Written by Leocciano Callao, Dailymail.Com
12:18 February 18, 2024, Updated 12:18 February 18, 2024
- New Heights is currently the top sports podcast on the charts on Spotify and Apple
- Jason and Travis Kelsey answered 12 questions in the first episode of 2022
- DailyMail.com brings you all the latest international sports news
When Travis and Jason Kelsey launched the New Heights Podcast in September 2022, they probably had no idea how big the program would become.
As the podcast's name suggests, the Kelce brothers' weekly talk show has been incredibly successful, becoming the world's largest sports podcast in less than two years. But like anyone venturing into new ventures, the Kelseys weren't always as comfortable behind the microphone as they are today.
The pilot for “New Heights'' showed a clear sense of trial and error. The first episode, which he currently has over 340,000 views on YouTube, was a stutter-filled, eardrum-bursting experience. To uncover what is the glue between their brotherhoods and their respective fan bases, the Kelses framed the conversation according to her 12 Questions format.
The rest, as they say, was history.
“Welcome to New Heights,” Travis said, wearing a Cincinnati Bearcats baseball jersey and smiling as he rubbed his palms together, opening his first show. “Jukes Original Show brought to you by Wave Sports & Entertainment.”
By this point, Kelces had won both Super Bowls and wasn't exactly new to bright lights. But the microphones and cameras around the NFL had a different sheen than those of modern enterprises. Travis seemed to be holding back his laughter, but Jason kept a calm expression on his face, nodding as he listened to his brother's intro.
After laying out his football accolades on the table, Travis gave a choppy explanation of the program's premise.
“New Heights is our new talk show, giving you access to the next level of the NFL,” Travis stammered. “From Philadelphia to Kansas City.”
“We’ve been talking about this for a while,” Jason said. “So I’m really excited to finally get started on this.”
The Eagles star explained how they and the producers agreed to ask him 12 Questions to honor his 12 total Pro Bowl selections. Jason was about to start the Q&A when Travis interrupted and explained the title.
Travis explained that “New Heights” has two meanings.
“Obviously, me and my brother are venturing into new worlds, new arenas with microphones and cameras. I thought it would be fun to express our personalities, our dynamics, and bring that to you.” '' Travis said.
“We're also very proud of where we're from. We're from Cleveland Heights, Ohio,” Travis continued. “In fact, we have made several connections at Jukes and Wave Sports, both across the industry and in Cleveland.”
“Whenever I get to represent The Heights, I try to do that,” Jason added.
Their answers extended beyond the world of soccer, and the conversation took several different turns. When asked about the highlights of his offseason, Jason revealed that his daughter Elliott learned to speak and that he took a trip to Missouri to castrate a bull.
“They have to be branded, and any cows that aren't kept as bulls have to be castrated,” Jason said. “So we had to castrate the first bull. It was tough.”
“I was wearing granola crunch hiking boots while I was knuckle-deep in this bull hole.”
When Travis refuses to explain how to castrate Jason, the brothers raise their decibels with smiles.
“You asked me what I did this offseason,” exclaimed Jason, his face red. “This was the highlight of my offseason.”
The screams went up again as Jason described the moment he first faced Ray Lewis. He acknowledged his curiosity about what it would be like to play with people he admired before entering the league.
“In the middle of the play,” he yelled, and Travis laughed on the other half of the screen. “Not only am I doing my job, I'm thinking, 'Oh my god, I'm stopping Ray Lewis.'
Like most of the episode, the ending had the brothers talking about the NFL while discussing the upcoming season. Jalen Hurts and Andy Reid were mentioned during an hour-long conversation before comparing Super Bowl rings in the final corner.
A year later, the podcast got even bigger when Travis started dating pop star Taylor Swift. In a summer episode, the three-time Super Bowl champion admitted that he never gave Swift a friendship bracelet with his phone number on it.
Despite this, the two started dating in September 2023 and dominated headlines around the NFL.
This relationship added a new layer to the conversation while continuing to provide a weekly breakdown of all things NFL. The podcast has become something fans look forward to every Wednesday, especially considering Travis won a Super Bowl with the Chiefs.
New Heights currently holds the top spot on Spotify and Apple's sports podcast charts. More importantly, Jason said the weekly talk show brought him closer to his brother.
Jason admitted that before starting the program, he and Travis hadn't had that much of a connection since college.
“It was fun talking to my brother and trying it out for another year,” Kelce said. “It's been two years since college that I've connected with Travis this much.”
“And that was one of the best things about this podcast, probably one of the best things about it. I used to spend time alone with no friends. I used to send text messages and funny videos, but [to] If I really sat down and talked to him, it would take a long time. ”
