Mother whose late son inspired Taylor Swift's 'Ronan' attending Eras Tour on his 16th birthday

When Taylor Swift takes the stage Friday night for the latest stop on her Eras Tour, one special fan will be in attendance.

Maya Thompson, whose late son Ronan inspired the 2012 Swift song of the same name, tweeted early Friday that she would be at the Philadelphia show, which falls on what would have been the boy's 16th birthday.

"Happy 16th Birthday to my beautiful boy," Thompson wrote. "I can't wait to celebrate you through my tears tonight. I love you to the moon and back, forever and always." She also included a link to the song and a photo of Ronan.

News of Thompson's attendance led many Swifties to speculate that the evening's surprise songs could include "Ronan." Swift previously performed the song at a 2015 concert attended by Thompson.

The pop star released the track more than a decade ago as a charity single, after coming across Ronan's story on his mother's blog. The boy died in 2011 after a nine-month battle with neuroblastoma, just a few days short of his fourth birthday.

With Thompson's permission, Swift also included "Ronan" on her re-recorded album Red (Taylor's Version), released in 2021. A lyric video for that version of the song includes sweet pictures and home videos of the boy, given to Swift by Thompson herself.

Swift is currently busy traveling the country with the U.S.-leg of the Eras Tour, which kicked off in Arizona in March and will wrap up in Los Angeles in August. She'll play three shows this weekend in Philadelphia before heading to Foxborough, Mass., next week.

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