Taylor Swift Addresses Canceled Vienna Concerts, Thankful ‘We Were Grieving Concerts & Not Lives’

Taylor Swift broke her silence Wednesday regarding the cancellation of three concerts in Vienna, Austria, due to a terrorist threat. The singer, whose album The Tortured Poets Department topped Billboard’s midyear sales charts, took to Instagram to explain her restrained response.

“My priority was finishing our European tour safely,” Swift wrote, expressing relief at accomplishing that goal. The 34-year-old superstar had remained quiet about the cancellations until now, prompting questions from fans.

The concerts, scheduled for August 8-10 at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium, were expected to draw up to 65,000 attendees per show, with an additional 30,000 fans potentially gathering outside. Show organizer Barracuda Music announced the cancellations on their website, citing a “planned terrorist attack” confirmed by government officials.

Swift described the cancellations as “devastating” but expressed gratitude to authorities for preventing potential loss of life. “We were grieving concerts and not lives,” she noted.

Austrian authorities have arrested three individuals in connection with the threat, including a 19-year-old Austrian of North Macedonian descent and an 18-year-old Iraqi. The main suspect allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group online shortly before the planned attack.

Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, head of the Austrian Directorate General for Public Security, told reporters that the suspect intended to target the area outside the stadium, aiming to harm as many people as possible using knives or homemade explosive devices.

Swift also addressed a separate incident in Southport, England, where three children were killed in a knife attack during a Swift-themed dance class. A 17-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the tragedy, though prosecutors have not disclosed a motive.

“These were just little kids at a dance class,” Swift wrote on Instagram, expressing her condolences to the families affected.

The singer concluded her European Eras Tour on Saturday at London’s Wembley Stadium, having kicked off the tour in Paris on May 9. Swift praised the unity and support demonstrated by her fans throughout the tour, stating that she focused her energy on ensuring the safety of the nearly half-million attendees at her London shows.