Taylor Swift Used a Favorite Travis Kelce Phrase in TTPD’s ‘So High School’

Taylor Swift used a favorite phrase of boyfriend Travis Kelce while writing her song “So High School,” which is rumored to be about him.

During a September 2023 appearance on Kristin Cavallari’s “Let’s Be Honest” podcast, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end was asked how long it takes to “know if you’re going to like someone or not” when dating.

“To really dive into a relationship with somebody, it’s going to take some time. You really gotta know somebody to take that step with somebody and be committed and be in full throttle,” Kelce, 34, replied. “I can’t meet somebody and immediately be, like, ‘Forever is just a day away.’”

The episode dropped just days before Swift, also 34, made her first appearance at a Kansas City Chiefs game to support the NFL star. Swift later revealed that the pair began dating months earlier after Kelce publicly declared his interest in her following her Eras Tour show in Kansas City that July.

Seven months later, Kelce’s phrase “full throttle” appeared in Swift’s ode to the duo’s romance on her 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department.

“Truth, dare, spin bottles / You know how to ball, I know Aristotle / Brand new, full throttle / Touch me when your bros play Grand Theft Auto,” Swift sings in the second verse.

“So High School” is riddled with Kelce-isms and shout-outs to the pair’s romance. In the song, Swift references the start of the relationship, wherein Kelce tried to give her a friendship bracelet with his number on it, singing, “You knew what you wanted, and boy, you got her.”

Swift also gives a shout-out to Travis’ famous “crinkling eye smiles” on the track, as well as his dad, Ed Kelce, in the bridge when she sings: “I feel like laughing in the middle of practice / To that impression you did of your dad again / I’m hearing voices like a madman.”

There even seems to be a subtle reference to a viral video of Travis playing a round of “Kiss, Marry, Kill” with Swift, Ariana Grande and Katy Perry back in 2016.

“Are you gonna marry, kiss, or kill me (Kill me) / It’s just a game, but really (Really) / I’m bettin’ on all three for us two (All three),” she sings. (Travis chose to “kiss” Swift, while he “killed” Grande and “married” Perry, Swift’s once-rival.)

“So High School” isn’t the only place Travis makes an appearance on TTPD. “The Alchemy” and “The Albatross” are also rumored to be about him, as both have subtle references to the start of the couple’s love story. (The rest of the album is mostly post-split ballads about Swift’s ex of nearly six years, Joe Alwyn, and her fling with The 1975 frontman Matty Healy, whom she dated briefly before meeting Travis.)

“So when I touch down / Call the amateurs and cut ’em from the team / Ditch the clowns, get the crown / Baby I’m the one to beat,” she sings in “The Alchemy,” using sports references to point out Travis as her muse.

“The Albatross,” meanwhile, seemingly touches on the warning that Travis received when he started dating Swift last year. “Cautions issued, he stood / Shooting the messengers / They tried to warn him about her,” Swift croons on the track. “Cross your thoughtless heart / Only liquor anoints you / She’s the albatross / She is here to destroy you.”

There’s also “But Daddy I Love Him,” which seemingly features a warning from Swift herself. Although most of the lyrics relate to her controversial relationship with Healy, she appears to discuss the fan fervor for her current — and largely beloved — romance with Travis in the song’s final verse.

After declaring that her daddy now “loves” him, Swift quips, “I’m his lady, and oh, my God / You should see your faces.” She then adds a joking reminder to those invested in their love story, singing, “No, can’t come to the wedding.”