Brad Paisley fell for his future wife, Kimberly Williams, onscreen while at a movie theater. However, according to Brad’s wife, after he’d fallen for her, the country musician tried all means to get her attention.
In 2023, Kimberly Williams-Paisley and her husband, Brad Paisley, had been married for 20 years. The couple was also parents to two children, sons Huck and Jasper, and revealed a unique and adorable tradition that they followed.
While speaking to People magazine in April 2021, the country musician shared how he and his actress wife whipped out a journal every wedding anniversary they celebrated. The couple would write down their favorite memories from the previous year in the book.
Kimberly explained how they recorded their “greatest hits” or “meaningful moments.” The couple wrote down the moments where they had the best laughs; the actress said they focused on the laughter because it kept them feeling a “sense of play.”
However, the kind of relationship they have, Brad and Kimberly, had to keep coming together despite different obstacles they’ve had to tackle. Here are the details about the couple’s fateful meeting and long-term marriage.
HOW BRAD AND KIMBERLY’S LOVE STORY BEGAN
Brad initially fell for Kimberly ten years before their actual meeting. At the time, Brad was 19 and still an aspiring musician living in Glen Dale, West Virginia, and he was on his first date with a local girl.
The pair had gone to the movie theater to watch “Father of the Bride.” That’s when he saw Kimberly, who was then an unknown actress and making her film debut; when the sequel of the movie came out, Brad was 23,
He was now living in Nashville, Tennessee, and was miserable because the girl he’d gone out to the movie theater for a date with had left him for his best friend. While moping around, Brad decided to go alone to watch “Father of the Bride II,” seeing Kimberly again, he said:
“I thought, She seems like a great girl — smart and funny and all those things that are so hard to find.”
Five years after seeing the sequel, the country musician was still single, but his musical career had taken off. The Academy of Country Music even named him that year’s top male vocalist.
On his album, “Part II,” Brad has several tracks about an old girlfriend and another song about going to watch “Father of the Bride.” When he needed to cast someone for the music video, he thought of Kimberly, saying:
“It felt natural to ask her to be in it. Even though I didn’t know if she was married, divorced, or just out of rehab.”
The first time Brad called the actress, the duo could chat easily, and soon enough, they talked nearly every day. When the country musician told Kimberly he was coming to Los Angeles; she took it as an opportunity to ask him for a dinner date, recalling:
“He was such a polite Southern gentleman. I was getting impatient.”
In the future, Brad was quite clear to Kimberly that he was interested in being with her. In a 2007 Good Housekeeping article, the singer shared what his thought process was, stating:
“I really said to myself, This time I’m not going to play games. I’m not going to pretend I’m somebody else, or do things I won’t be proud of later. I didn’t use my evil powers!”
However, things didn’t always work out for the couple when they started dating. He was a small-town Southern resident just getting famous for his music and guitar skills, and Kimberly was born and raised in New York before moving to Los Angeles.
The actress knew nothing about country music, while Brad thought the star’s Hollywood world presented questionable values. The country singer confessed that he had been judgmental back in the day.
After having dinner together, Kimberly and Brad believed something important had happened between them. Brad shared how he thought two people in love felt like a bigger power was at work, with the actress adding:
“We just felt like all the events of our lives had come together for us to meet right when we did.”
Then one night, Kimberly and Brad walked to the end of the Venice Beach pier and made speeches about being meant to be in one another’s lives. The singer vowed to always be there for the actress.
Then six months later, while on the same pier, Brad surprised Kimberly with an engagement ring! The actress recalled the moment by hilariously sharing the proposal’s exact location, saying, “He proposed right in front of the public toilets.”
The couple couldn’t wait to tie the knot; nine months later, they were married. However, because they attended different churches, both pastors officiated their marriage.
In December 2018, “The Christmas Chronicles” star was interviewed by Good Morning America about how she and Brad met. Kimberly revealed the hilarious meeting story, jokingly stating:
“He stalked me and… Isn’t that romantic and he could have ended in jail or marriage, and I was like ‘Alright, I’ll marry you.’”
Kimberly’s husband was one of her biggest fans as he’s had her feature in his music videos and has written songs about her! However, the feeling was reciprocated with the actress sharing how she reacted during his performances:
“When I do go out, I sit where they have the soundboard … and I find myself going like, ‘Oh! Maybe he’ll look at me!’”
When the couple reached their 12th wedding anniversary, they decided to renew their vows. Kimberly shared how her father had advised her and Brad that when a marriage reached 12 years, that’s when it was successful.
The star confessed how funny the renewal was, where she wore a dress her friend had bought on Hollywood Boulevard. The renewal was a surprise to Kimberly and was arranged by her husband and friend.
The friend pitched at Kimberly’s house and offered her the dress, which fit but exposed the actress’s underwear! While attending the 23rd annual “A Night at Sardi’s” benefit for the Alzheimer’s Association, the star shared this about the renewal:
“We did a really, really campy wedding vow renewal ceremony.”
However, the truth was that the couple’s marriage wasn’t perfect. While Kimberly is obsessed with being neat, Brad generally feels like any mess can be left until the housekeeper arrives.
When it came to arguments, they handled them well, with the country musician noting, “She’s really good about not holding grudges,” Kimberly shared, “And he’s really good about apologizing,” and Brad hilariously added, “I usually start with that.”
Brad confessed the helpful thing his wife did, saying: “She says there’s this whole phrase I could say in my sleep: ‘I’m sorry. You’re right. And I love you.’” Another thing that kept them going for so long was their humor.
The singer [Brad Paisley] managed to find personal fulfillment with a professional payoff…
Brad once told The Boot, “We both have very healthy senses of humor. Anything I take myself too seriously on, she will gladly cut me down to size on and destroy all pre-conceived notions that I’m cool in any way,” adding:
“You’ve got to have similar outlooks and really healthy senses of humor. Pretension should be completely gone in a marriage.”
Kimberly and Brad’s first child, a son, was welcomed on February 22, 2007. The country singer revealed his name and origin, saying, “He’s William Huckleberry Paisley, as in Huckleberry Finn — a reference to a spirit of adventure I hope he embodies.”
Jasper Warren Paisley was born on April 17, 2009, in Nashville. His name was a tribute to Brad’s grandfather, who gave him his first guitar and encouraged his pursuit of a music career.
The singer managed to find personal fulfillment with a professional payoff, explaining: “I have more to write about now.” The iconic star added, “Before, I had nothing to write about but failed relationships and life on the road.”
He continued: “Now, I feel emotions more deeply in every sense. When you feel that kind of love — love for Kim and love for him [William],” concluding, “It even makes for better songs.”
The “Bucked Off” artist also confessed that his family got to hear his new songs before his fans. They worked as Brad’s sounding board, with him sharing: “They’ve let me know if they don’t like something. If they like something, I know it’s all right.”