Taylor Swift’s ‘loyal’ PR Tree Paine has rigorously batted away scandal

When Taylor Swift signed with Premium PR in 2014, she not only gained a publicist, but also a ‘proud stage mother’, and a ‘fiercely loyal’ companion.

At the agency’s helm, working tirelessly to protect the singer, is California-born Tree Paine. The 53-year-old’s successes in the role have not gone unnoticed, with the Wall Street Journal praising her as ‘one of the most powerful people in the entertainment industry’.

It’s little surprise then that Taylor takes pride in following her guidance, as revealed in a 2023 clip of the singer on a red carpet saying: ‘You see that redhead [Tree]? She’ll tell me what to do’.

This week is likely one of those times; the Bad Blood singer has almost certainly sought her counsel on how to navigate her private life being aired in public after a ‘contract’ regarding her relationship with Travis was made public despite being false.

And, at this week’s NFL opener, could Tree have also been behind the decision for Taylor not to sit next to her WAG galpal Brittany Mahomes? 

As the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Baltimore Ravens 27-20 in the NFL’s season start on Thursday night, Taylor took her her usual spot in Kelce’s luxury suite alongside the tight end’s family and friends. 

Mahomes, meanwhile, was sat with her adorable daughter Sterling Skye in a different suite as she cheered on her husband. 

While Taylor has previously endorsed Trump’s rivals, and accused him of ‘stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism’, Brittany appears to be in favour of the Republican candidate with the former President taking to Truth Social to thank the WAG for her support earlier this week.

Could Trump’s praise for Patrick Mahome’s wife have seen Paine advising her client against taking a seat next to her at Arrowhead Stadium? 

Tree’s handling of the ‘showmance’ allegations too have become a hot topic amongst Swifties, with fans inquisitive about the power the publicist holds – and whether she’ll speak out over the debacle, and if she’s feuding with Travis’s PR over the media frenzy.

Before collaborating with Taylor, Paine worked as the senior vice president of publicity in the Christian and Country divisions of Warner Music Nashville.

In 2014, she launched her solo business venture, Premium PR, signing a young Taylor as her first and sole client, according to Wall Street Journal. 

It so happens that Taylor went on to secure a string of successes that same year, with Rolling Stone claiming that 2014 saw Taylor ‘shift the narrative’ and mark ‘the beginning of a national obsession with Swift’.

The singer’s accomplishments that year included her album, 1989, going platinum, a performance at the VMA’s and her gracing the cover of Rolling Stone.

At the same time, Tree worked behind the scenes to mistake alleged inaccuracies circulating about Taylor, quickly cementing herself as one of the singer’s staunch defenders.

One of the first examples of her doing so occurred in April 2014, when Tree publicly slammed National Enquirer for allegedly stating that Swift had rejected a collaboration offer with country singer Randy Travis.

Tree disputed the claim on X, formerly Twitter, saying: ‘This story is 100 per cent not true. Never believe the National Enquirer’.

In a short space of time, Tree and Taylor’s relationship crossed exceeded bussiness, with the pair forming a close friendship.

In 2016, Tree shared a birthday tribute post to the singer, hailing her as a ‘lovely lady’ and example of ‘true beauty’.

She wrote: ‘I met this lovely lady 10 years ago. She is the finest example of true beauty inside and out #HappyBirthdayTaylorSwift’.

Tree’s posts often focus on the Bad Blood singer, with her keeping details of her personal life out of the spotlight and her Instagram on a private setting.

The publicist has supported Taylor throughout the most heated moments of her career, including her 2017 sexual assault case against DJ Mueller, who was forced to pay the singer a symbolic $1 after groping her.

In 2020, she used her platform to wade into the feud between her client and Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, which dates back to 2016.

Tree broke her silence on a personal level, as she hit out at Kim for ‘editing’ her statements.

The dig came amid an war of words on whether Taylor gave her consent to be featured in Kanye West’s song Famous – in which he raps ‘I made that b***h famous’.

In March 2020, an unedited clip of the infamous phone call between Taylor and Kanye leaked online which proved that Kanye never specifically told Taylor he was planning to call her a b***h in his lyrics. 

Taylor again claimed the call had been ‘illegally recorded’ and the originally released footage had been ‘edited and manipulated’ to make it look like she lied when she claimed not to have been told about the lyrics. 

Addressing the leak, Kim tweeted: ‘To be clear, the only issue I ever had around the situation was that Taylor lied through her publicist who stated that ‘Kanye never called to ask for permission…’

‘They clearly spoke so I let you all see that… Nobody ever denied the word ‘bitch’ was used without her permission.’

In response, Taylor’s publicist, Tree shared the statement she’d put out when the scandal unfolded in 2016 and stressed it was ‘unedited’ in a pointed swipe.

She wrote: ‘I’m Taylor’s publicist and this is my UNEDITED original statement. Btw, when you take parts out, that’s editing.

‘P.S. who did you guys p*** off to leak that video?’

Below her post was a graphic of the statement, which read: ‘Kanye did not call for approval, but to ask Taylor to release his single ‘Famous’ on her Twitter account.

‘She declined and cautioned him about releasing a song with such a strong misogynistic message.

‘Taylor was never made aware of the actual lyric, ‘I made that b**** famous.”

‘In her original rant, Kim insisted she hadn’t deliberately edited the video footage when she first released it and claimed the full clip which leaked at the weekend hadn’t ‘changed the narrative’.

She wrote: ‘I never edited the footage (another lie) – I only posted a few clips on Snapchat to make my point and the full video that recently leaked doesn’t change the narrative.

‘Kanye has documented the making of all of his albums for his personal archive, however has never released any of it for public consumption & the call between the two of them would have remained private or would have gone in the trash had she not lied & forced me to defend him

‘This will be the last time I speak on this because honestly, nobody cares. Sorry to bore you all with this. I know you are all dealing with more serious and important matters.’

Tree continued to protect Taylor when rumours swirled about her relationship with Joe Alwyn last year. 

At the time, Tree Paine took to X to slam claims made by the celebrity gossip page DeuxMoi, which claimed that Swift had married Alwyn in ‘either 2020 or 2021’, but it was never made legal.

It was reported earlier that year that Swift and Alwyn had broken up after nearly six-years of dating.

However, before the end of her relationship with Alwyn, unsubstantiated claims surfaced in 2022 that the couple were ‘secretly engaged’ and that Swift was wearing a ring in private.

Deuxmoi then resurfaced these rumors, when the account posted a message from an unnamed follower about Swift and Alwyn’s relationship, while doubling down on the ‘marriage claims’, insisting that the popstar ‘did have a ceremony’.

‘Enough is enough with these fabricated lies about Taylor from Deuxmoi,’ Paine wrote, while sharing a screenshot of the post.

She also insisted that ‘there was never a marriage or ceremony of any kind’ and that the outlet was ‘insane’ for reporting otherwise.

‘This is an insane thing to post. It’s time for you to be held accountable for the pain and trauma you cause with posts like these,’ she concluded.

After Paine called them out, Deuxmoi apologized to Swift while also criticizing the publicist’s ‘choice of words.’

‘Well I make zero dollars from lying.. can publicists say the same. Also, to relate something that is in reference to something that happened years ago to ‘pain & trauma’ after what just happened seems like a poor choice of words,’ they wrote.

‘Either way, I apologize to Taylor.’

Taylor’s recent sell-out Eras Tour further revealed a glimpse into Taylor’s bond with Tree when the publicist turned up to support her at shows and joined in on the fun with fans.

In a clip shared to TikTok by Chelsea Lesser, Tree was seen taking photographs of Taylor on stage at Aviva Stadium in Dublin in a ‘proud stage mother moment’.

At the same event, Tree was captured on TikTok by Ana Mendeariz accepting a friendship bracelet form a group of friends.

Fast forward to this week and Tree is back to business after the singer’s relationship was put under the spotlight after an alleged leaked ‘contract’ surfaced claiming her relationship with Travis is fake.

Fans of Taylor and boyfriend Travis were able to breathe a sigh of relief when a leaked ‘contract’ revealing the exact day of their split was denounced as a fake.

As the document, apparently printed on the headed paper of his US PR company circulated online, Mr Kelce called in the lawyers – and yet, it’s not the first time rumours have swirled around the legitimacy of the high profile relationship.

Last year it was claimed that Travis’ own publicist had been gossiping about the relationship, saying it was a PR stunt.

The publicist in question, Pia Malihi, later attracted further ire from fans who were convinced that she was having a dig at Taylor when she shared a post to her Instagram with a clown emoji over the singer’s face.

While it was very likely an innocent error, she received a huge backlash from Swifties who were quick to point out that she used to work closely with Taylor’s arch nemesis, music mogul Scooter Braun, at a previous PR agency.

Travis’s PR Agency, Scope Public Relations, is headed by Jack Ketsoyan and Pia Malihi.  

Last year, American Twitch streamer, YouTuber, and podcaster QTCinderlla, dropped a bombshell claim that Taylor’s relationship with the NFL star is fake, with information allegedly coming from a publicist, who some have suggested is Pia. 

Talking in an interview, the internet sensation, whose real name is Blaire, said she learned the ‘crazy hot tea’ from her makeup artist, who is allegedly friends with Travis’s publicist.

In a clip of QTCinderlla speaking at an event posted to TikTok, she said: ‘Here’s some crazy hot tea. My makeup artist was doing my makeup yesterday, and I’m a Swiftie and I casually bring her up in conversation.’And then she’s like, ‘Yeah, that PR relationship is so crazy’, and I was like, ‘With Travis Kelce?’ And she said, ‘Yes’.

‘She was like: ‘I’m friends with Travis Kelce’s publicist and she said that it’s a PR relationship.

‘I go, ‘Well maybe it started as a PR relationship, but surely it’s real love, right?’. And she goes, ‘No’.

‘She was like, ‘I was talking to my friend’, we’ll call her Samantha, and she was like, ‘I was talking to Samantha, and Samantha was like, ‘Travis sell all those jerseys while you can for all it’s worth.”

After revealing details of the alleged fake relationship, QTCinderlla added: ‘I don’t think I’ll get sued, I didn’t sign the NDA.’

While the YouTuber may have avoided any legal issues regarding her claims, reaction from Taylor Swift fans led her to issue an apology via X, formerly Twitter. 

She wrote: ‘Would like to make it very clear. I think Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are in love and cute together. 

‘I was just spewing hot gos[sip] because what I heard was so unhinged I thought it was insane so wanted to share the insanity. 

‘Not because I believed it cause I was like, ‘that’s crazy’, overall I don’t care about a celebrity relationship and was just shooting the s*** on a podcast for entertainment. It’s not that deep. This is the wackest s*** I’ve ever tweeted in my life.’

That same month, Pia also found herself in hot water with Taylor Swift fans after a birthday tribute post appeared to shade the Love Story singer.

On 29 October, Pia’s friend called Amanda shared a birthday post with a collage of images of the publicist, alongside the words ‘happy birthday to our Roman Empire’.

At the centre of the post, which Pia reshared on her account, was an image of the PR guru next to Taylor at a Chicago Bears v Kansas City Chiefs game in September at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas.

It was captioned: ‘Happy birthday to our Roman Empire’, internet speak for something you think about constantly. 

In the centre of the collage was a snap of Pia alongside Taylor at her first ever Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium. 

However, Pia’s friend had placed a clown face emoji over Taylor’s face, causing outrage among Swifties. 

Amanda later claimed that she did not intend to offend Taylor by placing a clown emoji over her face, according to Elite Daily.

Taking to Instagram to offer an explanation, she said: ‘It’s me, hi. Was completely innocent to keep attention on Pia’s birthday.

‘Wrong choice of birthday clown emoji; (by me, not Pia!). Nothing but love for Taylor!

At the same time, celebrity gossip account Deux Moi also commented on the situation to defend Pia.

Pia did not address the situation, and following a slew of nasty comments across her Instagram profile, she changed her setting to private. 

Swiftie’s have previously revealed their thoughts on Tree and Pia, with some claiming the pair might not agree completely when it comes to managing publicity.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, fans weighed in on the recent situation. One said: ‘Tree Paine would never let this happen’.

Another said: ‘I think it’s time Travis Kelce parts ways with Full Scope! He should have done this last year when Pia Malihi put a clown face over Taylor Swift.

‘Now the other PR guy from the firm writes books on fake PR romances. He needs Tree to come rescue him from this PR firm!’

‘Tree Paine witnessing the sheer incompetence of [American football emojji]’s pr team’.

Meanwhile, last year, TikTok user @the_howellowl staged her thoughts on how she believes Tree might conversate with Pia.

While performing for comedic effect, the content creator explained that Tree would ‘handle’ Pia and teach her ‘Tree Paine PR 101’. The clip garnered over 30 thousand likes from other Swiftie’s.

Whatever the reality of her supposed bad blood with Taylor, Tree and Pia may be, Pia appears to remain in the inner circle of Travis and is rumoured to be dating his teammate.  

In June, Life & Style claimed Pia is dating Kansas City Chiefs star and Travis’s teammate, Skyy Moore, 23.

On Tuesday, Travis’ representatives were forced to deny that they have plans to split later this month after a document written on the headed paper of his US PR company was spread online.

The paperwork which appears to have been created by Los Angeles-based firm Full Scope, reveals a strategy to make their split, and says the date for an announcement is September 28.

It also outlines a supposed plan to release an official statement at the end of this month – three days ‘post-break up’ to ‘allow the initial media frenzy to settle and ensure clarity’.

It adds that the announcement will be ‘gracious, respectful and stress mutual respect.

Laying out what the statement would say, they write: ‘Example: Travis and Taylor have decided to part ways after careful consideration. They both value and respect each other’s personal lives and appreciate your respect for privacy during this time.

‘They are both committed to their careers and personal growth. They remain friends and wish each other the best.’

The paperwork also states that the announcement would focus on Travis’ ‘personal growth’ by framing the breakup as a ‘natural part of life.’ It also will highlight his commitment to his career and his ongoing achievements in the sports industry.’

They also plan to send it to major media outlets with a press release to ensure ‘broad coverage.’

However, a spokesman for Full Scope insisted that they were ‘entirely false and fabricated and were not created, issued or authorised by this agency’.

The representative also said they have called in lawyers – though they are not expected to find the culprit.

‘We have engaged our legal team to initiate proceedings against the individuals or entities responsible for the unlawful and injurious forgery of documents,’ they said.

Not all fans believe the statement – which was first shared on Reddit.

One follower of the social media platform pointed out that it ‘reads like a high school assignment’ while another said it appeared to look like it had been created by ‘chat gtp.’

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Taylor didn’t respond when asked if she wanted to comment on the alleged split.

Taylor and Tom Hiddleston were accused of being in a ‘showmance’ to avert attention away from her breakup with Calvin Harris back in 2016.

They dated briefly, for around three months, before calling it quits in September 2016.

After months of speculation, the pair went ‘public’ with their romance on September 24 last year when Taylor took Travis’ invitation to watch him play for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Love Story star was photographed in the stands with his mother and sources revealed later that it was her first time meeting his family, and it ‘went well.’

Afterwards, the pair were filmed leaving the game, marking the first video of them together.