Yes, we’ve reached the absolute zenith saturation point with the Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are-they-aren’t-they dating saga.
The rumors and reports about one of the world’s biggest superstars and the two-time Super Bowl-winning tight end hanging out were gossip fodder that we all enjoyed debating and joking about. The line Kelce used about how she needed to watch him play turned out not to be a line, but a clue.
And then … she showed up. At an actual Kansas City Chiefs game on Sunday. SITTING NEXT TO KELCE’S MOM! She cheered for him! Heck, she even cleaned up afterward. It was all a delight.
But now, we’ve also reached that stage of backlash. The one where there are people who wonder how real it is and why we’re paying so much attention to it.
ESPN’s Elle Duncan called it a stunt:
Per Entertainment Weekly, The View‘s Sara Haines had this to say:
Haines joined executive producer Brian Teta on Monday’s installment of the Behind the Table podcast to reveal that the colleagues were earlier “having a disagreement” about which current events to discuss at the table during the day’s telecast — which led to Haines being “upset” with Teta over his “annoying” insistence that the ladies dissect Swift’s supposed romance with NFL star Travis Kelce after the pop superstar was spotted Sunday at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium.
“I can usually find something, but I’ll let you know when I don’t care. This is a PR stunt, this whole thing, and I’m just not that interested in it, because it feels like you’re giving air to a publicity stunt,” Haines told Teta. “She does not need more expensive concert tickets that are hard to get. Like, she’s good. We’re good.”
First of all: If this is some kind of “stunt” for PR or clout … as my For The Win colleagues have rightfully pointed out on our Slack channel: Whom does it benefit? We’re talking about a superstar who continues to rake in millions from her incredible tour and is dominating the charts with her current music AS WELL AS past albums she’s in the process of rerecording. We’re also talking about one of the NFL’s biggest names right now. He has his own successful podcast, hosted one of last season’s funniest SNL episodes and enjoys top-tier internet culture status thanks to his touchdown dance moves and a very viral mustache.
In other words, they don’t need to do this for fame or positive press. And as for questions about how private Swift is about who she’s dating? C’mon. We always know, whether it’s during or after, when there’s a song written about a scarf or something.
Maybe it’s just two young people having a good time together. Maybe they’re … seeing each other? (Yes, hi, I’m a Millennial who tries to put old-timey labels on relationships.) And maybe we should just all sit back and enjoy the ride.
Isn’t it fun to see Swift cheering for an NFL player? Isn’t it fun to see Kelce throw out there publicly that he tried to give Swift his number on a friendship bracelet and now they’ve spent some time together?
If it’s a stunt of any kind, great. I, for one, am having a blast. It’s not so much the are-they-aren’t-they drama, but the delight in seeing two big names getting together and — literally — driving off into the sunset in a convertible:
taylor swift being in a convertible is something i never thought i’d see. like the same woman who talked about buying cars with bulletproof glass in ‘miss americana’, now feels safe enough to go in a convertible.
i am so happy that she’s happy🥹pic.twitter.com/RdecVkAIJA— Emma🩵 (@Ward_Swift13) September 25, 2023
the way that they quite literally drove into the sunset together has me in shambles pic.twitter.com/R4IMIu2Je5
— les εïз on tour (@folkwhorelovr) September 25, 2023
Stop questioning it. Pretty soon, Swift will leave for the international leg of her Eras Tour while Kelce’s quest for a third ring will continue. Maybe this is the real deal and they’ll get together at the end of their respective jobs and this will be a — I’m so, so sorry but also not — Love Story for the ages.
If not? It’s the most fun.
