Taylor Swift vs. Trump on Joe Rogan—Chart Reveals How Podcasts Performed
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Taylor Swift's recent appearance on the New Heights podcast alongside her boyfriend Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce, who host the show, has achieved meteoric podcasting success.
New Heights, which has 3 million subscribers on YouTube, is primarily a sports podcast, but has become a platform for candid conversations and insights into the lives of the Kelce brothers, who are both football players. Jason plays for the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis, 35, for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Rumors that Swift would appear on the podcast began swirling on Monday when, despite being on hiatus, they teased a "very special guest" along with a profile that looked like Swift. It was confirmed on Tuesday, when a teaser clip showing Swift revealing a new album was released.
The furor in the run-up to the episode, which marked the first podcast appearance for the singer, sparked comparisons with the response to the news that Donald Trump would be appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience in the run-up to the election. His episode, which aired live on October 25, was hugely successful, becoming Rogan's most-viewed YouTube video and prompting some to credit it with helping him win the election.
The three-hour interview, which touched on topics ranging from the 2020 election to extraterrestrial life, cemented the powerful influence the podcasting medium holds in the current media landscape.
Supporters of both the president and the singer, who has publicly supported Democrats in the past, speculated on social media about whether she would be able to bring in a bigger audience than the now-president did.
Newsweek reached out to Joe Rogan and Travis Kelce's publicists for comment via email.
SUNRISE, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: Travis Kelce, left, and Taylor Swift react as the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers play during the first period in Game Four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at...
SUNRISE, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: Travis Kelce, left, and Taylor Swift react as the Edmonton Oilers and the Florida Panthers play during the first period in Game Four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena on June 12, 2025 in Sunrise, Florida. MoreHow Do the Podcasts Stack Up?
Swift's appearance on New Heights initially drew more live views than Trump's on Rogan did, with over 1.3 million people tuning in on YouTube. Rogan garnered 800,000 livestreams with Donald Trump's interview, as reported by CNN on Wednesday night, according to the Daily Beast
However, in the 12 hours post-release, it flipped—the Kelce brothers racked up 9 million views on YouTube, with Rogan having amassed slightly more, at 11 million, according to Forbes.
The gap widened 24 hours after airing, as Rogan achieved double the streaming success on the platform, reaching 26 million views. The Kelce brothers hit 13 million streams in the same time frame, according to Variety.
How Many People Subscribed?
Subscriber growth for the New Heights YouTube channel also saw a significant boost, with an increase of 350,000 subscribers the day of and following Swift's appearance, according to social-media analytics tracker Social Blade.
The Joe Rogan Experience, which currently has 20 million subscribers on YouTube, gained 300,000 new fans in the same time frame, Newsweek previously reported.
As for the charts, New Heights also topped Apple Podcasts this week, surpassing Joe Rogan's show.
The Kelce brothers recently signed a $100 million deal with Wondery, an Amazon-owned podcast streamer. Rogan's show is reportedly worth up to $250 million, according to Forbes.
In the rare interview, Swift shared exclusive details about her upcoming album, The Life of a Showgirl, set for release on October 3. She and Travis also swooned over how they met, and the singer talked about her emotional journey to reclaim ownership of her master recordings.
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