Taylor Swift fans paid a special tribute to her late grandmother Marjorie during night one of her Nashville stop amid The Eras Tour on Friday, but has since sparked controversy on Twitter.
The Grammy winner, 33, who has lately fueled romance rumors with The 1975 singer Matty Healy, was performing the song Marjorie when a group of concert goers close to the stage held up photos of her late grandmother, who had passed away when the star was only 13.
According to Billboard, Taylor had called the moment both ‘meaningful’ and ‘special’ before transitioning to the next song.
In the comment section of a video posted on Twitter that captured the scene, other fans had an opposite feeling towards the tribute, with one calling the tribute ‘abhorrent.’
‘Given that this Marjorie is a now deceased family member of Taylor Swift, this is actually one of the most abhorrent things i’ve ever seen a fan do, i don’t even care if she appreciated it, how the f*** does this go through your mind?’
Controversy: Fans paid a special tribute to Taylor Swift’s, 33, late grandmother, Marjorie, during night one of her Nashville stop amid Eras Tour earlier Friday, but has since sparked controversy on Twitter; seen on Saturday in Nashville
‘Abhorrent’: In the comment section of a video posted on Twitter that captured the scene, other fans had an opposite feeling towards the tribute, with one calling the tribute ‘abhorrent’
Another wrote, ‘If someone held up photos of my dead nan whilst i was trying to perform I would have a mental breakdown and throw my microphone at someone’s face.’
One Twitter user expressed that she ‘felt bad’ for Taylor, writing, ‘idk anything about taylor swift i had to click the original tweet for clarification because i thought someone brought pictures of marjorie taylor greene and i was so concerned and confused as to why. thats so out of touch tho i feel so bad for her.’
One fan slammed Swifties, adding, ‘Every time there’s a line, hardcore Swifties cross it. This is not even remotely okay, and it’s honestly kind of scary. Poor Taylor, It’s one thing to be a fan, but it’s entirely different thing to pretend you’re her close, personal friend. She deserves privacy and respect.’
‘If all of you holding up pictures of Taylor Swift’s grandma cause her to take Marjorie off the setlist before international dates there will be hell to pay,’ one fan tweeted.
Another called the ‘Project Marjorie’ tribute ‘weird,’ writing, ‘The ones who participated in #projectmarjorie were a different type of weird. You could’ve held up photos of your loved one who passed on as “your” Marjorie. Not photos of a stranger. Taylor swift doesn’t know y’all. it’s like a contest of who can make her cry…just stop. Ew.’
During the clip shared by a Twitter user, the singer could be seen donning a floor-length yellow dress performing Marjorie, when a group of fans standing next to one side of the stage lifted up photos of her late grandmother up into the air.
The moment she saw the tribute, her jaw dropped, but quickly continued singing the track, and at one point, tapped her hand to her heart a few times.
Other concert goers could be seen holding up lights from their phones during the moving performance at Nissan Stadium.
A tribute: The Grammy winner was performing the track, Marjorie, when a group of concert goers close to the stage held up photos of her late grandmother, who had passed away when the star was only 13; seen on Friday in Nashville
Jumping to the comment section: Another wrote, ‘If someone held up photos of my dead nan whilst i was trying to perform I would have a mental breakdown and throw my microphone at someone’s face’
Feeling ‘bad’: One Twitter user expressed that she ‘felt bad’ for Taylor and also added feeling ‘concerned and confused’
Future of the song: One fan expressed her hope that Taylor would decide to keep the song in the setlist if she went international for the Eras Tour
While sitting down at a piano on stage to begin singing the next song, Swift had asked the sold-out crowd, ‘What are you trying to do to me?’ per Billboard, and added, ‘Oh my God, that was so beautiful.’
She then explained the meaning behind the track, stating, ‘So that song, Marjorie, that was a song that I wrote about my mom’s mom, my grandmother. She was a singer too. And she passed away when I was 13.’
The Blank Space songstress then told the audience that she ‘just knows’ her own mother ‘is just like bawling and has been for the solid last five-and-a-half minutes, and I love you guys so much.’
Before transitioning to the next track, Taylor quickly concluded with, ‘That was so meaningful and so special.’
According to the publication, a TikTok user named Jessica Morris had conjured up the idea and also shared a clip of the moment.
‘I couldn’t be more proud of making this crazy idea into reality. Lugging 300 copies around a crowded stadium wasn’t ideal, but for her I’d do it, ‘a million little times’!’ the fan had gushed.
The Karma hitmaker performed for three nights in Nashville during her Eras Tour, which is slated to come to an end in August.
Over the weekend, Taylor herself was wrapped up in more romance rumors that she and The 1975 singer Matty Healy have started dating. The British-born star was seen cheering on the songstress from the audience on all three nights.
Reaction: The moment she saw the tribute, her jaw dropped, but quickly continued singing the track, and at one point, tapped her hand to her heart a few times, according a video on Twitter that captured the moment
Responding to the tribute: While sitting down at a piano on stage to begin singing the next song, Swift had asked the sold-out crowd, ‘What are you trying to do to me?’ per Billboard; seen on Sunday in Nashville
During night two, Healy hopped onto the stage to perform with opening act, Phoebe Bridgers, and on Sunday, the Somebody Else hitmaker was spotted wearing a 1989 T-shirt as he watched his rumored girlfriend take to the stage once again.
To further fuel romance rumors, Matty was seen spending time at the Grammy winner’s Nashville condo on Friday and also early Sunday.
Taylor and Matty’s rumored romance first came to light earlier last week on Wednesday, with a separate source telling The Sun, ‘She and Matty are madly in love,’ and that the songstress ‘wants to ‘own’ this romance, and not hide it away.’
Despite the speculation that the two have entered a relationship, both singers have yet to publicly confirm they are dating.