Travis Kelce, a Kansas City Chiefs player and co-founder of Tight End University, visited country singer Morgan Wallen’s controversial Nashville pub this week.
Kelce has been instructing participants at TEU, a Nashville-based camp where prospective football players can master the fundamentals of the tight end position.
The three-time Super Bowl champion has spent his off-season partying and attending other media events, while Kelce has missed much of girlfriend Taylor Swift’s ongoing Eras Tour in Europe.
According to Page Six, Kelce will be in Cannes, France, on Thursday to visit Swift.
Wallen did not attend Kelce’s visit to This Bar & Tennessee Kitchen, which disclosed the tight end’s presence on social media. ‘Look who made his way to THIS BAR last night! @killatrav.
Fabiano Santos (right), who manages relations for the restaurant, is seen with Kelce.
While Kelce appeared to enjoy his time at Wallen’s pub, the institution has sparked controversy.
In May, Nashville council members rejected plans to construct a glowing billboard, accusing the country musician of hurling a chair off a rooftop near two police officers.
The Nashville Metro Council voted 30 to 3 against the proposed sign. The sign would have hung over a public pavement, similar to those found at several nearby bars. Such a sign requires local government clearance and is usually not a contentious issue.
During the argument, council members referred to Wallen’s statements as hostile and his actions as damaging. They further stated that the performer has received numerous second chances.
Councilmember Delishia Porterfield, who is Black, stated, “I don’t want to see a billboard up with the name of a person who is throwing chairs off balconies and saying racial slurs.”
Councilmember Jacob Kupin presented the idea, but stated that he had ‘considered long and hard’ about what to do due of Wallen’s behaviour. He stated that the third-party organisation in charge of the business, TC Restaurant Group, has been a’really, a terrific partner’ in making downtown Nashville safer.
‘The fact that someone’s name appears on a bar does not mean that we condone all of the behaviour, but I appreciate the efforts to make amends, the positive response, and, once again, I do not believe the operator should be penalised for what transpired,’ Kupin added.
Morgan Wallen arrives at the 56th annual CMA Awards on November 9, 2022.
Swift appears onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at Principality Stadium on June 18.
Travis Kelce talks about wedding plans during a podcast promo.
An initial hearing in Wallen’s criminal case has been rescheduled until August 15. According to an arrest affidavit, the chair that Wallen allegedly threw off the top of the six-story Chief’s club on April 7 fell about a yard (metre) away from two police officers. Witnesses informed investigators that Wallen picked up a chair, threw it off the roof, and laughed about it.
He faces three felony counts of reckless endangerment and one misdemeanour charge of disorderly behaviour.
In a statement, Wallen stated that he accepted’responsibility’ and was ‘not proud’ of his actions. The statement addressed making ‘amends’ and communicating with law enforcement.
Wallen’s ‘One Thing at a Time’ record topped the Billboard 200 for 16 weeks in 2023 and was the best-selling album in the United States last year. The album’s top 10 successes included “Last Night,” “You Proof,” and “Thinkin’ Bout Me.”
In 2021, Wallen was suspended indefinitely from his label when video surfaced showing him uttering a racial slur, which he subsequently admitted was foolish of him to do.
Kid Rock’s pub, not far from Wallen’s current location, was the site of a previous sign dispute. Ahead of a 2019 vote, some councilmembers criticised the design, which included a big guitar with the base purposefully shaped like a woman’s buttocks. They ultimately authorised it.