- - Taylor Swift Is Releasing a Music Video for 'Opalite'—Revisit Its Lyrics About Travis Kelce

Juliana UkiomogbeFebruary 5, 2026 at 10:46 PM

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Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, came out in October.

In February 2026, Swift announced “Opalite” would be her second single.

The star previously revealed the meaning behind the song in an interview.

Taylor Swift wrote multiple tributes to Travis Kelce on her 12th studio album The Life of a Showgirl, including “Opalite,” where she contrasts their romantic past to their present together. In February 2026, she revealed the song would be her second single from the album, with its music video premiering on February 6.

She begins by singing about her exes. “I had a bad habit of missing lovers past / My brother used to call it, ‘Eating out of the trash’ / It’s never gonna last.” But then her mom assured her that she would find true love: “But my mama told me / It’s alright / You were dancing through the lightning strikes / Sleepless in the onyx night / But now the sky is opalite.”

Prior to dating Kelce, Swift had a few on-off romantic relationships. Just months before she met him, she briefly rekindled her fling with Matty Healy. She had recently ended her six-year relationship with Joe Alwyn—one that was also bumpy in private. In April 2023, a source told People that Swift and Alwyn “had rough patches before and always worked things out, so friends thought they would take some time apart [now] but eventually come back together. Ultimately [they] weren’t the right fit for one another.”

Swift also seems to reference one of Kelce’s previous partners in the second verse, though she doesn’t mention anyone by name. “You couldn’t understand it, why you felt alone / You were in it for real, she was in her phone / And you were just a pose / And don’t we try to love love? (Love love) We give it all we got (Give it all we got) / You finally left the table (Uh-uh), and what a simple thought / You’re starving ’til you’re not.”

Swift briefly discussed the inspiration for the song in her Official Release Party of a Showgirl film. “I’ve always loved opals, my mom has always loved opals. It’s one of our things,” she explained. She also shared that the stone represents the idea of creating your own happiness, because it is a man-made gem.

Before dating Swift, Kelce had two other public relationships. He was briefly with Maya Benberry, whom he met on his 2016 E! reality dating show Chasing Kelce. He was then romantically involved with sports journalist Kayla Nicole, whom he dated on-off for five years. They broke up for good in May 2022.

In a rare interview, Swift revealed what Kelce thinks about the song. “I think that’s his favorite,” she said on the British radio show, Capital Breakfast. “He loves that one.” She then spoke more about the meaning behind the track.

“I have favorite words, favorite phrases, things that I’ll put in an endless file of lyrics that I’m constantly going to go and cherrypick from when I’m writing. And I had written down the word ‘opalite’ because I learned that it’s actually a man-made opal. Opal can be man-made just like diamonds. And Travis’s birthstone is an opal. So I’ve always fixated on that. I’ve always loved that stone, and I thought it was a cool metaphor, that it’s a man-made opal and happiness can also be man-made, too. So that’s what the song is about, that juxtaposition of those two.”

In a previous interview with Us Weekly published in 2017, Swift elaborated on her love for the gemstone. “My favorite stone is an opal because when I was bullied in school, my mom used to take me to T.J. Maxx after school to look at the opal jewelry,” she said. “I thought opals were so beautiful, and somehow it made me feel better. We never bought them, just looked.”

Listen to the full song and read the lyrics, courtesy of Genius:

Verse 1I had a bad habit of missing lovers pastMy brother used to call it, “Eating out of the trash”It’s never gonna lastI thought my house was haunted, I used to live with ghostsAnd all the perfect couples said, “When you know, you know”And, “When you don’t, you don’t”

Pre-ChorusAnd all of the foes, and all of the friends (Ha, ha)They’ve seen it before, they’ll see it again (Ha, ha)Life is a song, it ends when it endsI was wrongBut my mama told me

ChorusIt’s alrightYou were dancing through the lightning strikesSleepless in the onyx nightBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, my LordNever met no one likе you beforeYou had to make your own sunshinеBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

Verse 2You couldn’t understand it, why you felt aloneYou were in it for real, she was in her phoneAnd you were just a poseAnd don’t we try to love love? (Love love) We give it all we got (Give it all we got)You finally left the table (Uh-uh), and what a simple thoughtYou’re starving ’til you’re not

Pre-ChorusAnd all of the foes and all of the friends (Ha, ha)Have messed up before, they’ll mess up again (Ha, ha)Life is a song, it ends when it endsYou move onAnd that’s when I told you

ChorusIt’s alrightYou were dancing through the lightning strikesSleepless in the onyx nightBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, my LordNever met no one like you beforeYou had to make your own sunshineBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

BridgeThis is just a storm inside a teacupBut shelter here with me, my loveThunder like a drumThis life will beat you up, up, up, upThis is just a temporary speed bumpBut failure brings you freedomAnd I can bring you love, love, love, love, loveDon’t you sweat it, baby

ChorusIt’s alrightYou were dancing through the lightning strikesOh, so sleepless in the onyx nightBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, my LordNever met no one like you before (No)You had to make your own sunshineBut now the sky is opaliteOh, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”