Taylor is definitely winning over the Kelce family!
Taylor Swift is winning over the Kelces, one family member at a time!
Travis Kelce's dad, Ed Kelce, spoke with ET's Nischelle Turner on Wednesday, and opened up about everything from the massive amount of attention on Taylor and Travis' relationship to his favorite song by the superstar singer.
"She's very down to earth, very genuine," Ed praised. "She doesn't put on airs or anything like that.... The 'girl next door' is an overused term, but she really is."
"I mean, she's been, you know, performing for huge crowds for over half her life," he added. "And for someone to be so grounded, and so normal- I mean, I hate to use that word. But other people aren't."
Taylor made headlines for sitting next to Travis' mom, Donna Kelce, at the first game she attended in support of the Kansas City Chiefs tight end on Sept. 24, but Ed told ET he also met the singer at that game. He got to speak with her more at the Chiefs' Thursday Night Football game on Oct. 12 -- a conversation that Travis later joked must have been "terrifying."
"I think they are two very driven, professional individuals," Ed said of Travis and Taylor's bond. "I think they're very supportive of each other, which is key. This is a rough time for either one of them to have a relationship. She's in the middle of this ginormous tour. He's knee deep in [the NFL]. He takes his just as serious as she takes hers, as far as commitment to to their craft."
"I think they're a wonderful couple," he added. "I think they deserve a great friendship with each other. And if it ever goes to more than that..."
Ed also admitted that he had been brushing up on his Taylor research online since the couple went public. He shared his dismay at learning about her masters dispute with Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta, noting that he immediately went and bought the "Taylor's Version" of her records. And he even watched the commencement speech that she gave at NYU in 2022 -- calling it "very impressive."
What impressed Ed the most, however, was information he found about Taylor's rider -- the list of requests for food and services that an artist makes when they perform at a venue. Ed told ET that he saw one list that reported Taylor's rider included $40 for Starbucks for the crew.
"After meeting Taylor, that certainly sounds like what she would demand," he shared.
As for love advice that he's given to his sons over the years, Ed kept it to the basics.
"Just being genuine with your feelings," he noted. "Being respectful of a woman, that's taught from a young age... Be yourself. Be honest with someone's emotions. But these are all things that they've understood growing up, just being the norm."
Ed said that he couldn't be prouder of both his boys, Travis and older brother Jason -- who plays center for the Philadelphia Eagles -- both for their on-the-field successes and off-the-field charity efforts. Jason and his wife, Kyli,e are active with the Eagles Autism Foundation, and Travis's Eighty-Seven & Running Foundation formed a partnership with Operation Breakthrough to provide Kansas City teens a safe place to study STEM and pursue entrepreneurial efforts.
"They have jobs that really enable them to do a lot in this lifetime, and most of us don't," Ed said of his boys. "These are organizations that impact people's lives in a very real manner. Those are the things that you really enjoy."
With the Chiefs' record currently at 6-1, Ed said he's heard the talk about a possible repeat performance in Super Bowl LVIII -- scheduled for Feb. 11. And he's already checked the calendar, noting that Taylor's Eras Tour is in Tokyo, Japan, from Feb. 7-10, before picking back in Australia later that month.
So, if everything comes together, would there be a spot for Taylor in the Kelce family Super Bowl box?
"Without a doubt," Ed said proudly. "I mean, I've looked at that and wondered. Of course it would be. Of course it would be."
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