During Sunday's Eras Tour in Paris, Taylor Swift surprised fans with an acoustic rendition of "The Alchemy," a track from her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, which has lyrics deemed devoted to her boyfriend, Travis Kelce.
Swifties felt like it was a surreal moment to watch Swift perform this Kelce-dedicated song with her actual boyfriend in attendance. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce attended Swift's fourth and final concert in Paris on May 12, after fans speculated that he would never make it to her Eras Tour leg in France.
As Swift strummed her guitar, she casually remarked, "Can you believe this is the 87th show?," which Swifties know is a nod to Kelce, given the fact that his jersey number is the number 87.
The performance continued with a seamless guitar mashup of "The Alchemy" and the song "Treacherous" from her 2012 album Red.
Kelce, standing in his box, caught Swift's gaze as she sang, and the crowd eagerly observed the exchange between the two. At one point, Kelce even made a finger heart for her.
@nicolasdemange Travis Kelce reacting to The Alchemy mashup during Pairs N4 ! #theerastour #tstheerastour #paristheerastour #swifttok #swiftie #traviskelce #pariststheerastour @Taylor Swift @Taylor Nation ♬ original sound - Nicolas Demange
As Swift's lyrics echoed through La Défense Arena ("This happens once every few lifetimes... These chemicals hit me like white wine"), the crowd erupted with glee and excitement.
Kelce joined more than 40,000 fans for the grand finale of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour in Paris. Seated in a box alongside actor Bradley Cooper, supermodel Gigi Hadid, and rock star Lenny Kravitz, Kelce certainly was with good company to witness his girlfriend sing the song she allegedly wrote for him.
This marked Kelce's fifth appearance at the tour since he and Swift made their relationship public last year. His journey began in Buenos Aires, Argentina, followed by stops in Sydney, Australia, and two nights in Singapore. Notably, Swift has playfully tweaked the lyrics of her song "Karma," substituting "guy on the Chiefs," each time Kelce has cheered her on from the sidelines.
Ever since "The Alchemy" dropped in April, fans have speculated that the track is peppered with Easter eggs referencing Taylor Swift's relatively new relationship with Kelce.
Time magazine has collated these speculations. On the song's bridge, when Swift croons, "Shirts off, and your friends lift you up, over their heads," Swifties interpret it as a playful nod to the viral Super Bowl moment when Kelce's brother and co-host on the New Heights podcast, former Philadelphia Eagle Jason Kelce, cheered shirtless in support of his younger sibling.
Others suggest that the line "I circled you on a map" is a sly allusion to the playful banter surrounding Swift and Kelce's relationship, with some jesting that Swift "put Kelce on the map." Kelce himself has playfully acknowledged this notion, commending Swifties for their clever Halloween costumes, even if they're gently poking fun at him.
Meanwhile, the line "He jokes that 'It's heroin, but this time with an E,'" has garnered praise for Kelce's comedic timing, though some perceive it as a sharp, albeit witty, jab at Healy, who has been candid about his past struggles with heroin addiction.
In another line from "The Alchemy" bridge, "Where's the trophy? He just comes running over to me," many interpret this as a heartfelt reference to Taylor Swift's touching on-field encounter with Kelce, just before he triumphantly hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy for winning his third Super Bowl in five years.
