Travis Kelce Discusses Taylor Swift Relationship, 'It Happened Very Organically'

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce told GQ's Sean Manning that his relationship with Taylor Swift "happened very organically" after he first mentioned the singer on a July 2023 episode of his New Heights podcast.

Kelce spoke with Manning about his relationship, which started when he said on his podcast that he had attended Swift's concert with the hope of giving her a friendship bracelet with his number on it, for a cover story featured in the September 2025 issue of GQ.

“Whenever I’m with her, it feels like we’re just regular people,” Kelce told Manning when asked about how he and Swift manage to coordinate with their schedules. "When there is not a camera on us, we’re just two people that are in love. It can be perceived as something else because of how much it is talked about and how much we are tracked whenever we do go out, but I would say that it’s as normal of…. It happened very organically even though from a media standpoint it was being tracked. It still happened very organically.”

Kelce continued, per Manning: “Nothing I’ve ever done has been a controlled, organized process. When I say it was so organic, we fell in love just based off the people we were sitting in a room together with. We are two fun-loving people who have the morals to appreciate everyone for who they are. We share all those values. It kind of just took the f--k off.”

Kelce, who is heading into his 13th NFL season and the final campaign on his current contract with the Chiefs, said he and Swift have also connected over the similarities between their jobs. Both his work in the NFL and hers as a touring performer involve audience scrutiny and a steep physical toll on their bodies.

“I hadn’t experienced somebody in the same shoes as me, having a partner who understands the scrutiny, understands the ups and downs of being in front of millions," Kelce told Manning. "That was very relatable, seeing how exhausted she would get after shows. She may not think of herself as an athlete. She will never tell anyone that she is an athlete. But I’ve seen what she goes through. I’ve seen the amount of work that she puts on her body, and it’s mind-blowing.”

Kelce continued, per Manning: “To go out on a stage, on a computer, essentially, for three hours. The [Eras Tour] floor is literally—I’ve seen underneath that thing. It is a football-field-sized computer. You take that into Singapore, where it is scorching hot, and all of a sudden you’re feeling the fumes from the computer and you’re feeling the fumes from the sun and you’re doing a show for three hours with a lot of energy, bringing it every single song. That is arguably more exhausting than how much I put in on a Sunday, and she’s doing it three, four, five days in a row.”

The Eras Tour ended in December 2024, but it sounds like Swift may be setting off on a new tour in the near future.

The publication of Kelce's GQ profile took place the day before Swift is set to appear in a New Heights episode for the first time.

The podcast shared a teaser video on Tuesday in which Swift reveals the name of her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, while sitting alongside Kelce on the podcast.

Swift will reveal the cover of the album when the New Heights episode is released on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.