“As is widely reported, the President is in Ireland,” a spokesperson for the White House reaffirmed to PEOPLE after false rumors spread about the friends stopping by Swift’s Tampa performance
Hours after Taylor Swift took the stage at Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium, a fan account on Twitter were pushing the news that the concert had two special guests in attendance: President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama. The only problem? It wasn’t true.
A fan account posted videos on Twitter purporting to show Biden exiting the stage via a back door, while another video appeared to show Barack and Michelle Obama enjoying the concert from a box seat.
The tweets were picked up by Entertainment Tonight, which reported that the current and former president had both attended Swift’s concert Thursday. (The outlet later amended its headline and, eventually, deleted the article.)
Biden is currently in Ireland, where he delivered remarks at Dublin Castle on Thursday evening.
“As is widely reported, the President is in Ireland,” a White House spokesperson reaffirmed in a statement to PEOPLE on Friday morning.
The video of the Obamas, meanwhile, was actually taken at a Beyoncé concert in 2018. A spokesperson for President Obama’s office told PEOPLE on Friday that the report is “definitely false.”
Swift and Biden have shared mutual admiration for one another in the past, with the pop star endorsing the now-president via a batch of cookies with his campaign logo back in 2020.
“Thanks for your support and for speaking out at this crucial moment in our nation’s history,” Biden wrote on Instagram in the lead-up to the election, beneath a photo of Swift. “Election Day is right around the corner — are you ready for it?”
In October 2022, Swift announced her Eras Tour calling it “a journey through the musical eras of [her] career (past and present!).” Most recently, she shared a photo of herself in rehearsals, perfectly captioning the post, “In my Eras era. 💅.”
The tour, which kicked off on March 17, marks her first in almost four years following her Reputation stadium tour in 2018.
Already, a slew of celebrities have shown up to take in the tour in person, which includes a setlist that goes on for more than three hours as well as exciting effects and eye-catching costumes.
