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On the latest episode of ESSENCE’s ‘Yes, Girl!’ podcast, senior digital love and relationships editor Charli Penn sits down with Nickelodean star and comedian Kel Mitchell, and his wife, singer Asia Lee to dig into their love.
The couple reveal that they started off as just friends then decided to take things slow while dating. Well, we know where that led. They said “I do” in February 2012.
The 38-year-old actor, who starred on All That and Kenan & Kel, and his leading laddy revealed that before they even thought about becoming husband and wife, there was one moment when sparks flew and they each felt a little chemistry but decided not to say anything for the sake of preserving their friendship.
“There was one incident when we were hanging out and I went to one of her shows because I used to go to her shows because I was a fan, I liked her music and everything,” Mitchell recalled. “I remember going to one of her shows and we were in Long Beach and we were on a merry go round—a ferris wheel—we were on a ferris wheel and the ferris wheel shook a little bit, and she was scared and she jumped in my arms, right. And at that moment I knew. It was just like, I knew in that moment but I didn’t say anything and as we were dating later, I spoke about that and she said she knew at that time too.”
Aww!
“It was so innocent,” Asia added. “It was like that brief little moment of us on the ferris wheel and it felt like if we were together. I was like, ‘whoa!’ It was just like, God gave me that feeling that at that moment. I was like ‘this is what it would feel like if I was with him’ and I was like, wow and then it just kind of went away because I was like I know he’s dating people and all that stuff so I was like, well nah, I’m not.”
Saying they are much like Jerry and Elaine from NBC’s classic series Seinfield, Kel says that the bond he and his wife developed while forming a friendship and cultivating their relationship (which included waiting 6 months for a kiss) was made stronger by their decision to to not be intimate before marriage.
“It made it beautiful cause I want to show you how much I love you and I want to really fight for it, in a good way, and the connection is different. Then after that, even with the sex as well, we did the same thing. We waited until we got married and that was a joint decision. When we were dating we both got introduced to a church that we liked, around that time and we joined the church and we also had a spiritual mother of mine that I prayed with all the time and she told us about waiting and I was just like, yo, we gotta do it. Let’s wait.”
In February, the Mitchells announced that they are expecting their first child together on Instagram with a hilarious nod to Kel’s Good Burger days.