LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Taylor Swift has broken silence after the unexpected death of her fan ahead of her concert in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The 33-year-old singer took to her Instagram Story on Friday, November 18, to share a heartfelt tribute to express that she was "devastated" after her fan Ana Clara Benevides Machado, 23, died at the Estadio Olimpico Nilton Santos, according to People.
Taylor Swift says she is paying tribute to her fan with a 'shattered heart'
In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter), 'Time for Fun', one of the event organizers announced that the 23-year-old fan felt unwell at the venue.
She was attended to by first responders and was shifted to Salagrdo Filho where she was pronounced dead.
"I can’t believe I’m writing these words, but it’s with a shattered heart that I say we lost a fan earlier tonight before my show," read the 'Karma' singer's social media statement.
"I can’t even tell you how devastated I am by this. There’s very little information I have other than the fact she was so incredibly beautiful and far too young," she continued.
Taylor Swift was 'overwhelmed by grief' during show
On Friday, November 17, the Grammy winner played the first of her three shows at Estadio Nilton Santos. She said at the show that she would not be able to speak about Benevides' death during her show as she was "overwhelmed by grief."
"I’m not going to be able to speak about this from the stage because I feel overwhelmed by grief when I even try to talk about it," Swift said.
"I want to say now I feel this loss deeply and my heart goes out to her family and friends," she added.
"This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil," she concluded her message.
Speaking to local news outlet Fohla De S Paulo, Benevides' friend Thiago Fernandes said, "I want Ana to appear on the screens at Taylor's show."
"I just can't believe your [sic] gone I can't accept that. We talked about this show so many times, and how I wish I was with you," read his tribute to his 23-year-old friend posted on Instagram on Friday, November 17.
Earlier in the night during the concert, footage captured and shared on X by a fan showed Swift pausing her show to ask water be made available to her fans.
"There's people that need water, right here," said the singer pointing at a section of the crowd.
"So whoever is in charge of giving them that, please come and make sure that that happens," she added.
