesome really does promote the message of sisterhood, and that's an idea that really can't be repeated enough. (Sidenote: if Swift's latest trend is performing with girl groups like Little Mix and 5H, I'm rooting for a Spice Girls or Destiny's Child reunion. Could you imagine how amazing Swift's renditions of "Wannabe" and "Bootylicious" would be?! Somebody, make that happen. PLEASE.)
By bringing together such an assortment of stars, Swift shows friendship and feminism don't have any limits. Essentially she's preaching that it doesn't matter what you do as a career or what you look like — we can, and should, all strut down the stage together in "style." The 1989 World Tour matters because it shows that there's no cookie-cutter mold of what makes a strong woman. Seriously, in what other setting would you see supermodel Cara Delevingne alongside Mariska Hargitay (aka Olivia Benson on Law & Order SVU)? Other awesome cameos included Orange Is The New Black star Uzo Aduba, Lena Dunham, Serena Williams, Lorde, and the entire U.S. women's soccer team — better known as the 2015 World Cup champions.
It doesn't matter that Swift's guests seem to have little in common or that they're not all professional singers and dancers. Everyone deserves a chance to shine, and that's exactly the message Swift conveys by bringing these guests to her shows. Through sharing the stage with other powerful females, Swift takes the spotlight off herself and embraces the idea that together, women are unstoppable.
