Despite rampant criticism of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s decision to say “I do” inside Madison Square Garden in front of 1,000 of their closest friends and family members, Brad Paisley is assuring naysayers that the wedding was anything but tacky.
“Ironically, [it] was one of the least pretentious weddings that I’ve ever seen or ever will see,” Paisley, 53, told the Associated Press on Friday, July 17. “It meant a lot to be [invited]. It was, kind of, a big thank you from her to invite us.”
Swift, 36, has known the country star since the start of her own musical career. When it came time to send save-the-dates for her nuptials to Kelce, 36, Paisley and his wife, actress Kimberly Williams-Paisley, made the shortlist of 1,000 celebrity attendees.
“They were very clear with the invite, and I took this personally when I got the invite, because in the invite, it said, ‘If you’re getting this, you mean a lot to us,’” Paisley told the outlet on Friday. “It was really fun to watch the cat-and-mouse game of, like, ‘We can tell you roughly where it’s going to be, we’re not gonna say what building … and here’s the date. If you’re in, we’ll tell you more.’”
After conferring with Williams-Paisley, 54, the longtime couple affirmatively RSVP’ed for the eventual star-studded wedding of the decade.
Paisley and the 9-1-1: Nashville actress were among the many guests present when Swift and Kelce exchanged vows on July 3 inside the famed New York City landmark.
To keep the nuptial plans hush-hush, guests only received information regarding the venue’s location on the big day, and were instructed to lock up their phones and other smart devices while in attendance.
“One of the very big stressors is that they were warned in advance that the phones would be taken away, so [my sister] was like, ‘What do I do if I have to go to the bathroom and then I come back … and I don’t know anybody?’” Kimberly’s sister, Ashley Williams, recalled during a “Pause Rewind” interview earlier this month. “The strategy was to take people with you to the bathroom.”
Ashley, 47, further revealed that the Father of the Bride star had been worried about knowing the exact time of the wedding events.
“Brad actually bought a watch because you’re not allowed to have Apple watches either,” Ashley said. “Brad bought a watch so he could know what time it was. [For me,] talk about, like, ‘Get your popcorn,’ I was literally like, ‘Yeah, get your popcorn and just watch the show.’ Luckily when she was ready, I was like, ‘Do a dance with me!’”
Swift and Kelce have not publicly divulged insights from their nuptials though are expected to eventually share photos via Instagram.
