Toni & Keril's Dream Wedding - singer Toni Braxton weds

Ebony, June, 2001 by Joy Bennett Kinnon

Toni Braxton & Keri Lewis united in star-studded ceremony in Georgia wonderland

THE wedding of Toni Michele Braxton and Keirston Jamal Lewis in a Georgia wonderland was a victory, a shout and a fairy-tale ending to one of the greatest comebacks in show business history.

"I'm the happiest I've ever been," proclaimed the groom, after a soulful, ceremony-ending kiss.

"I'm married now," shouted the bride, joyfully flashing her left hand with its platinum wedding band at her guests at the end of the ceremony.

As the bride and groom walked down the aisle after being pronounced husband and wife, the groom suddenly swooped up his bride and carried her in his arms to the garden as she squealed with laughter.

The Belle of Broadway had married her Beau.

It was a star-studded gala attended by Georgia's Governor Roy E. Barnes and his wife, Marie, Atlanta's Mayor Bill Campbell and his wife, Sharon, Representative Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.), and entertainment and sports royalty such as Kenny (Babyface) Edmonds, Chante Moore, Usher, Monica, Rozanda (Chilli) Thomas of TLC, Stokley of Mint Condition, Def Jam President Kevin Lyles, Tameka Cottle of the group Xscape, Donell Jones, casting director Reuben Cannon, actor Michael Jai White and football's Ray Lewis.

Rapper Mack 10 and his wife, Tionne (T-Boz) Watkins of TLC, attended, so did Montell Jordan and his wife, Kristen.

Former Atlanta mayor and former U.S. Ambassador Andrew Young officiated at the sunny, late afternoon ceremony in the rose garden of the formal French and Italian gardens near the amphitheatre in the 60-acre Dean Gardens estate outside Atlanta. Because of the interest in the wedding and the high-profile guests, security was extra tight. Georgia state troopers kept paparazzi at bay well beyond the 20-foot-high, black wrought iron gates at the property's entrance.

Security was so tight that guests didn't even know the ceremony's location until the very last minute. The invitations directed them to a local church; and when they arrived, they needed a ticket to gain entrance to the shuttles that ferried guests to the private estate for the wedding. Guests were asked to leave cameras and cell phones at home. Workers hired for the wedding said they didn't know whose wedding it was until they arrived at the site.

Even though the production had all the fanfare of a royal wedding, the private outdoor garden ceremony before 250 hand-chosen guests had an intimate air and a family touch. Braxton's four sisters, Traci, Towanda, Trina and Tamar, served as bridesmaids, and her dear friends, Cheryl Cobb and Davette Singletary-Jefferson, served as maid and matron of honor. The best man was Jason Allen. Lewis' brothers, Keith and Kevin, and Chris Dave of Mint Condition and Andre Carter were the groomsmen.

The bridal couple's parents, Evelyn Braxton and the Rev. Michael C. Braxton Sr., and Mr, and Mrs. Clarence Lewis, were all present. There was a bevy of beautiful little flower girls--Mintice Hankerson (daughter of Barry and Masonya Hankerson), Sophia Hardison (daughter of singer Chante Moore and actor Kadeem Hardison), Zonnique Pullins (daughter of Tameka Cottle of the group Xscape) and Jessica Sherlock (cousin of the groom). Their flower baskets were small Tiffany boxes. Two tiny ring bearers, Eric and Caleb Mojica, took one look at the assembled guests and bolted up the aisle to stand next to Keri.

The groom and his groomsmen entered to a hip version of "So Fresh, So Clean," a single by Atlanta's own OutKast. The mothers of the bride and groom were seated to Bach's "Jesu, joy of Man's Desiring," A 16-piece orchestra, directed by Terrence Lee Jones, played a mixture of classical and contemporary music, announcing the bridal party's entrance.

The bride's entrance was heralded with Handel's "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba." And the audience gasped as they caught their first glimpse of Braxton through a billow of tulle, walking down the 40-foot, white-carpeted aisle on her father's arm to Wagner's "Bridal Chorus."

The question of the day, the question the world eagerly asked was finally answered. Yes, Virginia, Toni Braxton's wedding gown was stunning, and modest, featuring spaghetti straps. The singer, who has worn some of Hollywood's most revealing gowns, was lustrous, shimmering in an ivory Vera Wang gown of duchess satin. The full gown featured a notched crystal-beaded front bodice with back-button detail, and a cathedral train with matching veil. The ivory bridesmaid's gowns were by Watters & Watters and were personalized for each bridesmaid. The groom wore a Ralph Lauren tuxedo with an ivory jacket and black tuxedo pants.

Rev. Young read from St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians on love and told the newlyweds to "remember the love" of this wedding day. He also urged them to hold fast to each other because people would be jealous of their beauty, their talent and their success. "Maniage is sometimes like a pain in your big toe," he said, generating much laughter from the guests. "When your toe is hurting, you tend to concentrate on that and forget that you have a healthy heart, a healthy body, and everything else is fine. Don't just concentrate on that toe."