'Empire' star Gabourey Sidibe is engaged to boyfriend Brandon Frankel: 'Every moment with him is a joy'
Oscar-nominated actress Gabourey Sidibe has announced that she is now engaged to boyfriend Brandon Frankel after dating for a year-and-a-half. The 37-year-old 'Empire' star shared the big news on her Instagram account on Tuesday, November 24, posting a video and an image of her and her fiancé showing off her diamond ring.
In the adorable video, Sidibe goes, “hi”, Frankel pops up from behind her and goes, “hi”, then as Sidibe shows off her ring and an excited Frankel pulled a Beyonce and sings, “ah… I put a ring on it.” Sidibe says, “that’s it, that’s all we were gonna say,” while her boyfriend confirms, “we are engaged.”
The star also shared an image in the same post of the couple together showing off her ring with a long caption that goes, “It’s weird that people think we’re already married but I guess our hearts and intentions for each other are just that clear to see.”
She continued, “My BFF proposed and now I get to hold him forever. The funniest man I’ve ever met. The sweetest human to exist. @brandontour made up a song for when I put my bonnet on at night.”
“The second I look a bit stressed and overwhelmed, he jumps into action to take over what he can for me. Every moment with him is a joy. He is the partner I thought I was too independent to need. I’ve learned so much about myself through him and I feel grateful and excited to learn more about the entire world with him by my side. My partner, my best friend, my cats’ daddy, my mans, my heart, my fiancé!!!”
The 35-year-old creative artist Brandon Frankel also shared the video and a picture of his cat wearing a heart necklace that read, “Will you marry my daddy?” and a picture of a bed covered in rose petals with inflated balloons on the words, “Will you marry me.”
We are guessing that was how he proposed to Sidibe to be partners forever. He captioned his post writing, “I asked my best friend to marry me, and she said “YES”! So excited to spend the rest of my life with the most amazing, hilarious, beautiful, and inspiring woman I’ve ever known. I couldn’t imagine a life without you. We make the best team, and we make everything fun and memorable. I liked it, so I put a ring on it. Love you to the moon and back.”
Back in 2017, the bride-to-be revealed what she was looking for in her ideal man. "I'm not very superficial. I like really funny guys, I like guys who are smart, I like people that read, I like people that have really interesting things to do, I like people that really enjoy their jobs," she told People. "I don't want somebody who's like constantly stressed and in a state of their life that they don't want to be in — you've got to be upwardly mobile; that's emotionally, spiritually, physically and monetarily."
Sidibe and Frankel made their relationship on Instagram official in May 2019 when Brandon shared a snap of the pair dressed in 80s-themed clothes with the caption, “Mom & Dad rare night out 80s style to celebrate @tarajiphenson birthday // Party so lit we sucked it up and put on roller skates.”