‘I can't even tell you how devastated I am by this’ – Taylor Swift meets with grieving family of fan who died before Brazil concert

Taylor Swift met with the family of Ana Clara Benevides Machado, who tragically died before the singer’s Eras Tour show in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on November 17.

The 23-year-old collapsed and later died of a cardiac arrest after temperatures of over 38 degrees celsius paired with dangerously high levels of humidity hit the venue.

The University student’s grieving family travelled to São Paulo on Sunday for the 12-time Grammy winner’s concert at the Allianz Parque stadium.

Prior to the gig, Swift met with the family, who wore matching T-shirts with Benevides Machado’s face on them, and posed for photos, which were later shared on social media.

Following the fan’s death, Swift cancelled her second Rio show hours before she was set to take the stage due to unusually “extreme heat” in the city.

Expressing her sadness over the tragic event in an Instagram post, she wrote: “I can’t believe I’m writing these words but it is with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show.

“I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There’s very little information I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young.

“I’m not going to be able to speak about this from stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it. I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my broken heart goes out to her family and friends.

“This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil,” she continued.

Returning to the Rio stage on November 20, the Anti-Hero hitmaker seemed to pay tribute to Ana as she performed Bigger Than The Whole Sky, a heart-wrenching ballad detailing loss and mourning, during the acoustic segment of her show.

When it was first released on her 2022 album Midnights, the track became an anthem for fans dealing with grief.

She emotionally belted out the lyrics: “No words appear before me in the aftermath / salt streams out my eyes and into my ears / every single thing I touch becomes sick with sadness / ’cause it’s all over now, all out to sea.”

When Swift reached the chorus, tears could be seen streaming down her face as she sang: “Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye / You were bigger than the whole sky / You were more than just a short time / And I’ve got a lot to pine about / I’ve got a lot to live without / I’m never gonna meet / What could’ve been, would’ve been / What should’ve been you.”

After finishing the song, the hitmaker paused for a moment before turning toward her fans and blowing them a kiss, mouthing the words “I love you all”.

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