Taylor swift fans think

The Florida Department of Financial Services is pushing back against the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) after realizing that a federal law change to IRS policy impacts fans who resell Taylor Swift tickets.

In 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act lowered the IRS reporting threshold for e-commerce platforms, meaning that anyone who sells their tickets on an e-commerce platform like the Ticketmaster marketplace will be subject to the new reporting threshold of $600, regardless of the number of transactions or the profit amount. If a sellers’ income exceeds the $600 threshold, the law required the earner to pay taxes on the amount.

Ticketmaster alerted ticket sellers to the rule in February, adding that the reporting threshold dropped substantially from $20,000 to $600 and that 1099-K tax forms will be sent to sellers who exceeded the threshold, likely in January 2024.

However, on Wednesday morning, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis lashed out at the IRS for the rule, specifically when it comes to Swift tickets. Patronis heads the Florida Department of Financial Service, which operates under Governor Ron DeSantis .

“In Doral this AM exposing this IRS. The IRS will target parents who resell their Taylor Swift tickets on cash-apps. If the IRS comes after you tell us! Submit your complaint to our IRS Transparency Portal at https://myfloridacfo.com/irs-activity/. We’re working on legislation NOW to fight it,” Patronis posted on X, formerly Twitter .

DeSantis would have to sign any legislation into law to make it applicable, but it’s unclear how the legislation would aid ticket sellers since the IRS didn’t make the rule change but followed the legislation that required it. Patronis’ comments came four days after the Wall Street Journal published an article over the weekend warning ticket resellers that the platform in which they sold their tickets would be required to alert the IRS with the users’ information.

DeSantis, a Republican who is running for president in the 2024 election, previously targeted the IRS, such as suggesting that he was in favor of eliminating the department if elected president.

Newsweek reached out to the IRS by phone and the Florida Department of Financial Services by email for comment.

The rule change is not new. Ticketmaster alerted fans on its website in February.

“The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 lowered IRS reporting thresholds for all e-commerce platforms—including Ticketmaster—effective Jan. 1, 2023,” Ticketmaster said in the statement. “Any seller or fan whose annual gross transaction value across the U.S. Ticketmaster marketplace (including Account Manager) exceeds $600 will receive a form 1099 from Ticketmaster for that year.”

However, a year of high-profile concerts —including Swift’s Eras Tour and Beyonce’s Renaissance World Tour—meant that average ticket prices shot up and the main sellers changed.

StubHub said that 70 percent of all U.S. Eras Tour ticket orders were sold by fans rather than ticket brokers, which is twice the amount the platform normally sees, according to the Wall Street Journal .

Despite the rule change, Patronis still lashed out to the IRS, although his announcement didn’t garner much support on social media.

“Why don’t you work on the problem of all the home owner’s insurance companies leaving the state and canceling all their policies?” one poster responded, while another wrote, “wait only parents, who only buy taylor swift tickets? i’m sure people won’t think you’re making this up.”

The policy change also i mpacts income from Venmo, Cash App or PayPal , although the IRS delayed the implementation of that rule until next year. There are several bills in Congress that aim to change the threshold back to $20,000 or heighten it above $600, but none have been signed into law.

The Kansas City Chiefs tight end was already scoring big with sponsors. Then he went on a date in Arrowhead Stadium. Now advertisers—and millions of Swifties—see him as quite the catch.

---

W hen Taylor Swift sang, “Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone,” no one expected her to be among the 76,000 faithful at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. But there was the 33-year-old pop queen on September 24, next to the mother of two-time Super Bowl champion, tight end Travis Kelce, cheering her heart out in a red and white Chiefs windbreaker. The unexpected appearance of Swift set off the pop cultural seismographs, introducing the 33-year-old Kelce to millions of Swifties around the world. The NFL even changed its bio on social platform X to say “NFL (Taylor’s Version)” in honor of their Arrowhead assignation.

The very public rendezvous was something of a dare issued by Kelce to Swift, with whom he’s been rumored to be dating since the summer. During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show last week, Kelce admitted that he invited Swift to the game . “I told her, ‘I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, and you might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead,” he said. “We’ll see what happens in the near future.” He addressed “his personal life that is not so personal,” on his podcast Wednesday, admitting that he “sure as hell enjoyed this weekend.”

Regardless of whether the two walk down the aisle or he becomes worthy of another song in her considerable breakup catalog, the so-called Swift Effect is already paying off for Kelce. His social media following exploded over the weekend, amassing around 500,000 new followers—and it didn’t have much to do with his Chiefs’ trouncing of the Chicago Bears. More remarkable, Kelce’s merchandise sales spiked roughly 400% spike in sales on Fanatics’ network of sites, including NFLShop.com, making him one of the five top-selling players.

The spotlight is now shining on Kelce more than ever and it was fairly bright already. Kelce has appeared in commercials for State Farm, DirecTV, Bud Light, Pfizer and Campbell’s Soup, the latter of which have featured his mother and brother, Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce. He also hosted Saturday Night Live earlier this year, following in the footsteps of other football stars J.J. Watt and Peyton Manning, and hosts a weekly podcast with his brother. (In 2016, Kelce also starred in his own E! Entertainment dating reality show called Catching Kelce that Swift may want to consult for a dating game plan.)

But as successful as Kelce is— Forbes estimates he was earning $3 million annually off the field before the Swift bump, on top of roughly $12 million on the field this season—there is still plenty of room for Kelce’s income to get a friendly Taylor bounce. After all, Swift made $92 million last year —and that was before launching her record-breaking Eras Tour. “She’s her own economy now,” says Vince Thompson, founder and CEO of brand marketing agency Melt. “She’s her own GDP.”

And being her chief playmaker comes with amplified success—just ask exes Calvin Harris and Joe Alwyn . “I think people are absolutely looking at Travis Kelce in a different light,” says Eunice Shin, a partner at brand consultancy Prophet. “His overall brand image has become a lot brighter just given the fact that you now have all of these Taylor Swift fans, millions who now know who he is, who may not have known him before.”

Kelce is hardly the first NFL star to turbocharge his fame with a celebrity partner. Future NFL Hall of Famer Tom Brady was married to Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen for 13 years, while Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson wed Grammy Award winner Ciara in 2016. From Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe to David and Victoria Beckham, the combined wattage of two stars from sports and entertainment has always been good for business.

Brands are willing to pay a premium to work with ambassadors who have a famous family member or significant other, explains Shin. “I think the power of the Kardashians is that it’s not just one, but it’s a family, and there’s multiple stories to be told around them and their brand relevance from that standpoint,” she says, adding that in the case of the world’s top athletes, “it makes these people a little bit more interesting and more relevant from beyond what they do on their court or their field or wherever they’re participating.”

The added exposure could also open new categories for Kelce according to Lisa Delpy Neirotti, associate professor of sports management at George Washington University, who can imagine brands such as Apple Music, an existing NFL sponsor, or, say, 1-800 Flowers, taking a new look at the Chiefs star.

When you magnify the NFL star’s fame by Swift’s enormous (and enormously passionate) fan base—she has 273 million Instagram followers, as well as 94 million more on X—the possibilities for greater exposure are astronomical. Every aspect of her luxury suite romance with Kelce—from the unreleased New Era Chiefs windbreaker to the New Balance 550 sneakers she wore—has been under the pop culture microscope since Sunday.

Thompson adds that brands may fear they missed out on a golden opportunity with Kelce. One of his clients, for example, was negotiating with Team Kelce on a deal in the lead-up to last weekend. But after Sunday’s game, he says, the price doubled. The client ended up passing.

For now, Kelce’s existing sponsors “look like geniuses,” reaping the benefits of the added interest. Meanwhile, he had already signed with Creative Artists Agency for entertainment endeavors in May. A&A Management handles his marketing opportunities. And while the halo effect may wear off at some point, Thomson explains, there isn’t much risk to Kelce as an NFL player with Swift’s audience not being core football fans. There’s a balance, though. Kelce could take a reputational hit if he is perceived to be trading off Swift’s fame, and her fan base has a history of turning on her exes.

“The Swifties are serious about Taylor,” Delpy Neirotti says. “They’re very protective.” And, hey, if it doesn’t work out for these two kids who were both born in 1989, Swift will have a pretty soft landing. Forbes ranks her among the richest self-made women in America with a net worth of $780 million .

MORE FROM FORBES

MORE FROM FORBES How Eddie Hearn Built Matchroom Sport Into A Boxing Heavyweight By Justin Birnbaum MORE FROM FORBES Tunisian Tennis Star Ons Jabeur Has A Strong Game Plan For Winning Off The Court By Justin Birnbaum MORE FROM FORBES Toto Wolff’s Winning Formula By Justin Birnbaum MORE FROM FORBES The World’s Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2022 By Brett Knight

It’s been a hell of a summer for Taylor Swift . The pop star’s Eras tour has broken several records —including the most-attended gig by a female performer ever in the U.S.—and adding an estimated 200 million dollars to her net worth .

So many fans rushed to buy tickets that Ticketmaster’s website crashed, while pre-sale tickets for her Eras tour movie have overtaken Spider-Man: No Way Home , making it the film with the most advance sales in the ticket distribution company’s history.

However, the Democrat-supporting singer has also been using her star power to encourage followers to register to vote, seemingly angering conservatives . The attention on the 33-year-old music icon has sparked a bizarre feud between Swifties and Kid Rock fans on X—the social network formerly known as Twitter—with comments the Republican musician made about Swift in 2019 re-emerging.

“Taylor Swift wants to be a democrat because she wants to be in movies….period,” the 52-year-old posted to social media four years ago.

“And it looks like she will suck the door knob off Hollyweird to get there. Oldest move in the book. Good luck girl.”

Alongside the presale success of her concert film Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour —releasing on October 13—Swift has directed several of her own music videos and is currently working on her feature directorial debut with Searchlight Pictures.

The remarks were reposted by X user @LivepPDDave1, along with the caption: “Kid Rock was right about Taylor Swift.”

Fans of the rapper-turned-country-music-singer chimed in on the resurfaced tweet, with user Nick Adams claiming: “The vast majority of Americans prefer Kid Rock.”

“Kid Rock is talented and patriotic,” he wrote. “Taylor Swift is overrated and socialist.”

“She sold herself to that brainwashed cesspool of liberal leftists who regurgitate MSNBC propaganda,” said @TiffMoodNukes.

Many others voiced support for the pop star, with Victoria Brownworth describing Kid Rock supporters as incels “having a fit over Taylor Swift registering tens of thousands of Gen Z Democrats to vote.” On September 21, Swift posted to Instagram urging followers to sign up, directing them to non-partisan site Vote.org, leading to 35,000 new registrations.

“Hard to choose what’s more tragic,” Brownworth said. “That these sad little men think Swift is untalented or that they can’t find anyone but Kid Rock to elevate as their symbol of talent.'”

JBug agreed, writing: “Powerful women scare weak men. Poor baby.”

“Swift has sold 114 million albums to kid rocks 35 million and he’s been around a whole heck of a lot longer,” said Bill G.

“She’s currently the biggest selling musical artist on earth. I imagine she needs to very little to get herself into hollywood, but keep telling yourself that!” commented Censored By Rudy, while Zora told Swift to: “Keep slaying.”

Early in her music career, Swift chose to stay quiet on the topic of politics. However, in recent years, her stance has changed, with the award winner backing Democratic candidate Phil Bredesen during his senate run in her home state of Tennessee. In an interview with The Guardian in 2019, Swift referred to Donald Trump ‘s presidency as an “autocracy” and has publicly supported LGBTQ rights.

In recent years, Kid Rock—whose real name is Robert James Ritchie—has become as well-known for his political views as his music. In 2011, the Michigan native defended his use of the Confederate flag on stage, saying it was an homage to the band Lynyrd Skynyrd.

In 2016, he criticized footballer Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the national anthem during NFL games —a protest against police brutality towards African Americans—and added merchandise supporting then-president Trump to his line.

Kid Rock released a track bashing President Joe Biden and then-chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci in 2022, with the song rallying against COVID-19 vaccines and mask mandates. In April, he posted a video of himself shooting a crate of Bud Light with a machine gun online after the brand partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney , joining other conservative musicians in boycotting the beverage .

Newsweek has reached out to Taylor Swift and Kid Rock for comment via email.

Travis Kelce has broken his silence on *those* Taylor Swift dating rumours.

Rumours have been swirling for a while now about a possible romance between the superstar singer and the Kansas City Chiefs star.

On Sunday, Taylor, 33, cheered Travis, also 33, on at his game while standing next to the athlete’s mum .

The pair then drove away into the sunset together in Travis’ vintage car , suggesting it’s not just friendship on the cards.

Travis has now publicly addressed the weekend and couldn’t stop smiling while doing so.

Speaking to his older brother Jason – who plays for the Philadelphia Eagles – on their New Heights podcast, Travis was asked point blank about Taylor by his sibling.

‘We’ve been avoiding this subject out of respect for your personal life – now we’ve got to talk about it,’ said Jason.

Grinning, Travis replied: ‘My personal life that is not so personal. I did this to myself Jason, I know this.’

Jason then said: ‘So Trav, how does it feel that Taylor Swift has finally put you on the map?’ prompting Travis to start laughing again.

The catch? The exchange was part of a 21-second preview for the podcast’s next episode, which doesn’t air in full until Wednesday.

Grammy-winner Taylor put on an animated display at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday as the Kansas City Chiefs took on the Chicago Bears.

After leaving the stadium together in Travis’ car, the pair grabbed dinner at popular local venue, Prime Social Rooftop.

Restaurant goers were told there was a ‘hard close’ at 8pm, according to ET , so had to vacate the premises by then.

Do you think Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift make a good pair? Comment Now

As the time neared, staff gave to-go boxes to the diners and insisted that they leave, although free drinks were offered at a sister venue to compensate.

Another account of the evening claimed that Taylor had paid for everyone’s meals in order to clear the restaurant.

Although she hasn’t addressed speculation surrounding a possible relationship, Travis has made public plays for VMAs reigning queen Taylor previously – including trying to get his phone number to her on a handmade friendship bracelet during her Eras tour .

On Thursday, the two-time Super Bowl champion also confirmed that he and Taylor were in touch and that he had invited her to a game .

Metro.co.uk has reached out to Travis and Taylor’s reps for comment.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us [email protected], calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

MORE : Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriend Maya Benberry ‘warns Taylor Swift off NFL star’

MORE : Taylor Swift fans discover Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriend Kayla Nicole and shocking rumours behind split

MORE : Taylor Swift’s new man Travis Kelce once played ‘kiss, marry, kill’ game with singer as one of the options