Jo Koy’s Joke About Taylor Swift Didn’t Go Over Well—Least of All With Her

Taylor Swift just can’t seem to catch a break. Comedian Jo Koy was brought on as the Golden Globes host for 2024, and the stand-up star quickly found that the awards show crowd wasn’t exactly suited to his bits.

Koy received a swift viral takedown immediately after the show Sunday night, with one viral Reddit post claiming his jokes were “so bad, he threw his own joke writers under the bus.” And yes, one of the targets of his ill-received jokes was none other than Swift herself.

So, what exactly happened between Koy and Swift at the Golden Globes? Here’s what you need to know about the 2024 show’s joke.

The Jo Koy Taylor Swift joke, explained

The joke came from Koy during the show after he decided to rib Swift’s relationship with Travis Kelce, a Kansas City Chiefs tight end with an NFL career spanning over a decade. Dating rumors (now long-confirmed) started bubbling around Kelce and Swift in September 2023, with the singer-songwriter regularly appearing at Chiefs games to root for her beau. Which is why Koy threw a zinger right at Swift.

“The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL? On the Golden Globes, we have fewer camera shots of Taylor Swift,” he joked.

It’s true that televised Chiefs broadcasts tended to pan to Swift pretty regularly during the first few games she attended, though she’s been featured far less in recent weeks. Still Koy’s joke isn’t necessarily incorrect, maybe just a little dated. But Taylor didn’t seem to take kindly to the quip at all. Swift pursed her lips as the punchline hit, grabbing her drink with a steely neutral expression. A far cry from Swift’s excited cheers during Chiefs games, for sure.

What was behind Swift’s reaction?

There’s likely a reason Swift responded so coldly to Koy’s joke. As the singer told TIME Magazine, she’s not really aware of her NFL shots as they broadcast, expressing surprise that the cameras even figure out “what suite I’m in.” TIME reported that Swift is “sensitive to the attention,” suggesting television’s fascination with her is a sore spot.

“There’s a camera, like, a half-mile away, and you don’t know where it is, and you have no idea when the camera is putting you in the broadcast, so I don’t know if I’m being shown 17 times or once,” Swift told TIME. “I’m just there to support Travis. I have no awareness of if I’m being shown too much and pissing off a few dads, Brads, and Chads.”

So, was Swift actually bothered by Koy’s joke? Do Taylor Swift and Jo Koy now have beef? Or did Taylor decide to respond neutrally on purpose—making sure she took a diplomatic, unfazed attitude so “dads, Brads, and Chads” didn’t judge her for all the mid-game attention? Who knows. What’s clear is that Koy’s Taylor Swift joke, like many of his others that night, bombed hard enough to inspire this article.

(feature image: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images.)