Watch: Lainey Wilson & Taylor Swift's surprise performance
- Publish date
- Thursday, 25 Jun 2026, 8:10AM
Lainey Wilson surprised the screaming audience with Taylor Swift during a Tight End University performance last night.
Lainey, 34, shared a full-circle story as she introduced the global pop megastar to the stage. The first time the Whirlwind hitmaker saw Taylor perform was at a historic Nashville festival, where a rising Taylor sang for an intimate audience on a free outdoor stage.
“I’ll tell you what, I don’t think y’all are ready for what’s about to happen,” Lainey told the crowd. “When I was 14 years old, I started coming to this thing called CMA Fest, and I came every single year. And the very first year that I came, I got to see this act down on the Riverfront Stage. She was 16. I was 14. And there was like 30 people there. And four of the 30 was me, my mama, my daddy (and) my sister, and (it was) really, really special. And it has been so cool to see what she has done. And she is just as kind as she is talented. Y’all welcome to the stage my friend, Taylor Swift.”
Taylor emerged on stage and teamed up with Lainey to perform Love Story, a classic fan-favourite hit that she wrote solo for her sophomore studio record, Fearless, in 2008. Taylor dedicated the performance to 49ers tight end George Kittle as she supported him, Greg Olsen and her fiancé, Travis Kelce at the opening night ceremony. The performance arrived as Taylor, a history-making Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, approaches the 20th anniversary of her game-changing debut studio album.
Lainey herself has performed on the main stage at Nissan Stadium during the Country Music Association’s CMA Fest, which took place earlier this month in Nashville, Tennessee.
Lainey is also part of the star-studded, genre-spanning lineup of the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Festival presented by Capital One, along with BTS, Benson Boone, Cardi B, Goo Goo Dolls, Kenny Chesney, Major Lazer, Muse, Snoop Dogg, Weezer and Zara Larsson, with more to be announced. Ryan Seacrest will host the two-night event when it returns on September 18 and September 19 to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Keep listening to iHeartCountry NZ for your chance to win your way there!
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Hear Lainey Wilson, Taylor Swift and more of your favourite country artists on iHeartCountry NZ by using the player below.
