Four big reveals from Taylor Swift's ‘New Heights' podcast episode with Jason and Travis Kelce

Boston Globe

7 hours ago

1. Swift outlines her new album, 'The Life of a Showgirl'
The biggest reveal of the episode was Swift's wealth of details about her upcoming album, 'The Life of a Showgirl,' which is
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'This is the record I've been wanting to make for a very long time,' Swift told the Kelce brothers.
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The singer also revealed the 12 tracks that will appear on the album, including the title song, which features Sabrina Carpenter:
'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' (featuring Sabrina Carpenter)
This album cover image released by Republic Records shows "The Life of a Showgirl" by Taylor Swift.
Uncredited/Associated Press
2. Swift revisits the emotional journey of buying back her master recordings
Swift opened up to the Kelce brothers about the emotional process of
'I always refer to it as 'I got my music back this summer,' but I never owned my music at all,' Swift said, noting that she signed her record deal at age 15, and that many artists don't own their masters.
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The singer revealed that she'd been saving up to buy her master recordings since she was a teenager, and that she was devastated when her former label, Big Machine, sold them to music executive Scooter Braun in 2019. At the time, Swift criticized the deal in a
'It really ripped my heart out of my chest, and I told everyone exactly how that felt for me and what I was going through,' Swift told the Kelce brothers. 'I started basically, defiantly, re-recording my music because I wanted to own it, and this was the only way I thought it was ever going to happen.'
While she was excited to re-record her albums, Swift admitted to thinking about not owning her music 'every day.' Swift pursued purchasing the master recordings following the conclusion of her 'Eras Tour,' after deciding with her team to approach Shamrock Capital, the private equity firm that bought them from Braun. However, she didn't want to strike a deal to own a percentage of the master recordings, and instead hoped to buy them outright.
'I want to own all of it,' Swift said, noting that it was a 'long shot' that 'they would sell that asset to me.'
Swift started to tear up while talking about her family's role in helping her strike the deal, revealing that she sent her mother and brother — rather than lawyers or managers — to speak with the firm. The singer said that her family helped convey how much the music meant to her on a personal level.
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'I'm in the business of human emotion,' Swift said. 'I would so much rather lead heart-first in something like this.'
A few months after the Super Bowl, Swift got a call from her mother while hanging out with Travis in Kansas City.
'She's like, 'You got your music,'' Swift said. 'I just like, very dramatically hit the floor, for real, like honestly just started bawling my eyes out.'
The singer then ran to the room where Travis was playing video games and broke the good news to him through tears.
'I started crying too, you know I'm a crier,' Travis said. 'I was just so happy for you.'
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, right, appears with singer Taylor Swift after the Chiefs victory over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship game in Kansas City, Mo., on Jan. 26.
Charlie Riedel/Associated Press
3. Swift and Kelce share their love story
The couple didn't shy away from talking about their relationship, including how Travis tried to get Swift's attention before they started dating in what she called the 'shooting your shot heard 'round the world.' The Chiefs star famously admitted his interest in her on the podcast in 2023, when he talked about trying (and failing) to give Swift a friendship bracelet with his number on it at one of her concerts.
'This podcast got me a boyfriend, ever since Travis decided to use it as his personal dating app about two years ago,' Swift joked.
'He threw a man-tantrum, it's so funny,' she later added. 'It was such a wild, romantic gesture to just be like, 'I want to date you!''
Swift pointed out how Travis never reached out to her management team, and that she didn't know about the attempt until the 2023 podcast came out.
'I was like, 'Did he ever reach out to be, like, in the tents, or did we know he was in the building?'' Swift said. 'He came with Pat [Mahomes], and he thought that because he knows the elevator lady that he could talk to her about getting down to my dressing room.'
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'That's how it works in 1973,' she joked.
Swift called the public plea a sweet gesture, comparing it to a boombox outside of her window like a 1980s John Hughes movie.
'I was like, 'If this guy isn't crazy, which is a big if, this is sort of what I've been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was a teenager,'' Swift admitted.
Taylor Swift performed at Gillette Stadium on May 19, 2023.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
4. Swift opens up about the physical toll of the 'Eras Tour'
Swift got real about her historic, globe-spanning 'Eras Tour,' which wrapped in Vancouver last December. The singer admitted that, after traveling for so long across the world, she was glad to not be on the go all the time.
'It feels great Jason, to be honest, I'm not going to lie to you,' Swift said. 'I do miss it, but it was perfect for what it was.'
The GRAMMY Award winner also talked about the physical toll of touring and how she was often in a 'state of perpetual physical discomfort,' comparing it to the brothers' experiences during an NFL season. Travis backed her claims, noting the intense recovery station in her hotel room after her three-plus hour shows.
'The similarities were crazy,' Travis said, comparing Swift's physical regimens for concerts to his routines for football. 'I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, she does more than I do.''
Later in the podcast, Travis admitted that she outworks him when they exercise together.
'We've been to the gym numerous times, and she works harder than me every time,' Travis said.
Matt Juul can be reached at