Taylor Swift Presents ’22’ Hat to a Young Cancer Patient at Sydney Concert
A young fan receives a hat from Taylor Swift during her performance at Accor Stadium on Feb. 23 in Sydney, Australia.
Don Arnold/TAS24/Getty Images
A 9-year-old Taylor Swift megafan battling cancer had her dream come true when she was chosen to be given the highly-coveted “22” hat from the megastar during her concert in Sydney this weekend.
Scarlett Oliver, from Perth, is battling an aggressive form of incurable brain cancer, according to the girl’s stepmother, Natalie. She had shared Scarlett’s desire to meet the singer-songwriter sensation on a Facebook fan page for the megastar.
“Scarlett is a 9-year-old from Perth, and she was diagnosed in October last year with a high-grade glioma — this is a very aggressive brain cancer with no cure,” wrote Natalie on a fan page for Swift on the social media platform earlier this week, according to a screenshot shared to X. Natalie noted that after the Make A Wish foundation was unable to grant her daughter her wish of meeting Swift, they ended up getting tickets themselves through “the power of social media and some generous people.” Adding, “Scarlett is so excited and would absolutely love to receive the 22 hat from Taylor (as would everyone else I’m sure).”
Throughout Swift’s blockbuster Eras Tour performances, the singer takes a moment to give out a black fedora she wears during her performance of “22,” a favorite from her 2013 album Red, to a preselected fan in attendance.
“I just want her to experience everything in life and if anyone deserves a little happiness it’s her. She deserves the world,” Natalie added. She followed this up on Wednesday on Facebook with an image of Scarlett holding a sign that reads: “Taylor can I have the 22 hat? Please.”
“We would love to make this happen for our strong, beautiful girl!! You never know what’s possible,” she wrote, asking for the post to be shared widely.
In a video posted to X after Friday night’s concert, Swift is seen leaning down from the stage to hug Scarlett and then places the hat on the girl’s head. Fans are heard screaming as Swift then kisses Scarlett’s hand before jumping back into her performance.
Swift concludes the string of her record-breaking Eras tour’s Australia shows tonight and will head to Singapore next week. Friday night’s concert, which was slightly delayed by inclement weather, came the same day she announced another special edition of her forthcoming album, The Tortured Poets Department, featuring the bonus track “The Albatross.” A week earlier, she announced an initial special edition of the new album with the bonus track “The Bolter.”