In just five quick months, Taylor Swift has left an indelible mark on Kansas City. To be sure, she is no stranger to the city. She has broug...
In just five quick months, Taylor Swift has left an indelible mark on Kansas City.
To be sure, she is no stranger to the city. She has brought all her concert tours to town since her first headliner, the Fearless Tour, in 2010.
But it was The Eras Tour in this summer that turned Swift, in the words of homegrown celebrity Jason Sudeikis, into our “adopted daughter.”
That’s where the romance of the year began to bloom on a sweltering July night inside a packed GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium — Swift performing on a massive stage on the football field, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce watching from a suite high above, hoping the friendship bracelet he had made for her, with his phone number on it, would work its magic.
Taylor Swift fans have become Travis Kelce fans, too, scooping up his Chiefs T-shirts, jerseys and other football gear. Here he walked the red carpet at Kansas City’s Union Station for the Super Bowl LVII championship ring ceremony in June. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
Now Kansas City has become the epicenter of the biggest celebrity story of the year (decade?), the dateline of a national story with near-daily developments.
So, are you ready for it?
For her 34th birthday on Dec. 13, here are 34 pictures of Swift, taken over the years — and especially this year — by Kansas City Star photographers.
Taylor Swift in concert. Taylor Swift made of sugar. Taylor Swift made out of wheat.
Oh, and a few photos of that guy she’s been dating lately who, by the way, was also born in 1989.
The first photo is at the top. Here are 33 more.
Enjoy.
After the Chiefs lost a tough game against the Buffalo Bills on Dec. 10, Taylor Swift held Travis Kelce’s hand as the two left GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift wore a vintage Chiefs sweatshirt from Kansas City’s The Westside Storey shop to the Chiefs-Bills game on Dec. 10. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift performs the song “Cruel Summer” during her Eras Tour stop at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on July 7. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift is now an official member of the sorority of NFL WAGs (wives and girlfriends). She and Brittany Mahomes, wife of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and co-owner of the Kansas City Current women’s soccer team, have watched Chiefs games together and partied in New York City and Kansas City. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comThe Taylor Swift-Travis Kelce romance has inspired bakers across the country to honor the romance in sugar, as in these cookies from Best Regards Bakery & Cafe in Overland Park. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comWhere Taylor Swift is at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, there is always security close by. She attended the Chiefs game against the Buffalo Bills on Dec. 10 just days after being named Time magazine’s Person of the Year. Nick Wagner nwagner@kcstar.comA younger Taylor Swift played to a sold-out crowd of screaming tweens during a stop on her Fearless Tour on April 2, 2010, at Kansas City’s Sprint Center, now T-Mobile Center. File The Kansas City StarTwo of Travis Kelce’s biggest fans — his mom, Donna Kelce, and Taylor Swift. The two women made headlines when they shared a suite for the first time at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium during the Chicago Bears game on Sept. 24. Nick Wagner nwagner@kcstar.comUm, remind us again. Who is Taylor Swift dating? Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comSpeak now? OK. Taylor Swift brought her world tour to Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium in September 2011. File The Kansas City StarChiefs fans and Swifties now expect to see Taylor Swift at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on game days, watching the action from high above the field in a suite. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift performs “Cruel Summer” during the first of two Eras Tour shows at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on July 7. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comDuring “Thursday Night Football,” Brittany Mahomes, left, and Taylor Swift were dubbed “NFL besties.” Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift received a Midwest welcome when she brought her Eras Tour to Kansas City in July. Rob Stouffer of Precision Mazes created a giant welcome sign in about 25 acres of wheat stubble in Ray County, Missouri. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift kicked up her Louboutins as she sang “The Man” on July 7 during the first of two Kansas City shows. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comOh my gosh, she just took her romance public! Taylor Swift shocked her fans when she showed up at her first Chiefs game on Sept. 24, thus telling the world that she and tight end Travis Kelce were dating. That’s Kelce’s mom, Donna Kelce, on the left. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comWelcome to the world of NFL fandom, Taylor Swift, where games can be real nail-biters. Here she watched boyfriend Travis Kelce play from a suite at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium with his mom, Donna Kelce. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comKansas City was more than “Ready for It” when Taylor Swift brought her Reputation Stadium Tour to the home of the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 8, 2018. File The Kansas City StarTaylor Swift and Brittany Mahomes don’t hold back their enthusiasm when watching Chiefs games. Here they had a special handshake during the Chiefs game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 22. Nick Wagner nwagner@kcstar.comKansas City has always loved Taylor Swift, seen here on Sept. 21, 2015, during the first of two shows on her 1989 World Tour at the former Sprint Center. File The Kansas City StarIn September, at the first Chiefs game she attended at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Taylor Swift, seen her with Travis Kelce’s mother, Donna Kelce, made it clear she is an enthusiastic football fan. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comScreaming Swifties packed Kansas City’s Sprint Center in April 2010 to watch young Grammy winner Taylor Swift during two Fearless Tour shows. File The Kansas City StarTaylor Swift has turned attending an NFL game into a runway moment. Fans clamor to find out what she’s wearing, eager to buy the looks if they’re not already sold out like this vintage Chiefs sweatshirt from The Westside Storey in Kansas City. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift began her relationship with Kansas City and one of its biggest football stars in July during her Eras Tour shows at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift has watched several Chiefs games at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium with Brittany Mahomes, wife of quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Swift says she doesn’t know when TV cameras are on her and doesn’t know how often she’s shown during game broadcasts. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift has performed several times at the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, here during her Speak Now World Tour at Arrowhead Stadium on Sept. 24, 2011. File The Kansas City StarBy her third Chiefs game, Taylor Swift had perfected the leave-one-shoulder-bare way of wearing football gear. The attention she gets at games has spilled over onto boyfriend Travis Kelce’s mom, Donna Kelce. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift performs the song “Cruel Summer” during her Eras Tour stop at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Friday, July 7, 2023, in Kansas City. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comThe first time Taylor Swift watched a Chiefs game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sept. 24. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.comTaylor Swift played a red guitar during one of her two Red Tour shows in August 2013 at Kansas City’s Sprint Center, now T-Mobile Center. File The Kansas City StarCheck out who else has gotten attention this football season. The fans sitting right in front of the suite Taylor Swift occupies during Chiefs games have gotten a lot of game-day airtime. Tammy Ljungblad / tljungblad@kcstar.comIn July, fans packed GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium for both of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour shows in Kansas City. New boyfriend Travis Kelce attended on the second night. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comTaylor Swift’s fans wait eagerly to see her arrive and depart from GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Images of her consoling a downcast Travis Kelce after the Chiefs lost to the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 10 went viral. Tammy Ljungblad tljungblad@kcstar.com
And here are a couple of bonus photos of Travis Kelce.
Both Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift were born in 1989. Kismet? He celebrated his 34th birthday on Oct. 5. Here he is shortly after his birthday in the game against the Denver Broncos. Emily Curiel ecuriel@kcstar.comThat guy Taylor Swift is dating, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. In a People magazine Readers’ Choice poll, he was named Sexiest Athlete of 2023. Nick Wagner nwagner@kcstar.com
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