Just days after the tragic death of 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides Machado before a Taylor Swift concert in Rio de Janeiro, the singer invited her family and friends to join her at the performance in Sao Paolo.
Machado, 23, became suddenly ill before Swift’s show in Rio de Janeiro earlier this month and tragically passed away on November 17.
She suffered a cardiac arrest amid a massive heatwave with temperatures reportedly reaching 59.3 degrees Celsius, with show organizers also banning fans from bringing their own food and water into the venue.
Following the fan’s death, Swift postponed another show in Rio and organizers announced sweeping changes to subsequent shows
The singer returned to Brazil on Sunday and performed in Sao Paolo. Swift brought along Machado’s family and friends and posed for photos with them as well.
Invited: Just a few days after the tragic death of 23-year-old Ana Clara Benevides Machado before a Taylor Swift concert in Rio de Janeiro, the singer invited her family and friends to her performance in Sao Paolo
A video from the X account @swifferupdates showed the late fan’s family and friends at the show, all wearing white T-shirts with Machado’s face.
They all met up with Swift after the show and also posed for a group photo with the singer.
Swift shared a handwritten note on her Instagram Story last week expressing her sadness over the loss of Machado.
“I can’t believe I’m writing these words, but it’s with a broken heart that I say we lost a fan before my show tonight,” Swift began.
“I can’t tell you how devastated I am about this.” “There’s very little information that I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and way too young,” Swift said.
She added: “I won’t be able to talk about it on stage because I feel overwhelmed with grief if I even try to talk about it.”
“I want to say now that I feel this loss deeply and my condolences are with her family and friends,” Swift continued.
She concluded by saying, “This is the last thing I ever thought would happen when we decided to bring this tour to Brazil.”
Family and Friends: A video from the X account @swifferupdates showed the late fan’s family and friends at the show, all wearing white T-shirts with Machado’s face
Pictures: They all met up with Swift after the show and also posed for a group photo with the singer
Family and Friends: Ana Clara Benevides Machado’s family and friends are seen at Taylor Swift’s Sao Paolo concert
Too Young: “I can’t tell you how devastated I am about this.” “There’s very little information that I have other than the fact that she was so incredibly beautiful and way too young,” Swift said
Concert promoter T4F’s decision to ban fans from bringing water bottles to the show resulted in over 1,000 of the 60,000 fans in attendance fainting before and during the show.
When Machado wasn’t feeling well, she went to the emergency room and fainted shortly before the show began.
She was taken to a first aid center before being transferred to Salgado Filho Hospital. However, she reportedly arrived at the hospital without a pulse.
Machado was pronounced dead after failed resuscitation attempts for more than an hour.
Benevides’ father Weiny Machado, 53, told Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo that he wanted to clarify from organizers whether concertgoers on Friday would be banned from bringing water into the show.
“I want it to be found out whether they were actually forbidden to bring water or whether there was negligence in providing assistance,” Machado told the newspaper. “I lost my only daughter, a happy and intelligent girl.
“She wanted to get her psychology degree next April and save money. I have no words to express my pain. She left home to fulfill a dream and came back dead.”
Ana’s cousin Estela Benevides told the newspaper that shortly before her death on Friday, Ana fainted as she sat in the front row of the Estádio Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro in triple-digit temperatures to meet Swift, 33, as part of her Eras Tour to see occur.
Pronounced dead: Machado was pronounced dead after failed resuscitation attempts for more than an hour
Eras: Ana’s cousin Estela Benevides told the newspaper that Ana fainted as she sat in the front row of the Estádio Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro in triple-digit temperatures on the Friday before her death, with Swift, 33, as part of her perform on the Epoch Tour
Ana fainted while sitting in the front row at Taylor’s show and was “resuscitated at the stadium for about 40 minutes” before suffering a second cardiac arrest on the way to a hospital, the newspaper reported.
Ana died shortly after arriving at a local hospital. The newspaper reported that the heat index in the stadium reached “60°C” – 140°F – and firefighters “counted a thousand fainting spells during the event.”
Ana’s cousin Gabriela Benevides told the newspaper they were worried they “wouldn’t have the resources” to have Ana’s body returned.
Fans filled social media with claims that they were banned from bringing water bottles into the stadium.
And in several fan clips posted online over the weekend, Swift was seen stopping her show multiple times to ask for water on behalf of her fans, who at one point called for refreshments.
One clip also showed Swift struggling to breathe after performing her hit song “Bejeweled.”
Swift said in her announcement Saturday on Instagram that she was canceling her second scheduled appearance at the stadium.
“I’m writing this from my locker room at the stadium,” Swift said. “Due to the extreme temperatures in Rio, the decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show. “The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow artists and crew must always come first.”
Canceled: Swift said in her announcement on Instagram on Saturday that she was canceling her second scheduled appearance at the stadium
Locker Room: “I’m writing this from my locker room at the stadium,” Swift said. “Due to the extreme temperatures in Rio, the decision has been made to postpone tonight’s show. “The safety and well-being of my fans, fellow artists and crew must always come first.”
The untimely death also prompted concert promoter Time For Fun to adopt a “special action plan,” according to The Mirror.
“In view of the predicted increase in the heat wave in the city, we inform you that we are reinforcing the special action plan implemented for the first day of the exhibition, in particular the provision of free water in the queues and at all entrances and.” “Entrances to the stadium and inside” said the company. “This will provide new free water distribution points to the public during the event.”
“Entry to the stadium with sealed glasses of water and sealed processed foods is also permitted, with no limit on items per person. We clarify that the requirement for items to be sealed is consistent with safety recommendations.”
The company continued: “We also emphasize that the ban on entering stadiums with water bottles is a requirement of public bodies and that we do not sell drinks and food as this is the responsibility of the stadium management.”
The company said it had increased its resources given the heavily attended shows held during the sweltering heatwave.