Following her energetic performance at the Video Music Awards, Taylor Swift premiered her new single, “Ronan”, at the Stand Up to Cancer benefit. “Ronan” is about a four-year-old boy who passed away last year from a disease calledNeuroblastoma, which is a type of cancer. Swift wrote this song in memory of Ronan and used information from Ronan’s mother’s blog, tracking his stories and achievements along the way. Ronan’s mother, Maya Thompson, has been credited as the co-writer of the song.
Even though Ronan has gone off to a better place, his mother has not stopped updating her blog and has even established a new charity foundation called The Ronan Thompson Foundation.It’s a non-profit organization “dedicated to finding a cure for neuroblastoma, a form of childhood cancer.”
The Stand Up to Cancer benefit was truly a star-studded gala, with stars such as Robert Pattinson, Justin Timberlake, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts and Gwyneth Paltrow making an appearance. In addition to Taylor Swift’s performance, Alicia Keys and Coldplay took the stage as well. If you haven’t heard the song yet, you can buy it on iTunes. You can also check out Swift’s debut performance of “Ronan” here.