It’s a booked and busy week for those of us who live and breathe pop culture. We had Demi Lovato reuniting with the Jonas Brothers, Olivia Rodrigo hinting at new music, an extremely important new episode of The Summer I Turned Pretty, and, of course, Taylor Swift casually announcing TS12, The Life of a Showgirl. And that’s not all! The “Love Story” singer also just made her podcast debut on her BF Travis Kelce’s New Heights. (Really never thought I’d see the day when Taylor announced a new album on a sports bro pod, but here we are.)
In a teaser clip, Taylor poked fun at sports bros complaining about her being shown on screen too much during football games. “As we all know, you guys have a lot of male sports fans who listen to your podcast,” she said. “I think we all know that if there’s one thing that male sports fans want to see in their spaces and on their screens — it’s more of me.” Thank goodness the bros are finally getting that wish granted <3.
Obviously, Taylor announced her new album on the pod, but she also shared more exciting details about the project, and we got some very interesting insight into her and Travis’s relationship. If you haven’t watched the whole episode yet, here are the most crucial revelations from Taylor Swift’s appearance on Travis Kelce’s New Heights podcast.
We can only hope she’ll stop by Therapuss next…
I’m sure the non-Swiftie New Heights fans out there are jumping with joy after hearing all about TS12! Taylor shares the album title and cover art in the episode. “Can I show you something?” she asks, playfully. Travis’ brother and co-host, Jason Kelce, observes, “Okay. What do we got? We got a briefcase? Mint green, with T.S. on it.” Taylor then pulls a vinyl out of the briefcase and reveals her “brand new album, The Life of a Showgirl.” Travis (the No. 1 Swiftie) grins and cheers, “TS 12!”
Taylor confirmed that she worked with Swedish producers Max Martin and Shellback — and she wrote this album in Sweden during the European leg of the Eras Tour. Once again, I’m wondering when TF this woman sleeps. “It felt like catching lightning in a bottle,” she said about making the album. “I wanted to do an album that was so focused on quality and on the theme and everything fitting together like a perfect puzzle that these 12 songs for my 12th album… it just felt like we achieved that.”
The album’s coming on October 3 and it’s officially a sparkly orange era. Why orange? “I’ve just always liked it,” Taylor said. “It really feels like energetically how my life has felt. And this album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour, which was so exuberant and electric and vibrant.” This time around, she was focused on “infectious” melodies and “lyrics that are just as vivid but crisp and focused and completely intentional.” According to Travis, we can expect lots of bangers.
And yes, the title track is a Sabrina Carpenter collab! Have a feeling that one’s gonna change lives. Here’s the complete album track list:
- The Fate of Ophelia
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Opalite
- Father Figure
- Eldest Daughter
- Ruin the Friendship
- Actually Romantic
- Wi$h Li$t
- Wood
- Cancelled!
- Honey
- The Life of a Showgirl [ft. Sabrina Carpenter]
The Eras Tour Revelations
Taylor reflected on the Eras Tour, calling it “the most formative time” of her life. “I learned so much about how far I can push myself, and I set a goal, you know, making a three-and-a-half-hour show,” she said. The singer explained that she wanted the show to be “at the highest intensity, rapid fire,” so that the audience was seeing something new every 15 or 30 seconds.
Travis gives the Eras Tour credit for their relationship. “I would have never gone to that show and been mesmerized and just been captivated,” he pointed out. “I left with such a desire to want to meet you.”
The NFL star added, “I had never experienced something so mesmerizing on stage and then so real and so beautiful in person.” (Boyfriend of the Year award for that line.)
Travis Kelce Relationship Revelations
Travis really loves it when Taylor uses “big words.” At one point, she used the word “esoteric,” and he muttered, “She’s so hot when she says these big words.” He also appreciated “effervescence” and “fortuitous.”
The couple joked about the rom-com-esque start of their romance. “It was such a wild romantic gesture to just be like, ‘I wanna date you,’” Taylor said. “The dude didn’t get a meet and greet. He’s making it everyone’s problem. That’s what I thought at first.” She later realized that he’s just “the good kind” of crazy.
“This felt like I was in an ’80s John Hughes movie and he was just like standing outside of my window with a boom box just being like, ‘I wanna date you.’ … This is sort of what I’ve been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was a teenager.” Travis claimed that he heard those songs on the Eras Tour and understood the assignment, LOL.
Apparently, he’s into numerology just like Taylor. “I’m 87 and she’s 13,” he pointed out. “13 plus 87 equals 100.” There you have it, folks. It’s meant to be.