Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has been full of tradition. The pop star always plays a surprise song that she vows to only play once on the tour, she always dives into the stage for a costume change, and she always gives her black hat to a fan during “22.” There are tens of thousands of fans in the stadium during a given concert, so being the “Lucky One” chosen to be gifted Swift’s hat is almost impossible. Now, one fan is sharing their story of how they got to experience such an honor.
Grace DelVecchio is a 12-year-old girl from Yorktown, New York, and was picked out of the crowd to receive the “Red” singer's hat during "22." Her family told a local Yorktown publication, TapInto Yorktown, that the moment was actually "a long time coming." DelVecchio has a special story, and has loved Swift for years. When the family was fortunate to snag tickets to the Era’s Tour, the 12-year-old’s speech pathologist, Jenn Sparano, looked for a way for DelVecchio to meet the Midnights artist. She said:
I started reaching out to different background dancers. I was emailing the Taylor Swift PR team. I was messaging Taylor Swift. But I obviously didn’t hear back from anyone.
While she may not have heard from Swift’s team, the New York Post found DelVecchio’s story that Sparano posted on Facebook, and published an article about it. Still, there was no word from the Swift camp. That all changed when security found the young girl and her father during the concert and brought her to the front of the stadium for a special moment. She was brought to the front, and the Grammy winner handed DelVecchio her hat, which she now keeps in a shadow box. Reflecting on the moment the special gal said:
I was shaking, I was so nervous to see her. It made me feel special.
That is such a special moment and clearly the campaigning worked. I’m sure the process for choosing someone to keep the hat is different for every show, but this is some great insight into how moments like these come to fruition. Swift often chooses very young fans to receive her hat, making for an adorable picture-perfect memory that the fan will likely never forget. However, this isn’t always the case, the "Cruel Summer" singer notability gave her hat to 22-year-old TikTok star Mikael Arellano during one of her shows, who originated the viral dance to “Bejeweled” that Swift replicates in her choreography on tour.
While it may not seem like Swift is paying attention to fans that go above and beyond to show their love for the 33-year-old’s music, moments like this show she is. The record-breaking recording artist has invited her most ardent fans to early listening parties for her albums in the past by finding them through social media. She has also sent merch boxes to some fans during Christmas time to show her love and appreciation. The “Anti-Hero” singer is clearly grateful for her fans, and gives back however she can.
You can catch Taylor Swift on the worldwide Eras Tour, as the singer just released her international dates. Fans of the pop princess unable to get tickets due to the infamous Ticketmaster fiasco, can still witness the magic of one of her stadium shows by streaming her 2018 concert film, Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour with a Netflix subscription. For more information on other projects coming from the star in the near future, make sure to consult our feature on upcoming Taylor Swift music and other things for Swifties to look forward to.