Since rumors began popping up that Taylor Swift might be dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, she’s been getting more camera time on NFL telecasts than Patrick Mahomes, Dak Prescott, and Al Michaels combined.
On the heels of that phenomenon, *NSYNC’s Lance Bass attended this week’s Los Angeles Chargers Monday Night Football clash with the Dallas Cowboys. Knowing that the LA-based Chargers would be searching for celebrities to show on the Jumbotron, he came prepared.
During a break in the action, the SoFi Stadium sound system blasted out “Bye Bye Bye” as the camera found Bass watching the game in a suite.
As if on cue, Bass held up a sign he’d brought along for the occasion reading “NOT Taylor Swift.”
The crowd’s explosion during their 20-17 loss at home must’ve made half the Chargers roster wish they’d chosen a profession that involved learning the choreo to “It’s Gonna Be Me.”
Bass, for his part, gave a pretty solid double take and shrug to the camera as if to say, “Sorry…what did you expect when you’re 2-3?”
It was a cool way to have fun with his image as a 44-year-old boy-band alumnus. Bass’ sports fandom is genuine, as he has previously represented the LGBTQ community by announcing the starting lineups at Dodgers Pride Night.
But to his credit, Bass was also one of the few people in the stadium that night who could say he has experienced anything close to the pop culture phenomenon that Swift has become.
During *NSYNC’s heyday, Bass joined his bandmates in selling out giant venues like Dodger Stadium, the Louisiana Superdome and Madison Square Garden. And from the moment they descended onto the stage on marionette strings, they performed before a maelstrom of screaming fans that rivaled the sound of 70,000 Swifties.
Bass and his compatriots experienced music stardom at a level that few performers can ever conceive.
So even though he self-deprecatingly captioned his video of the moment with “Just in case anyone was confused,” the crowd pop that Bass got was genuine and he earned every decibel.
