Red Flags In Brad Paisley & Kimberly Williams-Paisley's Marriage That Are Hard To Ignore

Country singers often sing about romantic love stories that stand the test of time, but some country musicians are lucky enough to be living that dream themselves. This appears to be the case for country superstar Brad Paisley who has long been married to actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley. The cute couple were married in 2003 after meeting for the first time in 2001. They have two sons together, William and Jasper, and live in Tennessee away from the glamour of Hollywood.

The couple has a unique love story and, after celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2023, there's definitely a secret to Brad Paisley And Kimberly Williams-Paisley's marriage that keeps them smitten with each other. However, you wouldn't necessarily expect the two of them to end up together based on what they were like growing up. In fact, many elements of their relationship are worth raising an eyebrow at, stemming from the earliest stages of their courtship.

Brad Paisley and his wife Kimberly Williams-Paisley had vastly different upbringings. In fact, their early lives appear to have nothing in common. Williams-Paisley grew up in New York with her parents and two siblings. The family was used to city life and Williams-Paisley knew from an early age that she wanted to become an actor. She made her way to Hollywood when she was just a teenager, getting cast in the Nancy Meyers movie "Father of the Bride" when she was only 19 years old. "I was 'plucked' out of obscurity, chosen from an exhaustive nationwide search, and thrown into the spotlight overnight," Williams-Paisley described her big break in Hollywood to ABC News.

On the other hand, Paisley grew up from humble beginnings in the South. He was born and raised in West Virginia where his small family and tight community encouraged his musical talent. At 12 years old, Paisley began performing on a live country music radio program called Jamboree USA and continued to perform on the show for the next eight years. He started working as a songwriter after graduating from college and released his first record in 1999.

A quick trip to the movie theater would change Brad Paisley's life, and he had no idea. Brad saw his future wife Kimberly Williams-Paisley for the first time on the big screen in 1991 when she starred in the beloved film "Father of the Bride." According to Good Housekeeping, Paisley saw the movie when he was on a date with his then-girlfriend. Four years later, that girl had ended things with Brad ... and was dating his best friend. Feeling sorry for himself, Paisley went alone to see the sequel "Father of the Bride Part II" when it came to theaters in 1995. And when he saw Williams-Paisley on the screen for the second time, he thought, "She seems like a great girl — smart and funny and all those things that are so hard to find."

A few years later, Paisley was on his way to country music stardom. In 2001, he was making a video for his song "I'm Gonna Miss Her." The song was about his ex-girlfriend with whom he went to see "Father of the Bride" 10 years prior. So "it felt natural to ask" the girl from that very movie to star in the music video alongside him. Having never met Williams-Paisley, he gave her a call and asked her. They began dating soon after making the music video together and got engaged one year later.

Brad Paisley and Kimberly Williams-Paisley were excited to tie the knot after getting engaged in 2002, but not everyone felt the same joy. Evidently, Williams-Paisley's mother wasn't thrilled about the news. According to Fame10, when it came to the country music star, her mother was "apparently not his biggest fan." Her mother also had an unexpected "crying episode over not having a role in the wedding," according to Next Avenue. (Years later, Williams-Paisley would learn that her mother was struggling with dementia, and was exhibiting early signs of the disease during her daughter's wedding). Thankfully, Williams-Paisley's mother quickly came around and enthusiastically participated in the wedding on March 15, 2003.

The wedding was actually a surprise to the couple's friends and family ... in a way. According to People, Paisley and Williams-Paisley asked their loved ones to dress in denim for their wedding rehearsal. But when everyone showed up, Williams-Paisley revealed her wedding dress, and the couple married that night! It was the perfect nuptial for the down-to-earth couple that often spends their time with family rather than on red carpets.

Prior to walking down the aisle, Brad Paisley and Kimberly Williams-Paisley were determined to give their relationship a fighting chance. They had known each other for less than two years, but wanted to be prepared with the skills that would make their love last a lifetime. So they agreed to go for couples counseling together.

The real reason the Paisleys got counseling before their marriage was in part due to the Hollywood stereotype of short-lived relationships. "We figured, the odds are against us because we're both in entertainment," Kimberly told Good Housekeeping. "And we know that it's really rare for couples to succeed. So we wanted to arm ourselves with as many strategies as we could."

According to Fame10, the couple also through counseling would be a good idea because, at the time, the two lived apart. Paisley lived in Nashville while Williams-Paisley resided on the other side of the country in Los Angeles. (After they were married, Williams-Paisley moved to Nashville). They also thought counseling would be good since their lives were so different, and hoped it would help them find common ground. It seems to have been a good decision since the couple has been married for more than 20 years and lives happily with their two sons in Tennessee.

Kimberly Williams-Paisley and Brad Paisley have largely kept their marriage out of the spotlight and enjoy living a quiet life, but fans worried that there was trouble in paradise when Paisley was subject to rampant cheating rumors back in 2013. Paisley has been known as a frequent host of the CMA Awards and hosted the show for over 10 years alongside country singer Carrie Underwood. A few years after their first hosting stint, a story from The National Enquirer started circulating. The magazine alleged that Paisley and Underwood were cheating on their spouses by engaging in a romantic affair. (Underwood has been married to Mike Fisher since 2010).

It was US Weekly that revealed the rumored news to Williams-Paisley, who had no idea that her marriage was the subject of a media frenzy. "Am I in the "National Enquirer"?" she asked. "You're breaking it to me!" When asked for a response to the rumors, Williams-Paisley couldn't help but laugh. "Are you serious? Wow! I hope it helps our careers!" she said jokingly. "That's all I can say." Sounds like the Paisley family is solid and remains as strong as ever.