Someone like him! Adele is the queen of emotional breakup songs, but in her real life, she’s been more successful at finding love.
The Grammy winner was first spotted with her boyfriend, Rich Paul, in July 2021 attending Game 5 of the NBA Finals. Though that was their first time in public, a source exclusively told Us Weekly at the time that the duo had been dating “for months” before the game.
“He’s very shy and keeps a low profile when they go out, whereas Adele is super sociable,” the insider added, noting that the pair managed to stay under the radar by mingling with the same inner circle. “The people they hang out with know them both personally already, so they don’t have to introduce each other, which is probably why nobody picked up on their relationship sooner.”
Two months later, the couple made things Instagram official when the “Easy on Me” songstress shared a photo of the duo dressed up to attend NBA star Anthony Davis‘ wedding to Marlen P. (Paul, a sports agent, represents Davis as well as his Los Angeles Lakers teammate LeBron James.)
“They’re very committed at this point and it’s hard to imagine they won’t be together for an extremely long time,” a source told Us of Adele and her beau in October 2021, adding that the twosome “complement each other” very well. “She really feels like she hit the jackpot.”
The Oscar winner was previously married to Simon Konecki, with whom she welcomed son Angelo in October 2012. The former couple called it quits in April 2019 after seven years together and finalized their divorce in early 2021.
“I was just going through the motions and I wasn’t happy,” she told Vogue of her marriage in October 2021. “Neither of us did anything wrong. Neither of us hurt each other or anything like that. It was just: I want my son to see me really love, and be loved. It’s really important to me.”
In the same interview, the “Rolling in the Deep” singer revealed that she’d actually met Paul years before their romance began. “He was always there, I just didn’t see him,” she explained, adding that they reconnected at a party a “couple” of years earlier. “He was dancing. All the other guys were just sitting around. He was just dancing away.”
That infectious charm is one of the things that captivated Adele from the start. “He’s always making her feel special and doesn’t have a single drop of selfishness or meanness in his body,” an insider told Us in October 2021.
Keep scrolling for a look back at Adele and Paul’s whirlwind romance: