Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and what the anger over luxury weddings really means
Thanks to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding, love and equanimity are in the air. Right?
Well, not for everyone. Though many are gushing online over the couple's celebrity-filled wedding extravaganza at New York City's Madison Square Garden July 3, the event has also drawn plenty of backlash from people saying they're over lavish weddings.
"'Let them eat cake' hits a little differently when the cake is served at a billionaire's wedding in Madison Square Garden," wrote one X user. "ur telling me that a billionaire had a wedding raffle of luxury items that she gave away to other members of the elite class of other billionaires and millionaires," wrote another. Swift and Kelce donated $26 million to charities across the country ahead of their wedding, but that seems to have done little to stunt the backlash. As another put it: "I truly think this was the most gauche, gaudy new-money (wedding) I have ever witnessed & I love Taylor Swift."
Swift and Kelce are far from the only famous couple to have their luxury wedding come under the harsh judgment of the internet. Remember Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding in Venice, Italy, which drew protests? Or when Bilt Rewards CEO Ankur Jain and former WWE wrestler Erika Hammond got married in a four-day spectacle in Egypt?
Mental health experts previously told USA TODAY that resentment toward displays of wealth often have little to do with the actual individuals involved. Usually, these harsh reactions stem from deeper frustrations people have with their own economic situations.
"A lot of people are feeling like they're stuck and they are living week-to-week, and people are feeling like they're not sure how they can make a difference," psychotherapist Stephanie Sarkis previously told USA TODAY. "Those feelings can be directed toward a person, especially when people don't feel like they have a voice or their voice has been blocked."
Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and why luxury weddings can strike a nerve
Erik Anderson, a licensed marriage and family therapist, said there are multiple reasons why people have such a negative view of luxury weddings, the primary being that they serve as blunt reminders of how different life is for the mega-wealthy.
Many young people today, he added, are grappling with economic uncertainty and the feeling they were born in a situation in which the odds were stacked against them.
"One thing that's a major driver of people's resentment is the feeling that people are not going to be better off than their parents," Anderson previously told USA TODAY. "We kind of get into the psychology of comparison and how people measure themselves against other people in their community, including saying, 'Am I going to be better off than my parents or worse off than my parents?'"
Luxury weddings strike a particular nerve, Anderson added, when they involve the rich renting out exclusive access to things. You saw this with Jain and Hammond's wedding, which included a special event at the Grand Egyptian Museum before it fully opened to the public.
"I think it really created a symbolic representation of, 'We are taking and then no one else can have it, and it also makes us feel special for no one else to be able to have it,'" Anderson said of Jain and Hammond's wedding.
When this anger combines with the anonymity afforded by the internet, backlash is almost inevitable, Sarkis previously told USA TODAY.
What the anger says about us
Most people in America face financial burdens which contribute to mental health problems, Anderson previously told USA TODAY.
"Poverty itself can be a stressor," he said. "We essentially see that well-being correlates with income. So, basically, the larger the middle class, the more people there are who have a high level of well-being, and the smaller the middle class, the lower the well-being in the average population."
Sarkis said it's important to take stock of your feelings when you get angry over a luxury wedding and see what's really behind them. You might find you're mad at something much bigger than Swift, Kelce or any particular individual.
"We can have a variety of feelings that come through that we don't necessarily take accountability for," she said. "And we really need to look at what is it that we're angry about, and is there anything we can do to change it?"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and what the anger over luxury weddings really means
Reporting by Charles Trepany, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 2:41 PM.