Katie Wiseman, Alysa Guffey and Ryan Murphy, Indianapolis Star
What do Hoosiers have in common with Taylor Swift? A whole lot, apparently.
In preparation of Swift's November Eras Tour stop in Indianapolis, IndyStar took a stroll down memory lane and a deep dive into Indiana history to find her connections and ties to Indiana.
Swift filmed the music video for her 2008 song "Change" at Scottish Rite Cathedral here in Indianapolis.
Taylor Swift and John Green have had several interactions on social media over the years. Swift has spoken highly of his work including "The Fault in Our Stars," and after a 2014 Tumblr interaction declared he was her favorite author.
Green shared on Tumblr that while in meetings for a movie adaptation of his book "Papertowns," he was listening to "1989."
Swift responded: "My. Favorite. Author. Just. Said. WHAT?!?!"
Green replied to Swift, also stunned by the interaction: "Taylor Swift reblogged me on tumblr and called me her favorite author. Trying not to freak out."
Swift's younger brother Austin enrolled at the University of Notre dame as a first-year in 2010, transferred to Vanderbilt and then returned to Notre Dame and graduated in 2015 with a degree in film. Taylor Swift was photographed with fans on the sidelines supporting the Fighting Irish football team during the 2010 season, alongside singer and actor Selena Gomez.
Swift reportedly returned to campus for her brother's graduation ceremony.
Beth Garrabarant, a photographer who has shot Swift's last eight album covers, also studied at the University of Notre Dame. Garrabarant, a longtime friend of Swift, has photographed the star for her album covers since 2020. Those albums include: "folklore," "evermore," "Fearless (Taylor's Version)," "Red (Taylor's Version)," "Midnights," "Speak Now (Taylor's Version)," "1989 (Taylor's Version)," and most recently, "The Tortured Poets Department."
Folklore: Taylor Swift explains how she created 'Folklore' on album's fourth anniversary
Born a Hoosier, author Kurt Vonnegut made the term "so it goes" his own, using the phrase after every death in his work "Slaughterhouse-Five" in a nod to acceptance of death.
Vonnegut died in 2007, a decade before Swift released a song titled "So It Goes..." on her "reputation" album.
Angsty and introspective, the song grapples with a mix of love and betrayal in a relationship.
One of the hallmarks of Swift's music career is her relatable song lyrics on love, friendship and heartbreak. Within these lyrics, Swift offers subtle imagery and metaphors that Hoosiers know all too well.
From famous individuals like James Dean to fireflies, the state's official insect, these are lyrics Hoosiers can confidently belt out.
Indiana is home to two of the largest popcorn companies in the nation, Orville Redenbacher's Gourmet Popping Corn and Weaver Popcorn.
More: Orville Redenbacher was the king of popcorn
The Indiana Fever is Indy's women's basketball team. They play in the Eastern Conference of the WNBA, and at least some members of the team appear to be Swifties.
Caitlin Clark, the WNBA rookie of the year, recently encouraged fans to vote after being asked about liking Taylor Swift's endorsement on Instagram of Vice President Kamala Harris.
More: Caitlin Clark has an opinion on Taylor Swift's presidential endorsement
Workers at the GM factory plant outside Fort Wayne, Ind., build more than 1,300 trucks each day, including the Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The plant opened in 1986 and spans 4.6 million square feet.
Before James Dean grew to heartthrob fandom, he was a young boy in Fairmount, Ind., located 60 miles northeast of Indianapolis. Dean, known back then for his athleticism in basketball and pole vaulting, graduated from Fairmount High School in 1949.
He moved to California and later New York to pursue an acting career before his death in 1955 at the age of 24.
Some wanted to preserve his high school as a historic landmark, but in 2013, most of the structure collapsed.
More: Before he was James Dean, he was Jimmy Dean the star athlete
Swift seems to nod to Janet Jackson's single "All For You" with a line in "Snow On The Beach" featuring Lana Del Rey.
Jackson grew up in Gary, Ind., roughly 45 miles southwest of Chicago. Her childhood house, 2300 Jackson St., famously housed all nine of the Jackson children, including Michael Jackson and his four brothers who comprised the Jackson 5.
Known for her hits like "When I Think Of You," "Control" and "Rhythm Nation," Jackson influenced visual storytelling in music and inspired a new sound for R&B over more than 40 years in the music industry.
When "Snow on the Beach" came out, Jackson tweeted a video of herself listening to the song and smiling.
Wanna visit Michael Jackson's childhood? What to know about it
The International Circus Hall of Fame opened in Peru, Indiana in 1992. Visitors today can see 12 painted circus wagons from as far back as the 1880s. Exhibits include vintage costumes, advertisements and miniature models.
From 1891 until 1941, the Hall of Fame's property served as a winter home for off-season circus artists. Peru became a destination for circus fans, but the industry began to decline during the Great Depression.
More: Circus tents may be folding, but the Peru Circus Hall of Fame aims to persevere
Indiana summers have plenty of fireflies.Say's Firefly is the official state insect of Indiana, thanks in part to the political influence of elementary schoolers. Indiana was one of only three states without a state insect eight years ago when Kayla Xu, a second-grade student at West Lafayette's Cumberland Elementary, wrote an essay proposing that the vacant seat should be filled.
Her argument inspired teacher Maggie Samudio to launch a letter-writing campaign. Over the course of four school years, students sent more than 800 letters to their state representatives asking for the Say's firefly to be appointed.
Bills nominating the bioluminescent beetle had appeared as early as 1996. The bug is named for Thomas Say, a naturalist who was living in Posey County when he first described the species in 1826.
The seven-year-old lobbyists apparently inspired a sense of urgency in the state house. In March 2018, students gathered in the Cumberland Elementary gymnasium to watch Gov. Eric Holcomb sign the bill into law.
Anybody who's driven in Indy can relate to this lyric. The city's streets are riddled with potholes thanks to years of underfunding and neglect.
Indiana funds roads based only on distance, not traffic or number of lanes. That means one mile of desolate country road is allotted the same maintenance money as an eight-lane interchange.
It would take at least $2.8 billion to fix Indianapolis' roads, according to an estimate from earlier this year. The city's proposed 2025 budget allocates about $200 million to roads, bridges and pedestrian infrastructure.
It's not all doom and gloom: How to report potholes to the city
From thunderstorms to tornadoes, Indiana has its share of storms.
As part of "Tornado Alley," Indiana experiences 22 twisters per year on average. Last year, Indiana had 65 tornadoes, the second highest annual count on record.
The most extreme tornado in United States history tore through Missouri, Illinois and Indiana in March 1925.
Indiana suffered the most violent tornado outbreak on record in 1974. A single day in June 1990 saw 37 tornadoes.
Swift doesn't specify the weather phenomenon she's dancing in -- nor does she say whether she's outside -- but if it's a tornado, we hope she was dancing in a basement away from windows and doors.
Indiana is pretty synonymous with cars thanks to the Indy 500. Fortunately, Swift chose to sing about a Maserati, the only Italian car to ever win the Indy 500.
Shelbyville's Wilbur Shaw drove the red 'Boyle Special' to victory in both 1939 and 1940. Shaw might have become the race's only three-peat champion in 1941, but he lost control of his car with 48 laps to go. A faulty tire was apparently to blame.
However, the Maserati driver played a key role in Speedway history. After racing paused between 1942 and 1945 to conserve tires for the war effort, the track fell into disrepair and was set to be demolished.
Shaw tried to convince several car manufacturers to buy the track before Terre Haute grocery heir Tony Hulman bought it. As a reward for his efforts, Shaw was named the track's president and general manager, titles he retained until his death in 1954.
Hulman & Co. owned the Speedway until it was sold to Penske in 2019.
Katie Wiseman is a trending news reporter at IndyStar. Contact her at klwiseman@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @itskatiewiseman. Alysa Guffey covers business for IndyStar. Have a business story or tip? Contact her at amguffey@gannett.com or follow her on X: @AlysaGuffeyNews. Ryan Murphy is the communities reporter for IndyStar. Contact her at rhmurphy@gannett.com or 317-800-2956.