Maybe you heard, but in case you didn’t, there was a bit of a party in midtown Manhattan over the weekend. Not the July 4 celebrations. Nothing to do with the World Cup, either. Just a casual invite-only ceremony and celebration at a 20,000 capacity arena
for the wedding of noted singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and professional football player/podcast host Travis Kelce.
If you didn’t hear anything about it, no worries at all. Seriously, it wasn’t that big of a deal anyway, especially with everything else going on these days. It’s just so hard to keep up!
But if you are curious, we do know a few things about the intimate shindig at Madison Square Garden. Not a whole lot, admittedly, since there was reportedly a strict no-phone policy for guests (as well as event staff and security). Still, some scattered details have emerged — about the guest list, the night’s entertainment, the wise words of officiant Adam Sandler — which we’ve happily rounded up here, because, like we said, we totally understand if this one just flew under your radar.
The Ceremony
On Friday, July 3, a rep for Swift issued a statement confirming that Swift and Kelce had tied the knot. The release contained a few details about the ceremony, which appears to have been a genuinely lowkey affair. There were no large wedding parties, with Swift’s brother, Austin, serving as her “man of honor,” while Kelce’s brother, Jason, was his best man.
Adam Sandler officiated the ceremony, and while we don’t know exactly what he said yet, Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid shared a few bits and pieces in a recent interview. According to Reid, Sandler offered Swift and Kelce this bit of simple, but poignant advice, “Kiss every chance you have, every day.” Reid also said Sandler did a “phenomenal job,” adding he brought “a little bit of humor but also some sensitivity to what was going on.”
As for the couple’s vows, we don’t have any direct quotes yet, but People Editor-in-Chief Charlotte Triggs shared some info on CBS Mornings. According to Triggs, Swift and Kelce wrote their own vows, read them from golden books, and each spoke for about 20 minutes. Swift reportedly described Kelce as the kind of person “she wished she could have known in high school,” Triggs said, adding that Swift described him as the kind of star athlete who would go sit with “the less popular kids and keep them company and be nice to them when they were being bullied.”
The Looks
We still don’t have any official photographs from inside Madison Square Garden, but the official press release did contain some details about what the bride and groom wore (so just use your imagination). Their wedding ceremony looks were created by Christian Dior and designed by Jonathan Anderson, “in close collaboration with” Swift and Kelce. The shoes were custom Louboutin and Swift wore Cartier jewelry.
The Venue
It had leaked out months ago that Swift and Kelce were set to wed at Madison Square Garden, though up until it actually happened there was speculation that the couple might be using the giant arena as a diversion. That, it turned out, was not the case at all. According to The New York Times, a wedding rehearsal was held Thursday (July 2) at the Infosys Theater at MSG, while the wedding and reception took place in the arena on Friday. There was also a huge security perimeter, with major thoroughfares around MSG closed off to cars and pedestrians.
The Vibe and Decor
Again, we have no photo evidence yet, but Triggs said Swift and Kelce made some changes to the gigantic arena to make the proceedings feel somewhat intimate, like using giant drapes to cover up all the stadium seating. Meanwhile, the decorations gave off a “garden kind of vibe,” Triggs said, while the hors d’oeuvres included “high-low” items like chicken nuggets topped with caviar.
The (Kinda Clunky) Event Tag
Because stars are sometimes kinda just like us, Swift and Kelce’s wedding included some custom branding. Both the official press release, and a sign outside MSG, bore the proclamation, “JUST&T MARRIED!” It makes sense, technically, after you look at it a second, with the T&T standing in for Taylor and Travis. Though, we admit, every time we look at it, we can’t help but see: “JUSTANT MARRIED!”
The Music
The wedding featured two blockbuster performances. To start, Stevie Nicks took the stage, as confirmed by Good Morning America hosts Robin Roberts, Michael Strahan, and George Stephanopoulos (all of whom were in attendance). It’s unclear what song Nicks performed, or if she performed with Swift, as some have speculated.
The other big musical guest was Paul McCartney, who reportedly performed the Beatles’ classic “I Want to Hold Your Hand” live for the first time since 1964.
The Guest List
Approximately 1,000 people attended Swift and Kelce’s wedding, and there’s no way in hell we’d write them all down here even if we knew every single one. That said, there are plenty of big name attendees we do know, especially from the world of music: Ed Sheeran, Selena Gomez, the Haim sisters, Sombr, Brad Paisley, Miranda Lambert, Kelsea Ballerini, Rascal Flatts guitarist Joe Don Rooney, and Maren Morris. Swift’s frequent collaborators Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner were also in attendance.
Other friends and celebs included Gigi Hadid, Lena Dunham, Zoë Kravitz, Mariska Hargitay, Dakota Johnson, Julianne Moore, Ethan Hawke, Hugh Grant, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jessica Chastain, Jimmy Fallon, and Nikki Glasser. For some Swifties maybe the most notable guest was Karli Kloss, who attended with her husband Joshua Kushner, a surprise after rumors of a rift between her and Swift.
And on Kelce’s side, many of his Kansas City Chiefs teammates showed up, along with others in the NFL world including L.A. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, former player and broadcaster Greg Olsen, NFL reporter Erin Andrews, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
The Wild Card
For an event of this size and stature, it’s genuinely impressive how — all things considered — we still don’t really know that much. Outside the expertly orchestrated drip-drip, there’s been only one genuine info dump, and it came from a highly unlikely source: AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron. In an extremely enthusiastic and well-meaning X post (that has since been, obviously, deleted), Aron shared his recollections on pretty much everything.
The CEO described the color scheme as “peach and white,” and praised Swift and Kelce for “magically” transforming MSG into an “outdoor garden at a lush countryside retreat” with “real flowers and I think artificial trees.” He added that there were “large blown up pictures of Taylor and Travis at each age, year by year” hung around the arena.
Of the ceremony, Aron wrote, it was preceded by “some relaxing and mellow romantic songs,” while “a few violins and cello ushered in the wedding party.” He described Kelce as wearing a “white tux,” and a “jaw-dropping Taylor” wore “a stunning white wedding dress with a long veiled train.” The vows, Aron continued, were “long, entertaining, personal, charming, emotional, irreverent and endearing explorations by each as to how they met, why they want to be with each other for all eternity, the promises they made in joining their much-beloved two whole families… as one, and committing to their new mutual life together.”
Aron even added some romantic flourishes with his description of the end of the ceremony, “Rings exchanged. I now pronounce you husband and wife. A weep you off your feet kiss.”
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