Jason Kelce is taking Christmas music to a whole new level this year. The retired Philadelphia Eagles player has teamed up with legendary singer Stevie Nicks for a festive duet, covering Ron Sexsmith’s song “Maybe This Christmas.”
Since 2022, Kelce has been collaborating with fellow Eagles players Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson on annual Christmas albums under the name The Philly Specials. Their new album, A Philly Special Christmas Party, is set to release on November 22, following their previous projects: A Philly Special Christmas Special last year and A Philly Special Christmas in 2022. All proceeds from the album will benefit local charities in the Philadelphia area.
In their rendition of “Maybe This Christmas,” Kelce and Nicks sing about their hopes for a season filled with love and healing. The song became available on streaming platforms this past Friday.
In the song “Maybe This Christmas,” Jason Kelce sings, “Maybe this Christmas will mean something more, maybe this year love will run deeper than ever before.” Stevie Nicks follows with the lines, “And maybe forgiveness will prompt us to reach out, to call someone we love or someone we’ve lost, for reasons we can’t quite remember.”
In the song, Jason Kelce and Stevie Nicks sing together, “Maybe there’ll be an open door, maybe the star that once shone will shine again.”
Kelce had teased his collaboration with Nicks last month on the Instagram page for New Heights, the podcast he co-hosts with his brother, Travis Kelce.
The caption of the post, which featured a photo of NFL star Jason Kelce and Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks together, read, “The crossover we didn’t know we needed. Coming soon to a Christmas album near you.”
In related news, Stevie Nicks recently entered the Barbie cultural moment, unveiling her own Barbie doll, saying, “They helped her have my soul.”
In a recent episode of New Heights, Jason Kelce described it as “pretty crazy” to have the opportunity to sing with Stevie Nicks, calling her a “legend.” He shared that they recorded the song together in the studio, and he found the experience “absolutely unreal.” Kelce also praised Nicks as “probably the most legendary female singer, especially of her generation.” He went on to say that she’s “one of the nicest people” he’s ever spoken to, adding that he will cherish the memory of working with her for the rest of his life.
The release of the song came just days after Jason Kelce issued an apology for an incident involving a fan who directed an anti-LGBTQ slur at him in relation to his brother, Travis. During the confrontation, Kelce was seen throwing the fan’s phone to the ground and responding with an anti-gay slur. He later expressed regret for his actions and apologized.
In response to the incident, Travis Kelce defended his brother, standing by him amidst the controversy.
Jason Kelce addressed the incident, saying, “Everybody’s seen everything on social media about what happened this week.” He added, “I’m not happy with it, and I’m not proud of it. In a heated moment, I responded to hate with hate, and I just don’t think that’s productive.”