A recurring segment on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon produced a timely if not downright impressive original song about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce on Thursday.
Now that the late-night shows are officially back following the writers’ strike, so are many of the signature bits the hosts have used over the years. This one, which Fallon has featured off and on for at least seven seasons, is called Battle of the Instant Songwriters.
Fallon said that, before the show, producers went through the audience and picked out two people who said they were musicians. They were each given a made-up song title and an hour to write an original tune based on that title.
After showing video proof of the musicians working on their songs backstage, Fallon brought them out. The first was a Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter named Rachel Rose, originally from Fairfield, Conn. She wrote and sang a song called, “I Think This Airbnb is Haunted.”
Second up was Josh Bolin, originally from Canton, Ohio but now living in New York. His song was called “Taylor, Kelce and Me Makes Three,” which is no doubt a reference to the budding relationship between the singer and NFL star.
The song seems to be about Bolin and his two roommates — Swift and Kelce — and what he’s seeing unfold between them. Some of the lyrics include:
“Sat down to watch the Chiefs play Chicago, what did I see? My two roommates and one of their moms, no one invited me. Look I’m tryin’ to shake it off, no bad blood for me. ‘Cause Taylor and Kelce and me makes three.”
The clever lyrics, along with Bolin’s Bob Dylan-esque delivery, seemed to impress Fallon afterward and also turned some heads with viewers on social media as well.
Plus, based on audience applause, Bolin was announced as the winner. He received a sweatshirt that says “I Love Music,” a notebook and $1,000. And for being the runner-up, Rose also received a sweatshirt that says “I Love Music,” a notebook and $1,000.
That wasn’t the end of Swift being a topic of conversation on the show, however, as Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams sat down with Fallon later and discussed her longtime friendship with Swift.
It turns out that while Paramore and Swift were both up for Best New Artist Grammys back in 2008 — they both lost out to Amy Winehouse — Swift’s mother approached Williams at Timbaland’s Grammy party and ended up getting the two young singers connected early on and they have been friends ever since.
Paramore will be opening for Swift’s Eras Tour next summer. No word yet if Bolin will be invited to perform as well.
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. on NBC.
