Alexis and Derrick’s love story is is a reminder that people can hold more depth, heart, and possibility than we see at first glance.
When the pair first met, it was 2012, at the Reign Nightclub in Atlanta. It was a cold Friday night in February, and Alexis’s dogs were barking. Any by dogs, I mean her feet.
“My Forever 21 heels had officially reached their 21-minute limit, so when a friend of my friend said she knew someone with a section, I limped toward salvation,” she recalls. That section belonged to a group of Omega Psi Phi members, including Derrick, and they always had a table on the second level of the establishment. There were many women hanging around the section of “bruhz,” but Alexis was just looking for a seat. Her mystery, he recalls, was alluring.
“Everyone in the section was choosing up, kicking top game, doing the usual Friday night performance. Except her,” Derrick says. “You could tell she was only out for a good time with her girls; not pressed, not thirsty, not checking for anybody.”
After moving people’s coats to to get a sliver of a seat and give her toes a break, Alexis inadvertently created a ruckus. “A couple of women were looking like, ‘Who she think she is moving my jacket?’ But Alexis wasn’t backing down. She wasn’t here to compete. She wasn’t here to be chosen. She came to sit, and that was that.”
Derrick was asked by one of his line brothers to go over and intervene. As soon as he stepped in and began talking to Alexis, realizing they knew some of the same people, his focus was on her. “Normally in the club, I’d dip into my Harlem bag of lines, having fun, talking slick. But with Alexis, the words came out different. They weren’t forced or rehearsed. They felt natural. They felt guided,” he says. “That night, in a packed Atlanta nightclub, with music blasting, coats everywhere, people choosing up left and right… I connected with the person who would become my wife.”
Funnily enough, Alexis can’t tell you what those unforced, unrehearsed words were. “I don’t remember a word of what we talked about, just how he made me feel,” she says.
And so, they were on. At least, for a time. The couple broke up two years later, and it would take about five years, in 2019, for them to find their way back to each other. Once they were reconnected, there was no turning back.
“When my mother passed from cancer in 2021, he showed up not just for me, but for my entire family,” Alexis says. “He has a steadiness I hadn’t experienced. He was supportive, and safe in a way that only someone chosen for you can be. In the darkest season of my life, he was constant. That’s when it became clear: He’s my person, in every season.”
For Derrick, he knew it when he saw a different side of Alexis. He was blown away by her creativity after thumbing through a magazine she’d helped create. “It felt like the lens I looked through, where attraction is based solely on looks and physical desire, completely dissolved. My mind shifted realizing I was being invited into something much deeper. I felt drawn into her mind. Her creativity. Her vision. Her spirit,” he says. “Standing in front of me wasn’t just a beautiful woman, it was a woman with a beautiful mind and an even more beautiful spirit. A woman I truly believe was sent for me.”
And so, he would soon ask for her hand in marriage. He’d called up her closest circle of friends, and they helped him figure out the best approach. Derrick tricked Alexis into believing that they were going on a trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for work. On the second night, he told her they were going to a dinner with his colleagues. “I figured the least I could do was show face. He told me it was on the beach, so in my mind that meant casual; I was dangerously close to wearing jeans. Somehow, he convinced me to put on a dress and I didn’t argue with him,” she says. They headed to Cocina del Mar at Esperanza Resort, a spot he and the “Sister Circle” of girlfriends had picked out. The space, and the sunset, was stunning. So stunning, Alexis couldn’t stop taking pictures.
“I start going into my prepared proposal speech and realized… she ain’t paying me no attention. That’s when it hits me, she is completely off the scent,” he recalls. “So I look at her and say, ‘You really have no clue what’s about to happen, do you?’ She goes, ‘Nah… what you mean?’ And right on cue, the camera crew comes swooping in. I drop to one knee and ask her to marry me.”
“My heart did a backflip,” she adds. “I suddenly noticed we were the only couple in our section, and before I could process another thought, he was down on one knee and flashes went off from a photographer that popped seemingly out of nowhere capturing the moment. It was perfect.”
After returning home to LA to celebrate the moment with friends, who showed up to surprise Alexis in celebration, the couple began planning their nuptials. It would eventually take place on July 12 2025, at the Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills. The spot has been in a number of films and music videos, including The Bodyguard, Rush Hour, as well as Mariah Carey’s “It’s Like That,” “We Belong Together,” and Dru Hill’s “These Are the Times.” They beam at the memories made on that day and the people there in support.
“My favorite moment wasn’t a single moment at all. It was the feeling that covered the entire day,” says Alexis. “It was this overwhelming sense of love that seemed to wrap itself around us from every direction. Of course, Derrick’s love was at the center of it, but it was also the way our families, friends, and community showed up for us.”
Filled with devotion, Italian-inspired elegance, and the warmth of their closest loved ones coming together under the sun (and later, the moon), their wedding day set the perfect tone for the beautiful chapter ahead.
Speaking of beauty, scroll through for the gorgeous images taken of their special day, and learn more about the love that was at the center of it in this week’s Bridal Bliss.
“She was everything I felt I lacked and an additive to everything I am and will become,” Derrick says of when he realized Alexis was the one. “And in that moment, I realized I wasn’t just seeing Alexis – I was seeing myself differently, too.”
“As cliché as it sounds, I felt something the first night we met,” Alexis says. “There was this familiarity and ease and a feeling I’ve only ever had when God is telling me, ‘Pay attention. This is for you.’ It was like my spirit recognized him before my mind did.”
Alexis did her first look with her father, whom she’d also enjoy a father-daughter dance with during the reception. Her mother, who passed in 2021, was there in spirit.
“I originally wanted an Italian wedding, but the thought of asking our families to fly across the world quickly humbled that dream,” says the bride. “So instead, we went looking for a venue that felt like Italy without the jet lag. For me, the moment I stepped onto the grounds of Greystone Mansion; the stone steps, the formal garden, the courtyard, I just knew. It had all the romance of Italy with the gift of having everyone we love right there with us. Italy tucked right into California. I had no notes. This was our place where I was supposed to marry my best friend.”
Violinists on hand played R&B classics to prepare for the beginning of the ceremony.
Derrick was pumped when it was time to make his entrance and head to the altar. The moment they’d been waiting for was about to begin!
Alexis was a dream as she made her way to the altar with her father. “Seeing Alexis that day. I’ve never seen her so beautiful,” Derrick notes. “It was like my first time seeing Mt. Kilimanjaro on our trip to Kenya. You hear about it, you read about it, but when you’re on a plane and see a whole mountain reaching above the clouds, it’s like, is that real? And that’s how I was experiencing Alexis’s beauty that day.”
“I saw the Roc Nation Brunch and thought it would be fly to have our wedding feel the same,” Derrick says. “I wanted it to feel like a true who’s who of all the people in our lives; family, friends, mentors, everybody we love under one roof. And that’s exactly what it became.”
A smooch to seal the deal!
The couple honored the tradition of jumping the broom, and certainly caught air while doing it as the ceremony concluded.
“Always have your wife’s back. You two are one,” is the advice that Derrick received that he’s taking heed to the most. “That does not mean your wife is always correct, but sometimes she can see something you don’t see, or you may see something she doesn’t see. But when you are in the middle of the storm or issue, you may need to wait until things calm down to express an opposing view. My dad taught me years ago not to be quick to anger and to be open to a different perspective. We have to be each other’s support system first, then our logical counsel.”
“Alexis could be wrong, and I’ll do my best to mitigate it, because I know when the night is over we can pour up a nice glass of wine and I can say, ‘Now babe, you know you ain’t have to do all that…,’” he adds. “However, it’s frequently me saying, ‘Shoot, I ain’t even think about that… you right, you right. Come give me a kiss [laughs].’”
The advice that Alexis is keeping close to her heart is simple but profound: “Keep God at the center and remain a team always.”
When asked what he’s looking forward to most about married life, Derrick says it’s creating a home that’s welcoming to all in their circle. “You land in LA, you stop at Lex & D’s; leftovers in the fridge, food on the grill, and snacks in the pantry. Lex did something new with the house, I got the game on in the background, and you never know who might be in the guest room: a sibling, a cousin, a line brother, a line sister. I look forward to making our own authentically African American home.”
“What I look forward to most is simply getting to live life with him and everything that entails,” Alexis says. “The big moments, the quiet ones, the surprises, the challenges, the mundane Tuesdays or grocery runs… all of it feels different when it’s with someone who makes you feel safe, seen, and deeply loved.”
“My grandfather had a stroke a few months back, and he couldn’t make it to see this moment in person, only digitally,” says Derrick of an unforgettable moment on their wedding day. “My Aunt and her husband flew down to Sheldon, South Carolina, popped open the laptop, and put us on Zoom so all four of them were able to watch not only the wedding but the moments leading up to it. I’m the first grandchild to get married. And when he said he saw the people in the audience and said, ‘Wow, that’s some crowd,’ my heart burst with joy and I turned into a puddle. I had no tears left over for the wedding.”
“Lex is big on Italian design, and we knew the fig trees would add the perfect touch. But it was really the mansion courtyard that sealed it. There’s a certain energy you can only get at Greystone. It’s grand, it’s timeless, and it feels like a moment the second you walk in. The whole vision ended up being Italian elegance meets the Roc Nation Brunch, held at SpelHouse Homecoming. We brought Harlem to Hollywood.”
With DJ Benjamin Walker playing the hits, Alexis and Derrick made quite the entrance to their reception.
They turned down the energy, just a tad, to enjoy their first dance. As you can see, all their guests were locked in for the moment.
“My mother is very much like Alexis; both have the spirit of ‘Let’s get things done,’ which might be reason number 1,731 of why I love my wife. With that determination, my mother doesn’t get many moments to be celebrated. That dance with her was my thank you to her for all that she has done for our family, both close and extended. My earliest memories with my mother are with Michael Jackson music playing. He is the GOAT. So “Lady of My Life” was our song. What was cool is that my DJ was able to blend it and put ‘PYT’ at the end, because she will always be a PYT from Harlem.”
Almost as lovely as the decor was this tiered beauty of a dessert for the couple by Hansen Cakes Bakery.
Alexis and Derrick changed into second looks to cut their cake. She continued her strapless streak, this time opting for an embellished, sparkling gown with a sexy split, while he changed into a white tuxedo jacket with a black bowtie.
Alexis, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., shared a moment, a special stroll, with her fellow AKAs.
As for Derrick, a proud member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., he and his fellow Que dogs did a signature hop during the reception, and it was certainly a sight to behold.
As you can see, they had a ball on their big day.
Pour it up, pour it up! The couple poured champagne and shared a kiss as cameras flashed.
The couple weren’t alone in the fun they had, as evidenced by all the joy witnessed from their guests on the dance floor.
“I’m excited for every chapter we get to write together,” Alexis says of her hopes for the married life. “When you find someone who makes the ordinary feel special, you look forward to everything ahead, even the parts you can’t predict. I can’t wait for all the moments we haven’t lived yet.”
Vendors
Photographer: Megan Trinidad
Videographer: Kim Films
DJ: Benjamin Walker
Bridal Hair: The Princella
Bridal Makeup: Stephanie Nimoh
Catering: Fundamental Events
Bar: Cork Runner
Rentals: Premiere Party Rents and 3 Little Birds Event Planning
Wedding Cake & Desserts: Hansen Cakes Bakery
Rings: Nellys & Co.
Invitations: Jonathan Wright and Company
Florist: The Mad Florist