A case of wedding day “cold feet” nearly derailed the union between Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston.
But luckily, the “Every Little Step” singer had his friend — and unbeknownst to Brown, his future second wife — Alicia Etheredge-Brown to help him ease on down the aisle. The couple who have now been married for over a decade reflected on the full circle moment while appearing on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” to promote the King of R&B’s upcoming two-part docuseries.
“It’s amazing,” says Etheredge-Brown of the pivotal role she played in keeping the 1992 nuptials of Houston and Brown on the right track. Etheredge-Brown and the “New Edition” founding member go back decades, though they both agree at the time they did not share romantic feelings for one another.
“It’s the timing of everything and why things are meant to be, but for sure I was there, I was a friend,” adds the celebrity manager. “All of his groomsmen and his brother could not get him out the bathroom, so I was like, ‘Listen! We’re getting this show on the road. We’re here and this is happening.’”
“I wasn’t going to come out for anybody,” interjected Brown. When asked if his jitters were apparent to guests, Brown confidently says he is certain everyone knew, including Houston.
“She was like, ‘He better get out that bathroom,’” said Alicia of the “Greatest Love of All” singer’s reaction to her groom. “But for some reason I came to the door, I was knocking on it. I was talking to him through the door and then finally he like peeked it a little open and I got in and it was like, ‘let me in, let me in, everything is going to be OK,’” continues Etheredge-Brown in the May 13 interview. “For some reason he listens to me and he eventually came out the bathroom and went down that aisle.”
Brown and Houston’s tumultuous 14-year marriage ultimately ended in divorce in 2007. That same year the “My Prerogative” singer and Etheredge-Brown became an item. Two years later they welcomed their first child, a son named Cassius. They would go on the wed in 2012 and welcome two more children, daughters Bodhi Jameson Rein and Hendrix Estelle Sheba.
“It is ironic that it was us again meeting in life later on and he would be my husband,” says Etheredge-Brown. The docuseries, “Biography: Bobby Brown” premieres May 30 on A&E networks. The series promises to unveil Brown’s ”struggles with substance abuse, his marriage to Whitney Houston, the devastating loss of Houston and his two children and his life as a devoted father and husband.”
In a trailer, Brown, 53, is seen visiting the side-by-side graves of Houston and their daughter Bobbi Kristina. He reveals that Houston’s 2012 death continues to weigh on him. ”I wasn’t there. I beat myself about it because I wasn’t there. I wish I could have been there for her,” says Brown.
