It can't be easy marrying into rock royalty, but for Andraia Allsop and Wolfgang Van Halen, it was love at first sight. And it turns out, Wolfgang isn't the only one in his famous family who adores its newest member.
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00:00It can't be easy marrying into rock royalty, but for Andrea Alsop and Wolfgang Van Halen,
00:06it was love at first sight. And it turns out, Wolfgang isn't the only one in his famous
00:10family who adores its newest member.
00:12To say that Andrea Alsop and Wolfgang Van Halen fell in love at first sight would not
00:17be entirely correct, because they actually first met when he slid into her DMs on Instagram.
00:21Van Halen was touring in 2015 when he sent the fateful message, telling People magazine,
00:26"[It was just like, Hey, it's Wolf. This is my number. I remember where I was. I woke
00:30up in Denver to a message back from her. I remember exactly the hotel room I was in.
00:34It was on the last Van Halen tour. We were about to play Red Rocks, and it was the day
00:38off before we played that I got my first text message from her, and it was like, Oh my gosh!"
00:43They went on their first date not long after, which ended with the two of them watching
00:47the sun set on the beach. Once darkness fell, they spotted numerous shooting stars lighting
00:51up the night sky.
00:53Alsop recalled,
00:54"...it was such a special night."
00:56And Van Halen agreed, saying,
00:57"...it felt like this is meant to be. It's cheesy to say, but definitely love at first
01:01sight."
01:022022 was a very big year for Alsop and Van Halen. First, Van Halen got nominated for
01:07Best Rock Song at the 2022 Grammy Awards. Alsop made a rare public appearance alongside
01:12her beau on the red carpet.
01:13"...I had to bring my mom and my girlfriend as support, because I wouldn't be able to
01:17do this by myself."
01:18Unfortunately, he didn't win that night. But in July 2022, the couple won big when Van
01:25Halen posted on Instagram that they had gotten engaged after seven years of dating. He wrote,
01:29"...she said yes."
01:30Van Halen's mother, Valerie Bertinelli, took to X to celebrate Alsop becoming her future
01:34daughter-in-law, writing,
01:35"...it's nice to have some good news in this godforsaken world."
01:39On October 15, 2023, Alsop and Van Halen were married in an intimate ceremony held in their
01:44own living room, followed by a reception in their very own backyard, which looked straight
01:48out of a fairy tale with flowers and string lights. They also shared a first dance to
01:52a song that was a personal favorite of both Alsop and Van Halen, as well as Wolfgang's
01:56father, Eddie Van Halen, who passed away in 2020.
01:59"...In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel."
02:01"...oh God, that's a very special song."
02:04Alsop told People magazine that after having weathered personal tragedies in the years
02:07leading up to their special day, they wanted a small ceremony that focused on family.
02:11"...Our goal was just to bring all of our closest family and friends together. We wanted
02:15to create this wedding as a celebration not only just for us to get married, but a celebration
02:20for the people we love."
02:21As part of this tribute to family members, Alsop revealed that they left an empty seat
02:25for Wolfgang's late father, Eddie. She also incorporated photos of Eddie and Wolfgang
02:29into memory charms, which she then added to the bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages.
02:34And a bookshelf was set up with photos of departed family members they had lost over
02:37the years. Alsop said,
02:39"...it's important to include them and have them be a part of the ceremony that we wish
02:42they were here for."
02:43For a final family touch, Alsop made the unconventional decision to have both of her grandmothers
02:48act as flower girls for the ceremony. Alsop told People,
02:51"...back in March, my grandfather passed away, but when he and my grandma got married early
02:551990s, I was about three, and so I was their flower girl. So I thought it would be fitting
02:59and just a nice little moment to have my mom's mom and my dad's mom be our flower girls."
03:04As a musician, Wolfgang Van Halen is often on the road, but Van Halen told People that
03:08he and Alsop have learned how to make any place feel like home. Home is where we are
03:12together.
03:13Alsop agreed, saying that as far as they are concerned,
03:15"...home could be anywhere. It could be a hotel room, it could be a bus, or it could
03:19be our actual house. Home is just where the two of us are."
03:22Alsop told People that she supports Van Halen's talent and drive. After joining the world-famous
03:26rock band Van Halen at the age of just 15 years old, Wolfgang later branched out with
03:30his own solo act, playing every single instrument on his debut album.
03:35Alsop said,
03:36"...I'm so proud of that. Wolfie is the hardest worker, and so I really love that about him."
03:40In turn, Van Halen has been vocal about how much he appreciates her support. Shortly after
03:44they were engaged, Van Halen played live on The Today Show, which he described as, quote,
03:48"...one of the most nerve-wracking things ever."
03:50Luckily, Alsop was there to support him, along with his mother, Valerie Bertinelli. Van Halen
03:55told Heavy Consequence in 2023,
03:57"...My mom and my fiancé have just been so wonderful. They're definitely the people I
04:01rely on and lean on. Just having them there to support me was really special."
04:05Many sitcom jokes have been made about difficult mother-in-laws, but Andrea Alsop got very
04:09lucky with hers. When asked about her daughter-in-law, Valerie Bertinelli couldn't stop gushing to
04:14People magazine about how thrilled she is to welcome Alsop to the family.
04:18"...It brings me such a nice sense of peace knowing Wolfie and Andrea have each other
04:21for the rest of their lives. They really get one another. Their humor is very similar.
04:25They like similar things. They know how to give each other space, and they're just so
04:29comfortable together."
04:30Bertinelli is also certain that Wolfgang's father, Eddie Van Halen, would have been thrilled
04:34to see his son marry Alsop. According to Bertinelli, Alsop's ability to connect with Wolfgang and
04:38her unwavering support of him and his career are all qualities the late musician would
04:43have wanted Wolfgang's life partner to have.
04:45In 2024, Van Halen took on one of his highest-profile gigs yet when he performed live at the Academy
04:51Awards. Playing alongside legendary guitarist Slash, Van Halen provided backing for Ryan
04:56Gosling's vocals as the actor sang his hit tune, "'I'm Just Ken,' from Greta Gerwig's
05:00Barbie movie, which was nominated for Best Original Song.
05:04On the red carpet, Alsop and Van Halen told People magazine that they were more nervous
05:08for the Oscars than they had been for their own wedding.
05:11Yeah, it actually felt like we were getting ready for our wedding today without him."
05:15Yeah, I think it was more stressful to get ready today."
05:19Still, even though I'm Just Ken ultimately didn't win the Oscar, Alsop said it was a
05:24night for celebrating, telling People,
05:26"'I'm ready to stamp all night if we have to.'"
05:30Safe to say, being married to a rock star is never boring.