Photo: BACKGRID
Sofia Richiehas raised the bar for celebrity weddings.
Richie, the daughter of music legendLionel Richie, wed her now-husbandElliot Graingein the South of France on April 22, 2023. Grainge is the founder of music label 10K Projects and also the son of Universal Music Group chairman and CEO Lucian Grainge.
Afterannouncing their engagementin April 2022, Richie and Grainge jetted to the French Riviera for anextravagant wedding weekendone year later, complete pre-nuptial activities like a pool party and rehearsal dinner. From the moment the couple — and their many celebrity guests — landed, their subsequent festivities dominated headlines and social media, with many declaring the event the wedding of the year.
“We recapped the night and ordered big bowls of pasta along with every French food you could imagine,” RichietoldVogueafter the celebration was over. “We just sat around recapping until the morning. It was great!”
From their exclusive venue to their extravagant cake (which they had to cut with a saber!), here are all the details ofSofia Richie and Elliot Grainge’s weddingin the South of France.
They hosted their wedding weekend at an exclusive resort in the Antibes, France
Sofia Richie.Sofia Richie/Instagram
Richie and Grainge chose Hotel du Cap-Eden-Rock in Antibes, France, as the venue for their nuptials. The oceanfront retreat is arguably one of the most exclusive resorts in the French Riviera, and has counted royals, politicians and film stars as guests throughout its 150-plus year history. Hotel du Cap-Eden-Rock also hosts the annualamfAR Galaduring theCannes Film Festivaleach year.
Sofia Richie wore three custom Chanel wedding dresses
Sofia Richie/Instagram
The model trusted French fashion house Chanel with three bespoke bridal looks for the wedding weekend. During an interview withVogue, Richie admitted it was a “dream” of hers to wear Chanel on her wedding day, adding, “Having the opportunity to create this dress and work so closely with Madame Olivia Douchez, première of haute couture salons, and observing their art and immaculate attention to detail was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
For her rehearsal dinner outfit, Richie wore a long-sleeve hand-beaded number reminiscent of a 1997 Chanel couture look. The floor-length gown was dripping in sequined-fringe, and featured a mock neckline and sheer sleeves.
The following day, Richie exchanged vows in a lace-embroidered halter gown with sequin appliqués. Several sentimental details were included in the design, such as two embroidered hearts on the front of the gown and the couple’s initials stiched in blue inside the chest. She also topped off the look with a unique veil that was covered in resin water droplets.
“I honestly think Elliot is going to love it,” the influencer toldVogueahead of her wedding. “He is my biggest cheerleader when it comes to anything I wear. If he doesn’t cry, I’ll be very sad.”
She finished the night in a white, square-neck mini dress, which was a recreation of a Chanel corset dress supermodelClaudia Schifferwore on the runway in the ’90s. Richie accessorized her afterparty look aquamarine chandelier earrings and Jimmy Choo pumps.
Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie and Cameron Diaz were among the star-studded guests
Paris Hilton Instagram ; Nicole Richie Instagram
Celebrities from Los Angeles to London travelled to Antibes for Richie and Grainge’s wedding day. Theirguest list was packed with starsincluding Richie’s sister Nicole and her husbandJoel Maddenof Good Charlotte. Joel’s twin brotherBenji Maddenwas also present alongside his wifeCameron Diazand their daughterRaddix.
Paris Hiltonand her husbandCarter Reumwere there, as well as beauty influencer Marianna Hewitt, modelTalita von Furstenberg, TikTok star Jake Shane andPrincess Olympia of Greece.
Lionel’s longtime girlfriendLisa Parigiand Richie’s mother Diane Alexander were also in attendance. During the ceremony, Richie’s parents Lionel and Alexander accompanied the bride and groom underneath the chuppah along with Grainge’s father Lucien and his wife Caroline.
Lionel Richie proudly walked his daughter down the aisle
For the ceremony, Richie and Grainge took over the resort’s iconic promenade — making the walk from the hotel to the altar over seven minutes long.
As the father-daughter duo got closer to the chuppah where Grainge was waiting, Lionel was heard saying, “That’s my kid.”
Steven Sanchez sang Sofia’s favorite song, “Until I Found You,” during the processional
Steven Sanchez TikTok
While Richie chose American singer-songwriter Steven Sanchez’s ballad “Until I Found You” as her processional song, she didn’t know that Sanchez would be singing it live at the end of the aisle.
The bride called the moment, which was a wedding gift from the groom, “surreal” and “meaningful” toVogue.
Sanchez even changed a few of the lyrics to “Sofia.”
Sofia Richie and Elliot Grainge held a traditional Jewish ceremony
Sofia Richie reveals she' converted to Judaism.Sofia Richie Instagram
A few weeks ahead of the wedding, Richie revealed thatshe converted to Judaismas her then-fiancé Grainge is Jewish. The couple also legally married in the United States before the French nuptials, exchanging personal vows at home with just their parents in attendance.
Richie also toldVoguethat it was “very important” to her and Grainge that they host a traditional Jewish wedding ceremony. The bride and groom’s families witnessed a private Ketubah signing in the hours leading up to the wedding and Richie and Grainge said “I do” underneath a floral-covered chuppah.
Lionel Richie sang two of his hit songs during the newlyweds' first dance
Joel Madden/Instagram
Father-of-the-bride Lionel gave his daughter the most sentimental wedding gift: singing during her first dance. The Grammy-winner performed his hits “Stuck on You” and “Hello” while Richie and Grainge had their first dance as husband and wife — both songs being among Richie’s favorites.
“I always said it would be a dream to do our first dance to ‘Stuck on You,’ " Richie toldVogueafter the wedding, adding, " ‘Hello’ was a surprise, and the whole room was singing along.”
They cut their multi-tiered wedding cake with a saber
Sofia Richie Instagram
Their wedding reception ended with a firework show over the Mediterranean Sea
Sofia Richie Grainge TikTok
Good Charlotte performed at the afterparty
Richie and Grainge’s wedding day culminated in a chic, nightclub-themed afterparty complete with a balloon-covered ceiling and plenty of dancing. As is customary during a Jewish wedding, the newlyweds and their guests participated in a hora dance.
“They are true rock stars,” Richie shared withVogue. “Between my dad and Good Charlotte, it was unbelievable. And most importantly, it really felt like family, which is exactly how we wanted the wedding to feel.”
source: people.com
