Travis Kelce Shares How His Family Is Navigating Fame Amid Taylor Swift Romance

Travis Kelce's loved ones are handling life in the spotlight all too well.  

One year after the Kansas City Chiefs tight end debuted his relationship with Taylor Swift, he reflected on how parents Donna and Ed Kelce, along with older brother Jason Kelce and his wife Kylie Kelce, have adjusted to international fame. 

"It's the life I chose," Travis told CBS Mornings Sept. 5. "I have fun with it. It comes with the territory." "Everybody's loving it," he continued. "Mama Kelc is having so much fun. I think my dad is slowly getting more comfortable with it and Jason has always been a pro at it."

In fact, as the Kelce crew has become more accustomed to the limelight, they've found ways to shine on their own, whether it's Donna starring in Super Bowl commercials and her upcoming role co-hosting the 2024 Pillsbury Bake-Off or former field hockey player Kylie holding clinics for young players. 

As for Jason, who retired from the Philadelphia Eagles in March after 13 years? Well, his career on the field landed him a new role with ESPN as a commentator for Monday Night Football. 

"ESPN was a consistent presence in our household growing up," the 36-year-old wrote in his May statement. "The network helped shape who I am and my love of all sports." 

And he'll navigate that all while continuing his hit podcast New Heights with Travis, with the pair signing a $100 million three-year deal for their podcast with Amazon's Wondery.

But amid the success,  Jason—who shares kids daughters Wyatt, 4, Elliotte, 3, and Bennett, 18 months with wife Kylie—has admitted that Taylor and Travis' headline-making romance has made big waves for the family's day-to-day life, especially when they go out with either of them. 

"It's been crazy," the 36-year-old explained on The Whiskey Ginger podcast in June. "Travis and Taylor have taken it to another level and that's a whole other side of it." 

As he put it, "You can't be a normal person at that point."

Despite it all, Jason noted that his little brother has "stayed true to himself." 

"He's humble," he said. "He treats everyone with the utmost respect, like they're equals, regardless of who they are." 

And Travis credits Taylor with how she's navigated this level of fame for so long. 

"The scrutiny she gets, how much she has a magnifying glass on her, every single day, paparazzi outside her house, outside every restaurant she goes to, after every flight she gets off, and she's just living, enjoying life," he told WSJ. Magazine in November. "When she acts like that I better not be the one acting all strange." 

Now, keep reading to see where Taylor and Travis' love story began.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's love story began in July 2023, when the singer's Eras Tour made a stop at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.

As a huge Swiftie, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end caught the show with hopes of giving Taylor a friendship bracelet with his number on it. However, he failed to complete the pass due to her pre-show rituals.

"I was disappointed that she doesn't talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings," Travis shared on the July 26 episode of his New Heights podcast. "So, I was a little butt-hurt I didn't get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her."

After publicly recounting his fumble—a move Taylor would later describe as "metal as hell"—Travis decided to shoot his shot and invite the Grammy winner to watch the Chiefs play at Arrowhead Stadium.

"I threw it out there, I threw the ball in her court," he shared on The Pat McAfee Show. "I told her, you know, 'I've seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit.' So, we'll see what happens in the near future."

Travis was rocking a mustache—which he debuted in August during training camp—when he was first introduced to Taylor.

As he later noted of the era, "That 'stache and the 87 jersey was pretty iconic there for a little bit, and I had it when I met Taylor for the first time."

By early September, a source close to the situation told E! News that Travis and Taylor were "texting and talking here and there."

"It's been very low-key," the insider explained, "as he's been in season."

Accepting Travis' invite, Taylor joined the athlete's mom Donna Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium to watch him and the Chiefs take on the Chicago Bears. After the game, Taylor and Travis were seen packing PDA at a local bar.

Though folklore had it that it was the couple's first in-person meeting, the "Karma" singer later clarified the two had spent a "significant amount of time" getting to know each other beforehand.

As Taylor noted, "We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date." 

As an indication that the relationship was heating up, Taylor brought her squad—including friends Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Sophie Turner, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter and Antoni Porowski—to watch the Chiefs play against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Another sign that Travis could be The 1? Taylor started bonding with Brittany Mahomes—the wife of Travis' BFF and teammate Patrick Mahomes—in and outside of NFL games.

The couple took their romance to TV, making a surprise appearance on the Oct. 14 episode of Saturday Night Live. Their Big Apple takeover also included the after-party for the NBC sketch show and a date night at the Waverly Inn.

During a bye week, Travis traveled down to Argentina to catch the South American leg of Taylor's Eras Tour. Not only did the NFL star bond with Taylor's dad, Scott Swift, at the Nov. 11 show in Buenos Aires, but he also got a special shoutout from the stage.

"Karma is that guy on the Chiefs," Taylor sang, "coming straight home to me."

After the show, the Midnights artist was seen running up to Travis backstage and greeting him with a passionate kiss.

Taylor addressed the lavender craze surrounding her appearances at Travis' games.

"I'm going to see him do what he loves, we're showing up for each other, other people are there and we don't care," she told Time. "The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you're seeing someone."

 

The music superstar turned Travis' Dec. 17 game into a family affair, bringing her dad to cheer on her man.

Taylor and Travis spent their first New Year's Eve together, sharing a romantic kiss when the clock struck midnight on Jan. 1.

Continuing to bond with Travis' family, Taylor hung out with his brother Jason Kelce and sister-in-law Kylie Kelce at the Chiefs' game against the Buffalo Bills.

Taylor joined Travis on the football field when the Chiefs won the AFC Championship, a victory that cemented the team's spot in the 2024 Super Bowl. The couple shared a celebratory kiss before exchanging the L-word.

"Tay, I'm gonna enjoy with the guys," he told her. "I love you—so much it's not funny."

 

 

The pair locked lips on the field after Travis led the Kansas City Chiefs to victory on Feb. 11, 2024 in Las Vegas.

Taylor posted footage of Travis on social media for the first time Feb. 12, poking fun at how she took her parents clubbing with the athlete after the Super Bowl.

Taylor's first Instagram pic featuring Travis was a selfie of the two with Prince William and his and wife Kate Middleton's eldest kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte backstage at the singer's Eras tour show at Wembley Stadium in London.

While attending his seventh Eras tour concert, and second show at London's Wembley Stadium, the NFL star joined his girlfriend onstage as a backup performer during her performance of "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart."

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