Ella Scott
A 16-year-old girl who was gifted Taylor Swift’s hat earlier this summer has died of cancer.
Those lucky enough to have attended The Eras Tour in person know that during her performance of ‘22’, Swift whips off her hat and presents it to a chosen member of the audience.
On 1 July, Ally Anderson was the special attendee picked out of the crowd to receive the unforgettable gift during the Cincinnati tour date.
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Nearly five months on, Ally’s mum has confirmed that receiving the fedora helped to ‘change’ her daughter’s life before she died.
In a new interview with People, Patty Garner Anderson admitted: “It changed my daughter's life immensely.
"I hadn’t seen Ally smile and laugh like that in a very long time.”
She continued to claim that after the concert at the Paycor Stadium, the pair had the opportunity to meet the singer's mother, Andrea.
"We couldn’t thank her enough for choosing Ally for the hat, but I hope one day I can meet Taylor and Andrea to express how much that night meant to Ally,” she told People.
In 2018, Ally was diagnosed with stage four alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma when she was just 11 years old.
As per Mayo Clinic, this soft tissue cancer often affects children and is likely to start in the reproductive system, the urinary system, or in the sufferers’ arms and legs.
Patty said that the ‘Midnights’ singer’s music ‘brought light’ to her life.
“Ally had her music playing when she was still able to shower when she was organising her room, when we drove anywhere. It truly is all she played,” she said.
It’s also said that the teenager knew ‘every single word to every single song’ and that she even had a Swift-inspired tattoo on her left forearm.
Unfortunately, Patty confirmed that her daughter died in November, but claimed that there was some Swiftie-inspired significance in her death.
She said: “As you know Taylor Swift’s favourite number is 13.
“Ally passed away on 11/13/23 at 13:40. The 13th day during the 13th hour.”
Following the concert on 1 July, Ally uploaded a video to her TikTok account which captured the moment she received the costume piece from the ‘Bad Blood’ hit-maker.
In the caption of the footage - which has been viewed more than 24.5 million times - the 16-year-old wrote: “No words to describe what it felt like to be pulled from my seats to the floor.
“I knew immediately. Taylor was my first concert so many years ago. Honestly such a full circle moment.”
Since posting in July, the concert clip has wracked up thousands of comments from fans, with one writing: “The fact she knew your name. This is so special.”
A second said: “As the mom of a 4x childhood cancer survivor, too, I can tell you, NO ONE in that crowd deserved this moment more than you. Never give up!”
Another commented: "I would spontaneously combust if Taylor Swift was skipping down the catwalk towards me. This is amazing."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact Macmillan’s Cancer Support Line on 0808 808 00 00, 8am–8pm seven days a week.
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677.