Travis Kelce Calls Out His Own Brother For How He Treats His Wife — And Is Applauded For It
Through humor, a true lesson was learned.
Featureflash Photo Agency / Shutterstock Travis Kelce’s position in the public eye hinges on his football career and his newfound situationship with Taylor Swift, who’s been spotted in the crowd at multiple Kansas City Chiefs’ games. He also hosts the podcast "New Heights" with his brother Jason Kelce, who is the captain for the Philadelphia Eagles.
In a recent podcast episode, the brothers discussed Jason’s outfit choice at the premiere of the documentary “Kelce.” With true younger brother vibes, Travis made fun of Jason’s decision to wear shorts, which led to a larger conversation framed around gendered division of labor in a marriage.
Travis Kelce called out his brother Jason for the way he treated his wife, and was applauded for how he did so.
“We had a picture of you on the green carpet, not the red carpet. You really got dressed up,” Travis told his brother, making fun of him for wearing shorts, a T-shirt, and flip-flops to his own documentary premiere.
Jason said that he had planned to wear jeans, but his wife, Kylie, was running late to the event and forgot to bring him the jeans. “I just came straight from football,” Jason said. “Kylie was gonna bring the jeans; Kylie was late.”
Travis’ response captured the kind of gentle humor that men who love each other communicate with, as he asked, “Why didn’t Jason bring jeans for Jason?”
As his brother tried to justify not bringing his own pants to the premiere, all Travis could do was laugh, which led Jason to understand just how ridiculous his expectations of his wife were. Travis' take on the gendered division of labor and how men play into not caring for themselves was clear in his reaction, which could portend a fully equitable romantic relationship for him and Swift in the future.
“I was at football,” Jason explained. “I needed the jeans for after football. I’m not gonna wear jeans all day, that just doesn’t sound fun.”
Hearing Travis laugh was all the nudging Jason needed to admit he couldn’t blame his wife for not bringing his jeans. “I’m realizing now I probably can’t blame Kylie for this,” Jason proclaimed as Travis kept laughing.
But like the younger brother he is, Travis didn’t let Jason off that easily. He gently ribbed Jason for even expecting his wife to have brought him pants in the first place.
Travis touched on the ways labor is often divided in heterosexual marriages where kids are involved, stating that Kylie “was too busy putting jeans on the 3 girls,” referring to Jason’s daughters.
As Jason realized just how mistaken he was, he joined Travis in making fun of himself for expecting his wife to care for him as though he were their fourth child. “She was too busy getting the entire family situated with the babysitter, and then getting herself ready and making sure her parents are with her,” Jason said.
Travis kept teasing Jason, yet he did so with love and affection, highlighting how humor can be used to reveal our shortcomings in a kinder way than being preached to.
Advocate and author Laura Danger posted a response video to the clip of the Kelce brothers, in which she offered her analysis on how humor can be an agent of change.
“This is the future of accountability,” Danger said. “Humor shifts behavior.”
She spoke to how effective it is “when men with microphones who are respected by other men call out behavior.” She touched on the well-worn trope of dads not being capable of caring for themselves or others, noting that women are then told to “pick up the slack for them, because that’s just how men are.”
Danger explained how the Kelce brothers took a truly common and entirely normalized situation — a husband forgetting his outfit for a special occasion — and turned it on its head. “They use it as an opportunity to challenge the social norm,” she stated.
While noting that Jason isn’t "necessarily being rude to his wife about being late," Danger commended Travis for gently pushing back against his brother’s assumptions.
“As a man, in a place of power, with a microphone… in front of other people, he challenges in a way that is progressive and moves forward toward equality,” Danger exclaimed, and her analysis is spot on. As Psychology Today notes, comedy is a powerful persuasion technique because through laughter we find common ground.
Travis showed how we can use humor that’s rooted in love and care to call people in, rather than out, for how they show up in their relationships. He showed Jason — and the world — that men who meet their own needs are men to be admired.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.