If Taylor Swift‘s Eras Tour truck drivers weren’t Swifties before, they definitely are now.
One man in particular, Mike Scherkenbach, who has worked on three of the singer’s stadium tours and runs the concert transportation company Shomotion, is especially thankful for the Midnights artist.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Swift, 32, gave out $55 million in bonuses to people working on the tour, including giving each truck driver a check in the amount of $100,000. And for Scherkenbach, the performer’s generosity is “life-changing.”
“She’s giving a sum of money that is life-changing for these people,” he told Rolling Stone about the employees at Shomotion. “A lot of these drivers are not homeowners, and a lump sum like this gives you the ability to put a down payment on a home. That’s what makes me really happy. That generosity is a game changer for these people.”
While Scherkenbach said Swift has always been generous with bonuses, there has never been anything “at this magnitude” before.
According to the outlet, Shomotion handles transportation for all of the tour’s structures. Scherkenbach said most artists of Swift’s caliber typically give $5,000 to $10,000 extra, making the “Bejeweled” songstress’ bonus nearly 10x the norm.
Plus, Swift has also been generous with giving credit where credit is due to Shomotion, as Scherkenbach pointed out, “They did the documentary on the last tour, Reputation, for Netflix, and she listed my drivers in the credits.”
“To put the drivers’ names in the movie credits? That shows the character of a person,” he added.
Now, the Eras Tour crew is about to be busy while setting off for the upcoming international leg of the history-making show, which is expected to kickoff in Mexico City in late August.
While Swifties thought that Swift’s U.S. leg of the Eras Tour would be wrapping up over the next week, the Grammy-winner surprised her fans by announcing some additional North American dates for 2024, including stops in Miami, New Orleans, Indianapolis and Toronto.
