The spotlight has shone a little brighter on Travis Kelce and his brother Jason since the Kansas City Chiefs tight end entered into a relationship with Taylor Swift. Fans of the musician have fully embraced her boyfriend and his family, boosting jersey sales for both Travis’ No. 87 and Jason Kelce’s Philadelphia Eagles No. 62. Is it possible, then, that all of us have been mispronouncing the name that’s emblazoned on the back of those jerseys? According to one of Travis’ teammates, we have.
Chiefs Player Reveals We’re Mispronouncing Travis Kelce’s Name
Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones spilled a little bit of tea while on the sideline of a recent game, informing a teammate that we’ve all been mispronouncing the celebrities’ name. Travis Kelce’s name should be said as just one syllable, “Kels,” as opposed to the two-syllable “Kel-see” that is commonly used. The moment was caught on camera and shared by the NFL on Instagram:
That’s quite the interesting development, but what do the Kelce brothers have to say about it? Turns out, the issue came up about a year ago on their New Heights podcast, and their dad had a pretty funny story about changing the family name.
Why Ed Kelce Chose To Change The Pronunciation Of Their Name
The issue of how to pronounce "Kelce" actually came up on the New Heights podcast in February 2023, when Jason and Travis brought their dad Ed Kelce on the show. The Philadelphia Eagle revealed that even he and Travis hadn’t known their name was supposed to be just one syllable until their mid-20s, and when Jason asked Ed “why in the world” he had changed their name “out of nowhere,” his father replied:
I never changed my name out of nowhere. I got tired of correcting people.
While Jason Kelce admitted that was as good a reason as any — though he seemed to think it was ridiculous that he’d change “your entire family’s name over generations” just for that — he still didn’t understand why he and Travis were never clued into their name’s traditional pronunciation, and it turns out they weren’t the only ones. Ed responded:
Because your mother thought it was ‘Kel-see.’ Because that was the name that I went by at work. That was my work name. All right? Everybody at work did that, so I just said, ‘Fine, screw this. I’m gonna do that.’ My dad would get calls or would call in to get extra work as an auxiliary cop, and he would always say, ‘Hey, this is Kel-see, you got anything for me?’
So it was actually Jason and Travis Kelce’s grandfather who apparently went along with the two-syllable pronunciation for convenience, and Ed followed his example to keep from having to constantly correct people.
How Should We Pronounce Kelce Now?
Now that we know the truth, should we continue saying “Kel-see,” or revert to the one-syllable way? Jason asked his father this very question, and Ed gave pretty much the best response, saying:
Do whatever you want. I did.
A highly amused Travis Kelce said he was going to go by both, but Jason Kelce seemed to have a strong preference, telling his family and listeners:
I’m going by ‘Kel-see.’ Don’t call me ‘Kels.’
There you have it, folks. We may all have been saying the football players’ names wrong, but so were they, and they will apparently continue to do so. Since it’s their name and that’s how they want it to be pronounced, I guess that doesn’t make it wrong after all, does it?
Jason Kelce addressed his possible retirement after rumors spread (and devastated the Swifties) following the Philadelphia Eagles’ loss that ended their season. Meanwhile, Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs will continue their playoff run, facing the Buffalo Bills in AFC Divisional round at 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday, January 21, on CBS. Also be sure to check out our 2024 TV schedule to see what premieres are coming soon.
