"Ronan" is a charity single released on September 8, 2012 by American country pop artist Taylor Swift to iTunes Stores. Swift wrote the single, a ballad[1] of four minutes and twenty-five seconds[2] based on a blog she read of a four year old boy, Ronan Thompson who had died from cancer. Swift wrote the song "Ronan", with co-writing credit going to Maya Thompson, Ronan's mother. Swift first performed the song live for Stand Up to Cancer in September 2012,[3] and all proceeds of the single go to help fight cancer. The title of the song is the boy's name, Ronan.
Background
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Swift wrote the song after reading Maya Thompson's blog. Thompson is the mother of four year old Ronan Thompson, who died in 2011 of neuroblastoma.[4] He was treated at the Barrow Neurological Institute at Phoenix Children's Hospital. Maya began writing in August 2010 when Ronan was diagnosed and she continued penning her entries in the blog Rockstar Ronan during the nine months that Ronan fought the illness before passing away in May 2011, just three days before he would have turned four. Maya worked through her grief by continuing the blog, writing heartbreaking letters to her late son, whilst also raising money and awareness for childhood cancer causes.[5]
Swift's lyrics were taken completely from Maya's blog entries. The pair met in October 2011, when Swift invited Maya to her concert at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Maya wrote about her reaction when Taylor told her that she'd penned the song, "My calmness soon turned to complete and utter frozen shock when these words came out of her mouth. 'I wrote a song for Ronan,'" and she said "'The tears started pouring down my cheeks as soon as I heard her say those words. But her words didn't stop there. Not only did she write a song for you, but she wanted to know if it would be alright to perform it on the nationally televised show." [6] Swift credits Thompson's mother as the co-writer of the song. It was released to the US iTunes Store shortly after the Stand Up to Cancer telethon ended and all proceeds of the single go towards cancer charities.[7] Scott Borchetta, president and CEO of Big Machine Records, has confirmed via Twitter that the song is not included on Swift's fourth album, Red, as Swift had chosen the song for the telethon after the tracks were considered and that they "may have to rethink" adding it to the album.[8] When Red's tracklist was released, "Ronan" was ultimately left out.[9]
Critical reception
"Ronan" received acclaim from critics. Rolling Stone called the song "heartbreaking".[1] Bill Dukes of Taste of Country wrote: "It was clear [Swift] was just the voice for Maya Thompson..."[10] Ed Masley of The Arizona Republic said that "'Ronan' may very well be [Swift's] finest hour as an artist."[11]
Charts and certifications
"Ronan" received 220,000 downloads in its first week, debuting at #2 on the Hot Digital Songs chart and #16 on the Billboard Hot 100.[12]
Weekly charts
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Certifications
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Track listing
- Digital download[2]
- "Ronan" – 4:25
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Taylor Swift Debuts 'Ronan' at Stand Up To Cancer Benefit". Rolling Stone. 2012-09-08. Retrieved 2012-09-09.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Ronan - Single". iTunes Stores. Apple, Inc. 2012-09-08. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
- ↑ The Associated Press (2012-09-07). "Taylor Swift to debut song, ‘Ronan’, on ‘Stand Up to Cancer’ telethon in honor of 3-year-old victim". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2012-09-08.
- ↑ Megan Pacella (2012-09-07). "Taylor Swift to ‘Stand Up to Cancer’ With Song for 4-Year-Old Lost to Neuroblastoma". Taste of Country. Townsquare Media. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
- ↑ http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=27193
- ↑ "Hey Maya, it's Taylor Swift...".
- ↑ "Taylor Swift to debut song for cancer victim". MSN. Microsoft. 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
- ↑ Scott Borchetta (2012-09-08). "Twitter/ScottBorchetta: @SwiftTreasured at this point...". Twitter. Retrieved 2012-09-09.
- ↑ "Official Red Track Listing!".
- ↑ Billy Dukes (2012-09-07). "Taylor Swift’s ‘Ronan,’ Tim McGraw’s ‘Live Like You Were Dying’ Highlight Emotional ‘Stand Up to Cancer’ Telethon". Taste of Country. Townsquare Media. Retrieved 2012-09-09.
- ↑ Ed Masley (2012-09-09). "Taylor Swift song 'Ronan' for Phoenix boy an artistic high". The Republic. AZ Central. Retrieved 2012-09-09.
- ↑ Trust, Gary (September 12, 2012). "Taylor Swift's 'Never' Is Hot 100's Longest-Leading Country Song Since 1980". Billboard. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
- ↑ "American single certifications – Taylor Swift – Ronan". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
External links
