Taylor Swift has held shows in Singapore more than once. The singer’s relationship with this Southeast Asian country began many decades ago, when she was not even born yet.

Singapore is the focus of world attention when it becomes Taylor Swift ‘s newest destination . The lion island nation makes some neighboring countries such as the Philippines and Thailand jealous thanks to its exclusive position in organizing the Eras Tour in Southeast Asia. With 6 sold-out shows (from March 2 to 9), Singapore is sure to gain significant economic benefits.

Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin once announced that the Singapore government spent a large amount of money to sign a secret agreement with the “Country Music Princess”. Officials from the Ministry of Culture and the Singapore Tourism Board, although refusing to mention it directly citing business confidentiality, still confirmed that Swift’s performances have the potential to create significant benefits for the economy. country economy.

It is unclear how the negotiation process took place, but one thing is for sure, the connection between the female singer born in 1989 and Singapore is much deeper than the Philippines or Thailand.

The reason Taylor Swift has a special affection for Singapore comes from her mother and maternal family. Photo: Getty Images.

During her first concert on March 2, the blonde beauty shared that her mother, Andrea Swift, spent most of her childhood in Singapore with her parents and older sister.

“Many times when we come here to travel, my mother often takes me past her old house and where she used to go to school. So I’ve heard about Singapore all my life,” Taylor said after performing Marjorie –  an emotional song inspired by her grandmother Marjorie Finlay, who passed away in 2003.

Previously, in an interview with Straits Times in 2010, Taylor said her grandfather, Robert Finlay, brought the family to live in Singapore for several years while working in an engineering company.

Not only that, Ms. Marjorie Finlay also has her own career in this country. In 1968, as an opera singer, Marjorie was chosen to play the role of a peasant girl in a play at the Victoria Theater.

Local writer Koh Buck Song (60 years old) revealed in a Facebook post on March 3 that Marjorie apparently filmed the music video in Singapore in the 1960s.

In the video, Marjorie is seen wearing a yellow dress, walking out of an English-style wooden house towards a Ford car with license plate SM 8860. In the back are a man and a little girl.

“The architecture of the wooden houses in the setting is typical of colonial wooden houses in Singapore, currently found on Tanglin, Sembawang or Ridout roads. The parking awning and grass slopes are also unmistakably Singaporean,” Mr Koh told the Straits Times .

He added that the Finlay family’s dress, bungalow and Ford reflected the Finlay family’s wealth and fashionable lifestyle. He emphasized that Mr. Finlay’s engineering work was highly regarded in the 1960s.

Taylor Swift’s grandmother is said to be filming a music video in Singapore. Photo: Facebook.

Because of her parents’ work, Taylor’s mother spent her childhood in Singapore and was a student at Singapore American School. School leaders said Ms. Andrea studied from 1968 to 1969. Yearbook photos collected by Straits Times show Ms. Andrea (10 years old at the time) sitting in the front row of grade 4 in 1968. She also participated in the photo shoot. Photo of 5th grade class in 1969.

Before the Eras Tour , Taylor chose Singapore as the stop of the Speak Now world tour more than 10 years ago. In a promotional interview in 2010, she shared: “My mother often told me wonderful stories about Singapore, so I always wanted to come. She’s joining me because she wants to go back and see all the places she used to know. She said this place was wonderful.”

In a 2011 interview with The New Paper at the concert venue, Taylor’s mother said her daughter accompanied her throughout Singapore during the trip.

“We are happy to be here. We visited places I had been to, like the Polo Club and my old school,” she said.

On this return, Ms. Andrea did not go with her daughter. Over the years, she has lived a private life. The most recent information about her is that she was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2020. The serious illness was discovered during her treatment for breast cancer. She received a breast cancer diagnosis in 2015 and relapsed in 2019.

Taylor’s grandmother was the inspiration for the song Marjorie. Photo: Facebook.