Taylor Swift sings 'Soon You'll Get Better' for the first time in heart-wrenching performance on 'Together at Home'

• Taylor Swift performed her song "Soon You'll Get Better" off her most recent album "Lover" as part of Global Citizen's "One World: Together at Home" event on Saturday night. 
• The singer held back tears as she played the piano and performed the track, which was written about her experience watching her mom, Andrea Swift, battle cancer.
• "That's a song I don't know if I'll ever play it live. It's just really difficult for me. It was hard to write. It's hard to sing. It's hard to listen to for me," Swift previously said about "Soon You'll Get Better" for a SiriusXM Town Hall.
• The "Together at Home" performance came one day after Swift announced she was canceling all of her live performances for the rest of 2020 in order to keep fans safe and comply with social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic.
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Taylor Swift gave an emotional performance of "Soon You'll Get Better" on Saturday, despite previously saying she'd probably never perform the song live. 

The 30-year-old singer sang the track as part of Global Citizen's "One World: Together at Home" benefit concert, which supports frontline healthcare workers and the World Health Organization (WHO) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Swift wrote "Soon You'll Get Better" about her experience watching her mother Andrea Swift's battle with cancer, and contains heartbreaking lyrics like "And I hate to make this all about me / But who am I supposed to talk to? / What am I supposed to do /If there's no you?" 

Fans never thought they'd see Swift sing the song live, largely because she previously said she didn't know if she'd ever have the strength to. 

"That's a song I don't know if I'll ever play it live. It's just really difficult for me. It was hard to write. It's hard to sing. It's hard to listen to for me. But sometimes, music is like that. Sometimes it's not just about stuff that was pleasant to feel," she said in August during a SiriusXM event, according to Billboard. 

 

The song, which features the Dixie Chicks on the album version, is one of Swift's most vulnerable, personal songs she's ever released, and had to get family approval before adding it to the "Lover" tracklist.

"That was really, really hard to write, and it was just a family decision whether to even put it on the album," Swift said during a YouTube Live ahead of her album's release in August. "We as a family decided to put this on the album, and it's something I'm so proud of, but it's just really hard. I can't sing it. It's hard to just emotionally deal with that song."

Swift's mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and Swift revealed that it had returned in a personal essay for Elle in March 2019. In January, Swift told Variety that her mom had been diagnosed with a brain tumor amid her second battle with breast cancer.

Swift's performance came just one day after she announced she'd be canceling all live performances — including her Lover Fest this summer — for the rest of 2020.

 

"With many events throughout the world already cancelled, and upon direction from health officials in an effort to keep fans safe and help prevent the spread of COVID-19, sadly the decision has been made to cancel all Taylor Swift live appearances and performances this year. The U.S. and Brazil shows will be rescheduled to take place in 2021, with dates to be announced later this year," an official statement said. 

Global Citizen's "One World: Together at Home" benefit concert also included performances from artists like Camila Cabello, Shawn Mendes, John Legend, Sam Smith, Lizzo, Jennifer Lopez, and Billie Eilish. 

SEE ALSO: 'This is really a true love letter to all of you': Lady Gaga shared an emotional Instagram Live message ahead of the 'Together At Home' virtual concert

DON'T MISS: Taylor Swift reveals her mom has been diagnosed with a brain tumor amid her second battle with breast cancer

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