Inside Taylor Swift’s ‘Unstoppable’ Period as She Wraps Eras Tour (Unique)

Taylor Swift has simply three exhibits left on her record-shattering Eras Tour — and when she says goodbye it’ll mark the tip of what the celebrity has known as “probably the most exhausting, all-encompassing, however most joyful, most rewarding, most fantastic factor that has ever occurred” in her life.

Swift, 35, will play the final of her 152 tour dates in Vancouver on Dec. 8, and the impression of her tour has been nothing wanting world phenomenon. From reintroducing the world to the joys of friendship bracelets to inspiring the highest-grossing live performance movie of all time, the Eras Tour actually made its mark.

It additionally advanced with its star; since kicking issues off in March 2023, Swift healed from heartbreak and settled into a brand new love with NFL star Travis Kelce, and even grew to become a billionaire in August, the primary musician ever to take action based mostly solely on performing and songwriting, in keeping with Forbes.

Journalist Rob Sheffield, whose e book Heartbreak Is the Nationwide Anthem explores her huge affect, tells PEOPLE on this week’s cowl story that the “Fortnight” singer’s magic lies in the truth that her songs are “so private” to her, but relatable to these consuming her artwork.

“The Beatles are the closest factor to a Taylor Swift that we’ve got in historical past,” says Sheffield. “She’s so utterly remodeled pop music.”

Oscar-nominated cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto has seen a few of that magic up shut, working with Swift on 4 of her music movies, together with the current “Fortnight.”

He tells PEOPLE that upon assembly Swift for the primary time whereas engaged on her music video for “The Man,” which got here out in 2020, he was struck by her work ethic.

“I keep in mind very nicely all of the visible references she had put collectively for that assembly. You may suppose that somebody with that degree of success may be jaded or could depend on others to feed her concepts, however she places within the work,” remembers Prieto. “She does her analysis and thinks deeply concerning the ideas and concepts she comes up with. She gave the impression to be a way more skilled director, the best way she spoke concerning the cinematic language of her concepts. It didn’t appear to be a musician pretending to be a director. It felt like I used to be speaking to somebody who had deep expertise in that position.

Swift revealed on the MTV VMAs that boyfriend Kelce was on set cheering her on whereas engaged on “Fortnight,” and Prieto provides, “I believe she felt very supported by his presence, and possibly additionally proud to point out him what she does and the form of chief she is. She makes her personal form of touchdowns.”

Although Swift has actually earned all of her accolades — which included a record-setting fourth album of the 12 months win on the Grammy Awards in February, for Midnights — she hasn’t executed it alone. The star’s household and A-list associates have been fixtures at her Eras Tour exhibits because the starting, with mother Andrea, dad Scott and brother Austin mingling with followers and holding down the fort within the VIP tent. Kansas Metropolis Chiefs star Kelce additionally attended 14 exhibits, and his relations have proven as much as cheer on Swift, too.

One Tree Hill star Tyler Hilton, who starred in Swift’s “Teardrops on My Guitar” music video in 2007, is a longtime household pal of the Swifts, and joined the star’s dad and mom in 2018 to catch a present from the VIP tent. He says the household’s tireless help of the Grammy winner is the true deal.

“They nonetheless deal with her like she’s simply killing it at a expertise present,” he says. “They’re so excited for her nonetheless. Their earnestness as a household is so actual.”

All the time one to go away her followers guessing via numerous Easter eggs, Swift dropped one clue that she nonetheless has lots to come back. Within the Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour Ebook, a commemorative tome she launched on Nov. 29, the star stated goodbye with a tease: “See you subsequent period…”

“She has a lot vitality and love for creativity, I’m sure there may be rather more the place that got here from,” says Prieto. “She is unstoppable, and her enthusiasm for her craft is contagious. I do know she’s going to preserve giving us fantastic music, however certainly she’s going to proceed branching out into different areas of inventive output.”

For extra on Taylor Swift, choose up the newest challenge of PEOPLE, on newsstands in every single place Friday.