Andrea Swift, Taylor’s mom, gets rock star welcome in L.A.

Backstage this week shortly before one of Taylor Swift’s five shows at the Staples Center for her 1989 World tour, Andrea and Scott Swift stood a few feet from their daughter watching the activity mount around her.

The unassuming couple hardly stood out among some of the evening’s surprise guests, like talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres and Dixie chicks singer Natalie Maines, all of whom mingled in and outside Loft 89, the room where Swift’s invitees hang out before and after her performances.

Swift’s mother Andrea, however, was greeted like a celebrity a few days earlier when she made her way outside into the throng of Swift fans in the Staples Center.

Andrea was given an enthusiastic welcome at Friday’s opening show when she walked onto the arena floor to be escorted to her seat, stopping along the way to smile and indulge fans’ requests for selfies and hugs with her. Clearly her daughter isn’t the only member of the Swift clan getting the rock star treatment while she’s in Los Angeles for five sold-out shows that end Wednesday night.

Fans have often exhibited affection toward Andrea and Scott Swift, but there’s been an extra outpouring of support to Andrea since Taylor revealed last spring that her mother had been recently diagnosed with cancer.

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When Swift made the announcement in April, she issued a statement that said: “I’m saddened to tell you that my mom has been diagnosed with cancer. I’d like to keep the details of her condition and treatment plans private, but she wanted you to know.”

Andrea Swift, however, hasn’t let her condition stop her from doing what she’s done since well before her daughter became one of the most popular pop musicians on the planet: standing in the wings or out in the audience cheering her on, as well as keeping her grounded as her career has unfolded in spectacular ways.

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“I’m feeling fine,” Andrea told The Times with a broad smile, also expressing appreciation for the demonstrations of support she’s received from her daughter’s fans, like those in the attached Twitter post showing Andrea, right. “We’re all having the best year of our lives.”

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