Since publicizing their relationship, Ciara and Russell Wilson have largely been crowned “couple goals” for their wholesome and heartwarming love story. This week, the singer further shared the moving backstory behind their enduring romance, reflecting on her first date with the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback during an appearance on “The Kelly Clarkson Show.”
“When you know, you know,” Ciara told Clarkson. “From day one, we sat down, we talked. It’s so funny, ‘cause we always laugh about the first time we met. We were talking too long and having such a good time, and in such great conversation, we forgot to eat.”
While their stomachs may have been hungry, their hearts were full as they left the date. According to the “Goodies” singer, both she and her now husband called their friends to share their reactions to the encounter.
“He told his friend in the elevator going down, ‘She’s the one,’” she said, explaining how the two have since shared their post-first-date stories with one another. “I called my best friend, Yolie, who’s my matron of honor, my makeup artist for legitimately 24 years [and] I said, ‘Yolie, I don’t want to jinx anything, but I think…’ And she goes, ‘He’s the one?’ And I go, ‘Yes.’”
Before Wilson, Ciara was engaged to rapper Future, with whom she shares a son, Future Zahir. When she returned to the dating world with a baby, the singer expressed needing to find a partner who understood she came with a “beautiful package” deal.
Wilson reportedly rose up to the challenge. Shortly after their first date, the NFL player reportedly met Ciara’s son and father in what she says was a “friendly” environment. While most people would be intimidated, Wilson reportedly “jumped right in,” protecting a then-crawling baby Future from a falling chair.
“He legit slid across that kitchen, so smooth, and caught that chair — and I was like, ‘Oh, OK.’ I mean, it was pretty sexy, but it was pretty cute.”
Since marrying in 2016, the couple’s family has blossomed to include three more children: Sienna Princess, Win Harrison, and Amora Princess. While social media might consider their love story to be standard celebrity fare, Ciara explained that their marriage is a product of multiple prayers.
“I prayed many nights,” she said, as previously reported by theGrio. “The thing is like, people always say ‘the prayer’ it’s not one prayer, it’s multiple prayers, especially when you’re going through a big transition in life. I was a single mom in it, and that [was] something I never envisioned, never imagined. And at that point, you’re at a time in your life where you have to think about exactly where you are and where you wanna go.”