Brazil lights up Christ the Redeemer statue to welcome Taylor Swift ahead of her Rio Eras Tour concert

Brazil welcomed Taylor Swift with open arms ahead of her Eras tour performance with a special projection on the Christ the Redeemer statue.

The 98-foot tall Rio de Janeiro landmark was lit up on Thursday night to mark the singer's arrival prior to her Friday show.

The projection features a T-shirt design based on one worn by the pop star in her 'You Belong With Me' music video.

It was created by Gabriel Dadam, the art director of one of the singer's fan clubs.

The illumination was funded by the Christ the Redeemer Sanctuary located at the foot of the sculpture and was the result of a fan campaign and charity drive.

Father Omar Raposo, the church's rector, agreed to pay for the projection if fans collected 20,000 units of water and panettone to donate to the needy by 9pm.

'We did it Swifties!' Father Omar said in an Instagram post, which featured helicopter footage of the 98ft statue all lit up.

'You were able to show the love to Taylor and others,' he added. 'Thank you very much to everyone who donated! May these be wonderful days!'

Rio's Mayor Eduardo Paes tweeted: ''Swifties' cariocas… are you ready for it?' in a reference to one of Swift's hits. 

The campaign was sparked by an image of the iconic landmark wearing the Swift T-shirt created by publicist Leonardo Ulths De Carvalho, 21.

His original design simply photoshopped the T-shirt worn by Swift in her 2008 video  onto the statue. 

The garment, which said 'Junior Jewels' became a cult item amongst fans, especially after the video earned her an MTV award for Best Female Video and her acceptance speech was interrupted by Kanye West.

However, in the reworked design on Christ the Redeemer, the shirt features the phrase 'Welcome to Brasil' with the names of all the country's states. 

'It doesn't seem real,' Ulths De Carvalho told USA Today, 'It's something we've been wishing for a long, long time. It's finally happening, and it's crazy.' 

The projection began at 7pm, hours after Swift was due to land in Brazil as she continues the Latin America leg of her world tour.

She has three shows this weekend at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos in Rio de Janeiro before heading to Sao Paolo. 

Latin American fans have been making the most of comparatively cheap tickets to see the 'Shake it Off' singer live.

While tickets in the US spiraled to more than $1,600 on some resale sites, Vivid Seats was offering tickets to concerts in Brazil for just $91. 

Swift arrives in Brazil fresh from her shows in Argentina, where she was supported by her new beau Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

The two have caused a social media storm since going public with their relationship, spurred on by recent footage of Swift running up to plant a kiss on the athlete after finishing up her Saturday show in Buenos Aires.

The clip went even more viral thanks to Swift's decision to change the lyrics to her hit 'Karma' to include a reference to her new lover. 

The two have finally gone public with their relationship two months after rumors began to swirl when the 13-time Grammy winner was spotted cheering on Kelce at his game at the Arrowhead Stadium. 

It is understood she will be flying back to the US for Thanksgiving, before returning to Brazil for the Sao Paolo shows on November 24, according to Page Six.

From Sao Paolo she will head to Tokyo and Singapore before commencing the European leg to the Eras Tour.