Taylor Swift Accidentally Inhales a Bug, Has a Piano Malfunction & Debuts ‘Speak Now’ Dresses in Milan

Pest problems. Piano problems. Taylor Swift had to pause performing over a pair of unexpected, but funny, incidents during her acoustic set in Milan, Italy, on Saturday and Sunday (July 13-14).

“Swallowed another one,” Swift dryly remarked to a loud, supportive audience Saturday night in Milan, accepting her fate when a bug flew into her mouth while on stage for the surprise song section at San Siro Stadium.

The pop icon — no stranger to an unfortunate run-in with a bug on a massive tour that’s made its way to many an outdoor stadium — wasn’t surprised. “I knew it would happen ’cause there’s so many bugs here tonight,” she told the crowd, pausing for a moment and then explaining the protocol: “I just need to cough a little bit.”

girlie swallowed a bug #MilanTSTheErasTour pic.twitter.com/INsjCTGMeX

— Bobby | Milan Eras 🫶 (@swiftieboston) July 13, 2024

She was sitting at the piano, playing a rather sad and angry Red-era mashup of “I Almost Do” and “The Moment I Knew,” when the insect intruder interfered with her art.

On Sunday, Swift’s acoustic guitar surprise was a mashup of “Mr. Perfectly Fine” and “Red”; her piano surprise Sunday night was “Getaway Car” with “Out of the Woods,” which she hoped the Milan audience would especially enjoy — but she didn’t get very far with that one before noticing something was not quite right with her piano.

‼️| Taylor Swift fixing the piano & performing Getaway Car in Milan tonight! #MilanTStheErasTour pic.twitter.com/7JQFcVPYk2

— The Eras Tour (@TSTheErasTour) July 14, 2024

“You know what, we finally broke it. We have finally broken this thing,” quipped Swift while someone from her tech crew swiftly helped fix the issue with the Eras instrument.

The star had trouble closing its top, but celebrated once she got it shut: “I did it!” she squealed, and with a grin got back to “Getaway Car,” starting again with its opening line: “No, nothing good starts in a getaway car.”

And on Sunday, Swift performed “Enchanted,” the one Speak Now song that has a permanent place within the Eras set, wearing a new ballgown in a color best described as Speak Now purple. (Check out a fan’s collage of Swift’s sparkly Speak Now gown collection from The Eras Tour.)