In this week’s DIVA Dating Digest, we take a look at this couple’s unwavering support for one another
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE VIA INSTAGRAM (@BRANDICARLILE)
American singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile has captured the hearts of many with her alternative country tracks, earning her a whopping nine Grammys (and 27 nominations!). Her 2007 album The Story truly put Brandi on the map as an artist, winning her fans across the world. She’s become known as an icon within the business and has been described as “Americana’s latest transcendent star” by the Seattle Times.
The lesbian icon has been with her wife Catherine Shepherd for over a decade now. But how did they fall in love?
2009: Brandi Carlile receives a phone call which changes her life
Sometimes fate works in mysterious ways. In 2009 Brandi received a phone call which would change her life forever. Can you guess who was on the other end of the line? While Brandi was working for Beatles singer Paul McCartney’s charity, Catherine called her up to see if she could donate some Beatles memorabilia. The rest is history…
2010: Catherine and Brandi meet in person
After a whole year of talking on the phone, Catherine flew all the way from the UK to New York in 2010. However, Brandi was pretty surprised when she saw Catherine in the flesh.
“It was shocking to say the least,” Carlile told PEOPLE in 2021. “Every time I talked to her over the phone, I thought I was talking to somebody who was like 65 years old. I don’t know why. I think because of her wisdom and her demeanour. Or maybe I thought she was Paul’s age or something. So we met backstage in New York, and we were both like 27.”
May 2012: Brandi and Catherine share the red carpet
Stepping out in public for the first time, the pair rocked their very first red carpet together in 2012 at the Donor Of The Day Celebration at The Whitney Museum of American Art.
September 15, 2012: The pair tie the knot
Not long after, the pair actually tied the knot in Boston in an intimate wedding. In a sweet Facebook update, Brandi described how the day was a “total blast”!
“We got married in a falling down barn and we had an amazing bluegrass band called Pickled Okra, a Molly Moons ice cream truck, cupcakes, wood-fired pizza and our favourites The Secret Sisters played an amazing set,” she continued.
“It was truly one of our best days, completely awkward and human and beautiful. I’m married to my best friend and nothing has ever brought me more joy than that.”
June 2014: Brandi and Catherine welcome daughter Evangeline Ruth
In an adorable snap, Brandi introduced the world to the couple’s first daughter Evangeline Ruth. “Welcome to the world kid!” she wrote in a sweet caption. The pair used IVF to conceive Evangeline, using Brandi’s eggs for Catherine to carry.
March 2018: The pair welcomes their second daughter Elijah
Soon three became four as the couple shared the wonderful news that their family was growing once again with the birth of their second daughter Elijah! “But all the wonders I have seen, I will see a second time. I am the mother of Elijah,” Brandi wrote on Instagram.
February 2019: Catherine supports Brandi as she wins her first Grammy Award
At the 61st annual Grammys, Brandi Carlile swept up a number of wins, and was in fact the most-nominated female artist of the night! Of course, her wife Catherine was right by her side to cheer her on.
October 2021: Brandi opens up about falling in love with Catherine
Twelve years after the pair had their first phone call, Brandi opened up about falling in love with Catherine on The Howard Stern Show.
“I hadn’t seen her for six or seven months, and I’d ended my relationship,” Carlile explained. “She’d come to Boston to visit her dad, and she walked up to my tour bus. I saw her at the front door, and I was just like, ‘That’s it. Everything’s different.’”
February 2023: Catherine introduces Brandi’s Grammy performance
“Millions of viewers watching tonight fell in love with the next performer four years ago when she took the Grammys stage for the first time and delivered one of the most iconic performances in Grammy history,” Catherine said while introducing Brandi at the 2023 Grammys, referencing her wife’s The Joke live performance. “I was lucky enough to marry her more than a decade ago, so I was way ahead of you.”
“It means the world to me to stand here tonight with our beautiful daughters by my side and introduce, in our humble opinion, one of the greatest, most authentic artists and human beings on the planet.”
We absolutely cannot get enough of this couple!
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