A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
A lot of attention is on New York's Madison Square Garden today, and it's not about the Knicks or the Fourth of July. The Garden is, according to an Associated Press report that cites a law enforcement official, the site of a very, very big wedding celebration. Now, no official confirmation, but fans expect superstar Taylor Swift to marry Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. For a story like this, we had to call up Bryan West. He's the Taylor Swift reporter for USA Today and The Tennessean. All right, Bryan. So how certain are we about this wedding?
BRYAN WEST: Good morning. I would say the short answer is that it's maybe happening today. The truth is...
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
WEST: ...You know, it's a possibility. The challenge with Taylor's team - and they do this, I think, intentionally for privacy, maybe security reasons - is they don't divulge a lot of details ahead of time. And so there have been a lot of reports out there but nothing substantive that they've been married either previously. What we do know is that today, there will be a large event happening from about 3 p.m. until possibly 3 or 4 a.m.
MARTÍNEZ: So you said no reports that they're already married because if I was Travis and Taylor, I'd have done the legal part already and then have this big spectacle. But you're saying there's no chance that Taylor had already taken this magnetic force of a man to be her husband.
WEST: I love the pun there. That's, of course, one of her lyrics.
MARTÍNEZ: (Laughter).
WEST: But there isn't right now. And so it was all the buzz yesterday. I was standing outside of Madison Square Garden on the north end with a lot of the, you know, other reporters and media outlets. And none of us have been able to get any confirmation. I am sure her team's inbox has about a thousand emails. But the report that came out said that they were married possibly in Tennessee. I can tell you as someone who works at The Tennessean, they called around Davidson and Williamson counties to double-check, and there were no files that - or records that were filed.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. Has anyone been seen in New York at the airport that maybe would attend?
WEST: (Laughter) There has been so many people from both of their camps. So last night there was what we're calling a rehearsal dinner. It was an event for about a hundred people. They shut down part of 31st Avenue on the south side of Madison Square Garden. Traffic can go through, but it is completely closed to pedestrians, with law enforcement being very strict with that rule. We did see people that were entering into the south side, the VIP area, which was her lifelong childhood friend, Abigail Anderson. Also, Jack Antonoff is in the area...
MARTÍNEZ: Ah.
WEST: ...Lena Dunham, Selena Gomez, Gigi Hadid, Bradley Cooper. On Travis Kelce's side, Donna Kelce was spotted at the airport...
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah.
WEST: ...Getting off her flight. So most fans are...
MARTÍNEZ: Patrick Mahomes. What about Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs quarterback?
WEST: Patrick Mahomes has also been seen. I believe defensive coordinator Steve has been - was in the tristate area. And so there are a lot of celebrities here.
MARTÍNEZ: Yeah. OK. So, I mean, fans are obviously very excited to see these two get married. Why would this wedding be especially meaningful to Taylor Swift fans?
WEST: So this wedding is meaningful for Taylor Swift fans because they have followed her for two decades. She has dated some actors and musicians before, but this is really the first time that people feel that Travis Kelce matches her energy. He embraces her fame. It is kind of poetic just that Madison Square Garden marries both sports and entertainment. And so all eyes will be on MSG today.
MARTÍNEZ: And considering how many songs have come out of her dating life, I mean, I can't imagine to hear how many songs come out of her married life.
WEST: Right, and her next era is her thirteenth era, which, as you know, is her favorite number.
MARTÍNEZ: That's Bryan West with USA Today and The Tennessean. Bryan, thank you.
WEST: Thank you.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LOVER")
TAYLOR SWIFT: (Singing) My heart's been borrowed, and yours has been blue. All's well that ends well to end up with you. Swear to be... Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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