Since September, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have been under the spotlight, with even their inner circles getting attention. Recently, fans caught what they thought was a subtle jab at Swift by Travis Kelce’s publicist, Pia Malihi, on Instagram. Swifties’ detective skills quickly made it go viral.
The incident began when Malihi reposted a friend’s birthday tribute on Instagram on October 29. In an Instagram Story screenshot, fans noticed a clown emoji covering Swift’s face. The caption read, “Happy birthday to our Roman Empire,” accompanied by a mix of pictures, including Swift clown-ified at Kelce’s game. This Swift photo was originally posted by Us Weekly with the caption, “This is our Roman Empire.”
Swift’s fans, known as Swifties, were not pleased and took their frustration to Kelce’s comments section to criticize Malihi’s post. One comment read, “Hey bestie… you might want to talk to your publicist about that post.” Another person said, “Your publicist needs a publicist.” Many others suggested that Kelce should consider letting Malihi go because of the incident. Malihi, in response, made her Instagram profile private.
However, the friend who originally posted the Instagram Story explained that the “bday clown” was not intended to be negative. Amanda, Malihi’s friend, addressed the situation on Instagram, saying, “It’s me, hi. It was completely innocent, just to bring attention to Pia’s birthday. It was the wrong choice of a birthday clown emoji (by me, not Pia!). Nothing but love for Taylor!”
The celeb gossip account Deuxmoi came to Malihi’s defense on Instagram, stating, “The post was a repost. Pia did not put the clown emoji over TS’s face. It was a birthday post that was reposted by accident by someone who works for Pia. All parties involved realize it was an accident. IDK why the clown emoji was used originally.” Deuxmoi also appeared to support Malihi on Twitter, writing, “Who gives a sh*t. I’m sure Taylor has 100 other things to worry about.”
In a previous interaction, Malihi had clarified a rumor on Deuxmoi’s Instagram post in September. She stated, “Not true … I’m TK’s publicist, and that’s not hers,” addressing the rumor about Swift bringing notes to a Chiefs game, according to Us Weekly.
