Getty Taylor Swift performs onstage at her “Eras Tour” at AT&T Stadium on March 31, 2023.
Singer Taylor Swift released “The Tortured Poets Department,” on Friday, April 19, which turned out to be a surprise double album.
In the “TTPD: The Anthology,” fans suspected the song, “So High School,” was a nod to boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce. After seeing the official lyric video for the track, eagle-eyed Swifties noticed a secret nod to the veteran tight end, seemingly confirming the rumors.
Each time the chorus plays in the black-and-white video, the “T” and “K” in twinkling, and the “T” and “S” in lights are highlighted in pink.
Swift also appears to reference Kelce playing “Kiss, Marry, Kill” with AfterBuzz TV back in 2016. He was forced to decide between Swift, Ariana Grande, and Katy Perry in the now-viral clip. “Ariana, sorry, love you, but you’re gone,” Kelce answered. “And then Taylor Swift would be the kiss. And what’s the last one? Katy Perry? Yeah, Katy Perry would be the marry.”
In “So High School” Swift sings:
Are you gonna marry, kiss, or kill me?
It’s just a game, but really.
I’m bettin’ on all three for us two
The 34-year-old also seems to reference how Kelce put her on blast on “New Heights” back in July. After seeing The Eras Tour at Arrowhead, “I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my number on it,” Kelce lamented. In “So High School,” Swift sings, “You knew what you wanted and boy, you got her.”
Taylor Swift’s Song, “The Alchemy,” Seems to Reference Both Travis Kelce & The Chiefs
GettyChiefs tight end Travis Kelce and girlfriend Taylor Swift at Highmark Stadium on January 21, 2023.
On “The Alchemy,” Swift’s reference to Kelce and the Chiefs aren’t difficult to dissect. After attending 13 Chiefs games last season, including flying halfway across the world to watch Kansas City’s Super Bowl win, the experiences are detailed in the track.
She sings in the chorus:
So when I touch down, call the amateurs and cut ‘em from the team.
Ditch the clowns, get the crown, baby I’m the one to be.
‘Cause the sign on your heart said it’s still reserved for me.
Honestly, who are we to fight the alchemy?
Swift sings in the bridge:
Shirts off and your friends lift you up over their heads,
Beer stickin’ to the floor, cheers changed ‘cause they said
“There was no chance trying to be the greatest in the league”
Where’s the trophy? He just comes running over to me.
In another song, “Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus,” seems to drop a quick lyric about the start of her relationship with Kelce: “And you say my bones out with someone new/Who seemed like he would’ve bullied you in high school/And you just watched it happen.” However, some fans believe it’s possibly a reference to her ex, Matt Healy, whom she dated right before meeting Kelce.
Travis Kelce Seemed to Confirm ‘So High School’ Delivered a Nod to His Father, Ed Kelce
GettyChiefs tight end Travis Kelce with girlfriend Taylor Swift and his father, Ed Kelce, on January 28, 2024.
While Swifties work hard to decipher which lyrics are about Swift’s famous exes, a shoutout to Ed Kelce was unexpected surprise. The 14-time Grammy winner sings in “So High School,”I feel like laughing in the middle of practice/Do that impression you did of your dad again.”
Travis and his older brother, Jason Kelce, regularly impersonate their dad on “New Heights.” Several hours after the song’s release, the podcast’s official account on X shared a clip of the brothers ribbing Ed on their show.
A fan account responded, “Congrats that Travis & his dad have made it to his Taylor’s album.” Another Swiftie wrote, “I see you’ve listened to so high school .”
Those Papa Kelce impressions are just too good pic.twitter.com/up7hZu8KFu
— New Heights (@newheightshow) April 19, 2024
The fact there are references to Kelce at all comes as a surprise. Swift said in her acceptance speech after winning the Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album that she’d secretly been sitting on “TTPD” for two years, long before she started dating the guy on the Chiefs. However, if anyone could find the time to write and record new songs while also touring the world on a sold-out tour — it’s Swift.
