Andy Cohen Officiates Gay Virtual Wedding With A Music Legend & Two ‘Housewives Of Honor’
Andy Cohen officiated a wedding on his late-night Bravo show, and he brought in some celebrity friends to lend a helping hand.
The Bravo star, 52, has been doing virtual editions of Watch What Happens Live from his New York City home amid the coronavirus pandemic, but on Sunday night he also helped two fans tie the knot during the show in honor of Pride Month.
Grooms Justin and Robert had planned a destination wedding but were forced to cancel their plans when the health pandemic hit, according to E! News. Cohen stepped in to conduct an online ceremony for the couple with some help from his famous friends.
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Erika Girardi and Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kandi Burruss served as “Housewives of Honor” via video chat, and Top Chef’s Stephanie Cmar baked celebratory cupcakes for the “reception.”
Cohen started out the ceremony by saying he was there to “join this man Justin and this man Robert in virtual internet matrimony unless their Wi-Fi craps out first.”
The happy couple shared some heartfelt words with one another, with Robert telling Justin that he will always be his “Mariah Carey.”
As the couple exchanged rings, Cohen even quoted a Real Housewives star.
“In the immortal words of Lisa Rinna, ‘May you always own it,'” he said of the rings.
After Cohen told the couple that he had “bad news” about music for the reception — as in he couldn’t secure a classic wedding band to play for them — Grammy-winning singer Patti LaBelle surprised them by performing an a capella rendition of her 1983 hit “Love, Need and Want You.”
LaBelle wished the couple a lifelong marriage then advised them to occasionally take two-week vacations from one another that will make them “love even harder together” when they get back.
As a wedding gift, the newlyweds received a pair of Cartier watches from The Real Real, and the organization also vowed to donate a portion of proceeds from purchases made through June 30 to the National Black Justice Coalition, according to Entertainment Tonight. Bravo also gave the couple a set of high-end Louis Vuitton luggage to use on their honeymoon.
Longtime fans know that this is not the first time Cohen has officiated a TV wedding. The Bravo host has put his marriage officiant license to good use in the past, most notably in 2014 when he married a couple named Ricardo and Daniel in front of the Bravo Clubhouse. The ceremony, which took place two weeks after Queen Latifah married 34 gay couples during that year’s Grammy Awards, was attended by actor-singer Jonathan Groff and singer Tamar Braxton, per Buzzfeed.
