Taylor Swift’s three cats have helped Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce earn an unusual new honor. The singer, who has appeared several times on NBC’s “The Voice,” has long shared her love for her pets with fans, and now her famous felines have earned Kelce recognition in People’s annual Readers’ Choice Poll.
The magazine named Kelce its “Sexiest Cat Dad” as part of its reader-voted awards ahead of the annual “Sexiest Man Alive” announcement, which typically takes place in early November.
“Travis Kelce may have had to marry self professed ‘cat lady’ Taylor Swift to qualify for the title, but People readers wasted no time crowning him an extremely sexy cat (step) dad,” the magazine wrote.
Kelce won the category over fellow nominees Dolph Lundgren, MGK and Paul Hollywood.
Taylor Swift’s Three Famous Cats Have Their Own Hollywood Connections
Swift has three cats named Meredith Grey, Olivia Benson and Benjamin Button, all named after fictional characters.
Meredith is named after Meredith Grey from “Grey’s Anatomy,” Olivia is named after Olivia Benson from “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” and Benjamin is named after the Brad Pitt movie “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”
The cats have become familiar to Swift’s fans through their appearances on her social media accounts, in music videos and during major moments in her career.
Benjamin made his debut in the music video for Swift’s 2019 single “ME!” and later appeared with the singer on her TIME Person of the Year cover in 2023.
All three cats also appeared on Swift’s 2020 holiday card, dressed in winter accessories against a black-and-white background inspired by her album “folklore.”
Swift has often spoken about her love for cats, including in a 2019 TIME interview about her decision to appear in the movie “Cats.”
“I have cats. I’m obsessed with them. I love my cats so much that when a role came up in a movie called Cats, I just thought, like, I gotta do this,” she said.
The singer even attended a cat school to prepare for her role in the film.
She also explained what she appreciates about the animals.
“They’re very dignified. They’re independent. They’re very capable of dealing with their own life,” Swift said.
Kelce Recently Introduced His Own Dog in Major Fashion Campaign
While Swift has made her cats a prominent part of her public life, Kelce recently introduced fans to one of his own pets.
The Chiefs star featured his fluffy white Samoyed, Wendy, in Tommy Hilfiger’s Fall 2026 campaign, marking the dog’s first public appearance alongside him.
Speaking with Vogue about the campaign, Kelce said the creative team discussed bringing a dog into the photo shoot. He suggested using his own pet instead.
“We figured, why not her? She crushed it, and actually really fit into that Tommy aesthetic, too,” Kelce said. “Those are some of my favorite shots.”
The NFL player also expressed his affection for the dog when asked about her appearance.
“Are you kidding me?” he said. “She lights up my day.”
The Samoyed appeared in a commercial filmed at New York City’s Plaza Hotel. The video featured Kelce alongside Gigi Hadid, Frances Tiafoe and Carmelo Anthony.
During one scene, Kelce entered a hotel room, where his dog greeted him before joining him on the couch.
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Travis Kelce Earns a New Honor That Has Everything to Do With Taylor Swift’s Cats