Taylor Swift's New Album Is Mostly About Exes, but Some Songs Are About Travis Kelce
Taylor Swift's only singing good things about Travis Kelce on her latest album.
Updated April 19 2024, 12:19 p.m. ET
Although she's written many different kinds of songs over the course of her career, Taylor Swift may be best known for all the different songs she's written about breakups. Her latest album, "The Tortured Poets Department," is full of tracks reflecting on past loves, with a specific focus on her two most recent exes.
Interspersed with all those songs about heartbreak, though, are a few songs that are about something else entirely. The double album features a couple of tracks that fans have identified as being about her current beau, Travis Kelce. Let's run down each one of them.
Which Taylor Swift songs are about Travis Kelce?
The song that's gotten the most attention on the new album is "The Alchemy," which is the 15th track and includes a number of football references in its lyrics. Taylor sings about making a big "comeback" following heartbreak, and also references her British exes.
“These blokes warm the benches / We've been on a winning streak," she sings.
The bridge is even more explicit, and seems to describe the scene following the Super Bowl when Travis found Taylor after the game.
“Shirts off, and your friends lift you up, over their heads / Beer stickin' to the floor, cheers chanted '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,” the song goes.
Taylor makes some other scattered references to Travis.
Although "The Alchemy" seems to be the most explicit love song on the album about Travis, there are a few other references to the Kansas City Chiefs tight end scattered across it.
In "Chloe or Sam or Maria or Marcus," which is mostly about the aftermath of her relationship with Matty Healy, she includes a reference to moving on with someone else.
“And you saw my bones out with somebody new / Who seemed like he would've bullied you in school," she sings.
And, in "So High School," Taylor sings about finding a new love that feels like it's straight out of high school (this is not exactly a novel thought). The song seems to be an intentional throwback to the songs on her "Fearless" album (when Taylor herself was still a teenager) and also features a number of football references that make it clear who she's talking about.
The lyrics also feature a reference to an interview Travis gave before he knew Taylor in which he was asked who he would marry, kiss, and kill between Taylor, Katy Perry, and Ariana Grande. At the time, he said he would kiss Taylor, and now he's done that a whole bunch.
"Are you gonna marry, kiss, or kill me (Kill me) / It's just a game, but really (Really) / I'm bettin' on all three for us two (All three),” Taylor sings.
If Travis remains her partner in the future, it's safe to say that he'll continue to be the subject of at least some of her music.