Categories
Engagements Taylor Swift Travis Kelce

Taylor Swift & Travis Kelce are engaged, the first engagement for both

This is both surprising and not so surprising, right? Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are engaged! It’s surprising because many of Taylor’s fans have spent YEARS arguing that how dare anyone suggest that she wants to get married, she’s unmarried by choice, she’s protecting her assets, etc. And yet… if you listen to her music, you can hear a woman who is romantic, who dreams of big love, who wants to be really “settled down.” If you’ve been following the two year saga of TNT (Taylor & Trav), you’re also not surprised at all – these two have been severely smitten with each other this whole time. Well, now it’s happening!

One step closer to “End Game” — Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are engaged! The “Cruel Summer” singer and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, both 35, announced their engagement in a joint post on Instagram alongside several photos from their floral-filled garden proposal on Tuesday, Aug. 26.

“Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married ????,” Swift wrote in the caption.

Kelce proposed with a ring he designed with Kindred Lubeck of Artifex Fine Jewelry. The dazzling stone is an “Old Mine brilliant cut,” which Swift shows off in a series of photos announcing the big news.

The first engagement photo is of Kelce proposing on bended knee as Swift lovingly rests one hand on his face. Other shots show the pair embracing and sitting on a bench underneath pink-and-white floral trellis.

[From People]

Congratulations to them! I love that they posted photos, and I love that there’s a dedicated photo for the ring. I read “old mine brilliant cut” before I saw the photo and I was like “hm, I hope this doesn’t suck.” Ladies, it does NOT suck. It’s a good ring, with a vintage flavor and very, very big. But also not too big that she’s lugging around a rock which needs its own security. The perfect happy-medium.

Photos courtesy of Taylor’s instagram.

Categories
Engagements Kid Rock Relationships

Kid Rock and his fiancée of seven years called off their engagement

Embed from Getty Images


A couple weeks ago we covered Page Six’s reporting on Kid Rock and Colorado Representative Lauren Boebert hopping in a cab together in the wee hours of the morning after Inauguration Day. The heavy-handed insinuation was that the two had hooked up, birds of a sleazy-feather and all. I was truly touched in the comments by all of you who expressed deep distress/concern… for the taxi cab and its driver. Page Six, for their part, gave a shout-out in their article to Audrey Berry, the woman Kid Rock has been with since 2011 and engaged to since 2017. Now Us Weekly has breaking news: Berry and Rock are no longer together! According to “sources,” the two split at the end of last year, thus suggesting that Rock wasn’t cheating when he (possibly) hooked up with Boebert, or earlier that day when he hit on a BBC News reporter on live TV. So not unfaithful, but still completely scuzzy. Here’s more from Us Weekly’s exclusive:

Kid Rock and fiancée Audrey Berry have broken up after their seven-year engagement, Us Weekly can exclusively confirm.

A source exclusively tells Us that Kid Rock, 54, has separated from Berry and has moved on, with a second insider noting the pair called it quits late last year.

“He is venturing into the dating pool,” per the source.

Neither the singer nor Berry has addressed the breakup. Us has reached out for comment.

Earlier this month, the “Born Free” crooner was spotted getting into a cab with Colorado Representative Lauren Boebert, according to Page Six. The duo reportedly left a party together in Washington, D.C. at 2:30 a.m. TMZ, meanwhile, reported that the pair were spotted chatting at an inaugural event for President Donald Trump.

Kid Rock (real name Robert James Ritchie) had reportedly proposed to Berry seven years earlier in April 2017, according to the Detroit Free Press. They were first linked in 2011 and long kept their relationship private.

“This is somebody who is not a celebrity. It can really be a tough thing to deal with,” he said during a 2011 interview with Piers Morgan. “I’m thinking of somebody else, trying not to be so selfish.”

Kid Rock initially crossed paths with Berry in his native Detroit shortly after his divorce from ex-wife Pamela Anderson. (Rock and Anderson, now 57, were married from 2006 to 2007.)

The singer, who also is the father to 31-year-old son Robert James Ritchie Jr. from a past relationship, offered rare insight into his romance with Berry in a 2021 profile with Hook & Barrel magazine.

“Every day I pinch myself. I give many, many thanks. I do give a lot of attribution to the hard work that I’ve put in, but at the end of the day, I’ve been a very lucky person,” he told Hook & Barrel. “My fiancée, Audrey, says I have a golden horseshoe up my a–. I don’t take anything for granted, and I think that’s because it took me so long in the trenches to make it, and I worked so hard, but there’s no question I give thanks every day to the position I’m in.”

[From Us Weekly]

I never thought I’d utter these words, but I’m actually inclined to agree with a statement by Kid Rock: I totally believe there is something stuck up his ass. But enough about him! Instead I’d like to congratulate Audrey Berry on getting out of that situation. I don’t know if it was that she just couldn’t forgive and/or forget that 10-year affair he had with Julie Andrews’ granddaughter (yes, you read all those words correctly) that overlapped with Kid & Audrey’s courtship, or Kid’s well-documented history of sexist remarks, or his unhealthy anti-vaxx stance, or if Audrey just wanted a frickin’ Bud Light in peace. Any and all reasons are acceptable in this case! With the timing of this news, though, I am wondering — are we about to get a hard launch for a Lauren Boebert–Kid Rock relationship? Is Brockbert upon us?!! Mega barf. But if it does become official, SNL should definitely have the taxi cab on as a character who drops by Weekend Update.

PS — regarding Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson’s previous relationship… with all the lovely things we know about her today, just, how??

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Categories
Engagements Tom Holland zendaya

Zendaya & Tom Holland are engaged, he proposed over the holidays

Zendaya turned up to the Golden Globes solo, meaning without her long-time boyfriend Tom Holland. Tom rarely comes with her to those kinds of events, but the Globes this year were different. Zendaya wore a large diamond ring on her left hand ring finger, and she was seen showing the ring to various people. The vibe was definitely “Zendaya was telling people about an engagement.” Well, happy news: that’s exactly what it was. Tom Holland proposed to Zendaya over the holidays.

Zendaya and Tom Holland are taking the next step in their relationship … because they’re engaged!!!

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ … the “Spider Man” star popped the question between Christmas and New Year’s … dropping to one knee in a very intimate setting in one of Zendaya’s family homes in the United States.

We’re told Tom didn’t make a huge show of the engagement — it wasn’t a big, over-the-top proposal — instead, it was very romantic and intimate. Our sources say the family wasn’t there … it was just a sweet moment between Tom and Zendaya.

[From TMZ]

TMZ also says that the diamond is huge, and I agree, it looks really big. That was the one thing which made me wonder if Zendaya had simply borrowed a big ring, because I didn’t know if Tom was the kind of guy to actually buy a gigantic rock. Then again, Tom has been all-in with Zendaya for years. He wants to lock this down. Speaking of, People Mag’s sources said that Tom has wanted to propose for “a while.” Man’s been ready to propose since their first date, let’s be real.

Zendaya and Tom Holland are taking their relationship to the next level! The Spider-Man costars, both 28, are engaged, a family source confirmed to PEOPLE. TMZ was first to report the news. According to the outlet, Holland proposed at one of Zendaya’s family homes over the holidays.

A separate source told PEOPLE that “everyone close to them knew an engagement was happening” — just not when. The source said Holland had been keen to propose to Zendaya “for a while.”

“He’s always been crazy about her. He always knew she was the one. They have something very special,” the source said, noting that Holland shared the happy news with friends around New Year’s.

As for tying the knot, the couple plans to take their time. “They will just enjoy things for now and won’t rush a wedding,” the source added. “They are both busy with work projects.”

In the meantime, the pair are soaking up the special moment. “Tom’s always had this sweet way of letting the world know that Zendaya is his. Now, it’s official — she really is!” the source told PEOPLE.

[From People]

I wonder if they will rush a wedding, actually. Or maybe just elope. I have no particular vibe on what their wedding will look like, but I’m sure Zendaya’s wedding gown will be stunning, no matter what. And in case you’re wondering about Zendaya’s family, they’re reportedly super-supportive of her relationship with Tom and everyone gets along really well. TMZ reports that Tom even spoke to Z’s dad, Kazembe Ajamu Coleman, “months ago” to ask for his blessing to propose.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, Backgrid.

Categories
Engagements Graham Norton Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga thought it was a joke when her fiance proposed on April Fool’s Day




Last week was the UK leg of the Joker: Folie à Deux promo tour, ahead of its release this Friday. On Wednesday Lady Gaga walked the premiere red carpet once again with her fiance Michael Polansky, and last Friday she appeared on The Graham Norton Show. Gaga has clearly decided to make her engagement a major talking point of her promotion for the film — she and Michael made their red carpet debut as a couple at the Venice premiere, and he featured prominently in her Vogue cover shoot. So it wasn’t surprising that the Lady discussed it once again while on the talk show. After acknowledging that yes, they had been trying to keep the engagement under wraps before the French Prime Minister outed them on TikTok, Gaga further revealed that Michael proposed on April 1st. As in April Fool’s Day. Meaning, Gaga totally thought it was a joke when he first popped the question:

Lady Gaga thought that her fiance Michael Polansky’s proposal was a joke when he popped the question.

The Joker: Folie à Deux star, 38, revealed on the Sept. 27 episode of The Graham Norton Show that she hadn’t anticipated Polansky, 41, would propose — and didn’t believe it when it happened.

“He proposed on April 1st, and I thought he was joking,” Gaga revealed of the engagement on April Fool’s Day, a day known for pranks.

She went on to note that once she got the ring, it was even harder to keep the engagement under wraps, especially as she was scheduled for several high-profile appearances.

“Then when we went to the Olympics, we were filmed saying hello to the Prime Minister [Gabriel Attal] and I was caught on camera saying, ‘This is my fiance,’” she recalled. “I had wanted to keep it a secret!”

Earlier this week, the couple appeared together at the London premiere of Joker: Folie à Deux with the musician and actress donning a dramatic red gown by Celine by Hedi Slimane for the event, while her beau wore a classic black suit by the same designer.

The pair posed together for several photos on the red carpet, with their arms around each other and were even photographed sharing a smooch and exchanging some loving glances.

Gaga and Polansky were first linked in 2020 when they were photographed kissing at a New Year’s Eve party in Las Vegas. Shortly after, they made their relationship Instagram official at the 2020 Super Bowl in Miami.

The “Born This Way” singer previously opened up about their private relationship in Vogue earlier this month, saying that he has helped her find balance in her life as, “the missing piece… was having real love.”

“I had never met anyone like Michael,” she added to the outlet. “He’s so smart and so kind. And his life and my life are very different. He’s a very private guy and he’s not with me for any other reason than that we are right for each other.”

[From People]

Do we think Michael was being clueless or cheeky, proposing on April Fool’s Day? Either way, it does make for a good story! As she told Vogue, the question was popped after a day spent rock climbing. If it were me, merely being asked to go rock climbing would’ve been the tip off that April Fool’s shenanigans were afoot. I like having my feet firmly on the ground! That’s why I don’t f–k with fashion stilts, and I don’t try climbing vertical surfaces. And speaking of, Gaga also spoke a bit with Graham about her Paris Olympics performance, and a couple things caught my ear. One, she said she performed in the rain. I thought the whole reason it had been (the only opening ceremony act) pre-recorded was to avoid the rain, non? Or am I being too literal, and she’s referring to misty conditions? And then Gaga says that it was “insisted upon” that the stairs be carpeted, which made things extra slippery. Who what huh? This is the kind of casually mentioned, random detail that sends me down a rabbit hole. Who was demanding carpeted stairs, someone from Gaga’s or the Olympics’ team? Was this related to the stairs, specifically, or was someone determined that carpeting be involved no matter what? Was this an international conspiracy to sabotage Gaga and her dancers? Was Karastan Carpets a secret sponsor?!? I need these answers!! #carpetgate

Photos credit: PA Images/INSTARimages, Cat Morley / Avalon, James Warren / Bang Showbiz / Avalon, Media/Backgrid, Phil Lewis / Wenn / Avalon

Categories
Engagements Lady Gaga Relationships

Lady Gaga covers Vogue, gushes about fiance: ‘I don’t have to do this alone anymore’



Lady Gaga covers the October issue of Vogue to promote Joker: Folie à Deux. The real driving force of the article, though, is about Gaga’s engagement to boyfriend of nearly five years, Michael Polansky. Up until now Gaga hasn’t really discussed Michael publicly. That is not the case here. Gaga clearly decided to make this a sort of debut for them as a couple, fittingly timed to their walking their first red carpet together in Venice last week. The writer takes note of the “Wilma Flintstone-size” diamond that Michael gave her when they got engaged in April “after a day of rock climbing.” Gaga goes into how they were introduced — her mother actually met Michael first, and then told her daughter, “I think I just met your husband.” And significantly, Michael himself is quoted a lot throughout. A few highlights:

Their meet-cute in December 2019 at Sean Parker’s 40th bday bash: “I got invited and I said, ‘I wonder if Michael is going to be there,’ and my mom said yes, and so I went to the party and I kept asking for him and he finally came over to me and we talked for three hours. We had the most amazing conversation.” Polansky tells me that he didn’t make it three steps into the party before someone told him that Lady Gaga was looking for him. “I didn’t know much about her and honestly wasn’t sure what to expect,” he says. “I was struck immediately by her warmth and openness — she was so genuinely curious about what my life was like growing up in Minnesota.”

Michael moved in during the pandemic: They talked on the phone for weeks, “and then we went on our first date,” says Gaga, “and just fell in love. And then COVID hit.” Polansky had been living in San Francisco, but during the pandemic they shacked up together at her Malibu house for well over a year. … “I’d been so focused on my career since I was a teenager. And the gift of that time was that I got to completely focus on my relationship.”

A chance to slow down: “We had this amazing chapter of a weird kind of normalcy,” says Polansky, “that’s essential for any relationship to develop in a real way — taking walks, making coffee, hanging out with the dogs, reading books together…” He adds, “The pandemic was easier on her than you might think. She’s used to being isolated because of her fame and was able to take so much of it in stride. I think she loved the chance to slow down. She’s been operating at an unfathomable level of intensity for years and it’s no secret it had caught up to her.”

She is so in love: “I had never met anyone like Michael. He’s so smart and so kind. And his life and my life are very different. He’s a very private guy and he’s not with me for any other reason than that we are right for each other.” … “I kind of thought I was going to have to do this all by myself — forever. And that was really scary. Because it’s a big life. And I don’t think anyone really knows what it feels like unless you’re in it.” Her voice drops into a softer tone. “And I don’t have to do this alone anymore.”

Making sweet music together: “She’s someone who is happiest when she’s creating. It’s one of the qualities I love most about her,” Polansky says. … “Like anyone would do for the person they love, I encouraged her to lean in to the joy of it. On the Chromatica tour, I saw a fire in her; I wanted to help her keep that alive all the time and just start making music that made her happy.” … “Michael and I did that tour together,” she says. “I did it pain-free! I haven’t smoked pot in years. I’ve, like, changed.” She laughs. “…And now, Michael and I are really excited to organize our lives — and our marriage — around our creative output as a couple.”

[From Vogue]

The Lady is in love! I mean, she’s really in love. It’s all so beautiful and delicate (and yes of course mushy and over-the-top) that the only thing making me cringe is a superstitious worry about it all being so public now. I also hope she isn’t giving Michael too much credit for the work she does. Support is great, but she described it as Michael’s idea for her to record LG7 — which the article says comes out in February with a single dropping next month!! — but, she’s a singer-songwriter, how far-fetched was it that she’d make another album? Ok, I’ll stop quibbling there. I highly recommend reading the piece in full as there’s so much more. The writer has been interviewing Gaga since 2010, and the sense of growth and joy he encountered in this meeting was palpable and, to me, encouraging.

Also, a note to the future Mr. Kismet: a “Wilma Flintstone-size” diamond is exactly the right kind of ring for me as well. And one more note: please, no rock climbing.

photos credit: Aissaoui Nacer/Backgrid and Vogue via Instagram

Categories
Engagements Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky are figuring out their prenup, her ring is 8 carats




Lady Gaga and her boyfriend of four years Michael Polansky are officially engaged. There’s been speculation since April, when Gaga was first seen sporting an 8-carat diamond on her left hand ring finger. But it wasn’t until last week that we got confirmation, via a sneaky leak from French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s TikTok, wherein Gaga introduces Michael as her “fiance.” Although it may not have gone down the way she wanted, it still somehow feels quintessentially Gaga the way this confirmation rolled out. Don’t you just hate it when a foreign leader casually reveals your engagement by accident in a social media video filmed at the Olympics?! And if you’re just tuning back into this report, having momentarily passed out at 8-CARAT DIAMOND, first of all welcome back! And second, these are two millionaires in love, so yes we’re talking 8-carats. It also means they’re talking prenup, according to the latest word on the street (though nothing’s been confirmed by a European politician yet):

Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky, who have been secretly engaged for months, are hashing out a prenup before their upcoming wedding, In Touch has learned.

Gaga, 38, “is worth $900 million, so of course there needs to be a prenup in place,” says a source. “And Michael understands that. He’s not resisting it.”

Michael himself is extremely wealthy — the 46-year-old is executive director of the Parker Foundation and estimated to be worth $600 million!

“So there are a lot of assets on both sides, and a prenup will just make everything clear. It hasn’t created any tension between them — it’s actually made everything easier. They can’t wait to get married.”

[From In Touch]

I definitely buy that this is clear, easy, and tension-free for them; Gaga and Michael each have massive, comparable wealth (though I do enjoy that Gaga out-earns him, in a flip on the gender pay gap!). They each understand the necessity of safeguarding their assets, without it in any way diminishing the love and trust between them. Of course I speak from no experience, but that’s never stopped me before.

Now getting back to what’s important: the ring. The Daily Mail has some new papa-paparazzi pics (yes, I really will keep making that lyric joke in all Gaga stories, where applicable) of the Lady and the Fiance out for dinner back home in Malibu. They’re a little fuzzy, but you still get a sense of how ginormous the diamond is. Because I’m a scientist, I needed to see the analytical stats across the three engagement rings Gaga has been gifted, from Taylor Kinney to now (what each ring says about the man who bought it, I leave to the anthropologists). In 2015 Taylor Kinney gave Gaga a 6-carat heart-shaped diamond that was custom-designed by Lorraine Schwartz and estimated to cost between $400,000 – $500,000. In 2018 Christian Carino presented her with a 6 or 7-carat pink sapphire — rumored to be a rare Padparadscha — surrounded by 3 or 4 carats of diamonds, estimated to be worth $300,000 – $400,000. Michael Polansky did his homework and upped his game, with the 8-carat oval-cut diamond in a solitaire setting we see the Lady wearing today. And the estimated $578,000 was a mere drop in the bucket of Michael’s $600 million net worth. Ok, now I’m the one passing out from these figures…

Good luck to Gaga and Michael with the prenup, and may they never have to use it.

Lady Gaga out here collecting engagement rings like they’re Infinity Stones ????

pic.twitter.com/bPtjscimPV

— Connor Behrens (@ConnorBehrens) July 8, 2021

Lady Gaga sparks engagement rumors after being spotted with massive diamond ring https://t.co/XF3Q3ZeqDk pic.twitter.com/Ob0Y8wDgkh

— Page Six (@PageSix) April 9, 2024

Photos credit: Backgrid and IMAGO/Volker Essler/SVEN SIMON / Avalon

Categories
Engagements Lady Gaga Olympics

Lady Gaga introduced Michael Polansky as her fiance to French PM at Paris Olympics




Lady Gaga started wearing a big diamond ring — on that finger — back in April, so we’ve been presuming she and boyfriend-of-four-years Michael Polansky are engaged. I say “presume,” because Gaga hasn’t said a peep on the matter… until now! She met French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal on Sunday (who is the youngest and first openly gay French PM, fyi), and Attal’s team posted the nine-second encounter on his official TikTok. Attal captioned the video “Thank you Lady Gaga for your stunning performance at the opening ceremony. It was breathtaking. ????????,” and after the two hug, we hear Gaga introduce Attal to her “fiance Michael.” And that’s all the confirmation Little Monsters and People Mag needed!

Lady Gaga is engaged!

The singer, 38, and her longtime boyfriend, entrepreneur and tech investor Michael Polansky, are set to be married, she revealed to French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

In a TikTok posted by Attal on Sunday, July 28, Gaga can be heard introducing Polansky as “my fiance” as the trio spectated a swimming event together.

PEOPLE has reached out to reps for both Gaga and Polansky for comment.

[From People]

Well played, Attal, well played. I’d like to think that his staff knew what they were doing by including that soundbite, knowing it would go viral (do the kids still say that?). But he still has plausible deniability, “Eh, quoi? We were just ooging?” Anyway, congrats to Gaga, on the engagement, and her performance Friday night. As we were speculating last week, Lady Gaga and Celine Dion were in town to perform at the opening ceremony. Prognosticators had their bets on Gaga singing “La Vie en Rose,” but it was Celine who brought us all to tears with an Edith Piaf song, “L’Hymne à l’amour.” (And who predicted she’d be at the Eiffel Tower? Kismet, that’s who!) Gaga, meanwhile, surprised us with a bit of light, frothy, vintage French cabaret, singing “Mon Truc en Plumes,” which translates to “My Thing with Feathers,” originally made famous by French sprite Zizi Jeanmaire. You had me at feathers.

Lady Gaga hid behind feathers on a staircase along the Seine, but it didn’t take long for her to emerge and command center stage at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics on Friday.

The “Shallow” singer performed Zizi Jeanmaire’s “Mon Truc en Plumes” in pretty good French — no surprise given that she covered the Edith Piaf classic “La Vie en Rose” for her hit movie “A Star Is Born.”

Gaga pulled off a showstopper during the boat parade of nations along the river, video of her performance showed.

She channeled Parisian cabaret singers of old in a short, strapless black outfit with stockings and high heels in an energetic act before eventually settling down to the piano.

Her appearance at the festivities hardly shocked anyone. She was seen in Paris earlier this week and was spotted rehearsing shortly before the ceremony.

Gaga had a good time, writing on X that she was “completely grateful to have been asked to open” the Olympics.

“I am also humbled … to sing such a special French song,” she wrote.

[From HuffPost]

If you look up pictures of Zizi, you see Gaga really nailed the look (well, except for the bleached eyebrows). This is an aspect of Gaga that is sometimes underrated: her research and reverence for music history. So yes of course she collaborated with Dior to emulate Zizi’s feather confections, and of course she trotted out choreography that paid homage to Zizi’s style as well — I particularly adored the foot choreo at the beginning before the big reveal. And it all went flawlessly! I mean, the papa-paparazzi leaked photos of a final dress rehearsal before the ceremony began, one dancer fell on the steps in the rain, some French-speakers called her pronunciations “French adjacent,” and something wonky was going on with the sound overall… But aside from that, flawless!

Look, I love my Lady. But this performance was not as tight as it could’ve been, and


it should’ve been a slam dunk for her. Now that I’ve watched it a few times, I think they needed a higher-contrast backdrop to show off the meticulous hand gestures Gaga was doing. Especially after she took off the gloves, all those movements got lost among the feathers. As for the sound, was it being on the water that threw it off? That didn’t seem to affect the other singers of the night, though. And wasn’t it strange that after her dramatic arrival at the piano, she was only there for a hot minute and then didn’t sing again for the rest of the number? I’m only nitpicking out of love! C’est la vie!

Mon Truc en Plumes ???????? @Olympics https://t.co/8shm2QFsy1 pic.twitter.com/RoG9zkzXvO

— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) July 27, 2024

Lady Gaga seems to be engaged after introducing boyfriend Michael Polansky as “my fiancé” to the French Prime Minister. pic.twitter.com/SsZmseVaWG

— Pop Base (@PopBase) July 28, 2024

Photos credit: Best Image/Backgrid, Sina Schuldt/dpa / DPA Picture Alliance / Avalon