It’s been almost four years since country star Kane Brown first announced his engagement to Katelyn Jae. Since then, the couple has reached some major milestones, including marriage and parenthood. But who exactly is his better half? Jae is more than just a pretty face. Get the facts on Kane Brown’s wife and see why they make such a great team.
Who Is Katelyn Jae?
Katelyn Jae was born Katelyn Krapf on June 19, 1992, and she grew up in the Philadelphia suburb of Chester Springs, Pennsylvania. The self-described “nerdy theater kid” says she spent her childhood auditioning as a stage and vocal performer, but she eventually enrolled at West Chester University as a criminal justice major.
Jae dropped out of school for a short time, but she eventually returned to the classroom. In May 2019, she graduated from Berklee Online’s Music Business undergraduate program.
These days, Jae is best known as the wife of country music legend-in-the-making Kane Brown. Based on her Instagram, the two appear to embody relationship goals.
Katelyn Jae And Kane Brown First Met In 2015
According to Brown, his romance with Jae began in 2015 and moved rather quickly.
“She came to one of my shows and the first time I saw her it was the shy giddiness,” he told Taste of Country. “I didn’t know what was going to happen. She lived in Orlando [and] was in Miami. I messaged her on Instagram the next night and said, ‘Hey, when are we going to hang out?’ and flew her down and she hasn’t left since.”
Jae recalls the early days of their relationship, when she joined Brown on tour.
“It was so early on, it was nothing like life is right now!” she told Taylor Magazine. “The first tour he was on was with Florida Georgia Line. He had one bus and there were ten of us on it–all guys. Me and him shared a bunk, and if you’ve never been on a tour bus, then all you need to know is that they have tiny bunk beds! When we got in there, we were not moving for the night! We put our dog at the bottom of our bed and we did that for over a year.”
Enough time has passed that she looks back with a sense of awe.
“It’s so crazy to think back, but it was so much fun and we made it work,” said Jae. “When you look back on how much has changed you think, ‘How did we ever do that?!’ It made great memories and it was awesome for our relationship, coming from that to where we are today, it’s really cool to look back on.”
By April 2017, he popped the question in an unexpected way. According to People, Brown planned a moment that involved “rose petals and everything like that.” But the singer got antsy. He threw his plans out the window and asked for her hand in marriage a day early while the two were watching The Amityville Horror.
“I just couldn’t wait,” he said.
The Couple Got Married In 2018
Jae and Brown were married on October 12, 2018 at Mint Springs Farm in Franklin, Tennessee. They tied the knot in front of 200 guests, with a wedding party that included Brown’s two brothers and bandmates.
Brown told Taste of Country that he preferred a smaller (at least by showbiz standards) ceremony. He keeps a tight circle.
“I don’t have so many friends,” he said. “I have my friends that I know have been there for me, and then I’ve got some new friends that I’ve made, artist-wise.”
The couple exchanged private letters earlier in the day and stuck to traditional vows during the wedding. After the reception, they spent their honeymoon cozying up in the mountain town of Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
“We chose someplace that we both love and can just completely relax and spend time appreciating nature, each other—and no cell service!” they told People.
The couple would have made it official sooner, but Brown’s busy career was mapped out before his proposal.
She’s Also A Singer
Before meeting Brown, Jae had a budding music career of her own. Since childhood, she trained in singing, dancing, and acting since childhood. Then as a teenager, she auditioned for American Idol. But at an early age, she faced the dark side of the music industry. In an interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, she talked about how someone claiming to be a Nashville record producer scammed her family out of thousands of dollars.
But this negative experience didn’t deter her from the music industry. She went on to represent the United States in Avon Voices, a global talent competition. Her big break came when she won first place in another digital talent competition series, Take the Stage. She earned a management contract with music industry superstar Johnny Wright, who helped her develop her talent.
Check out the music video for her 2016 single “Perfect”:
Despite her love of music, Jae wound her career down early in the game.
“Honestly, I don’t think I’ll go back to performing,” she told Taylor Magazine. “If I get back into music, it’ll be working in the studio and writing. I’ll leave the performing part to Kane!”
Jae continued, “Performing is a high… But the anticipation, the days leading up to it, the rehearsal – it’s very stressful. I give all the performers out there so much credit because you have to have a certain personality and be a certain type of person to be able to handle that pressure.”
That said, she hasn’t completely walked away from singing. In July 2020, she recorded “Mad at This World,” a duet with her hubby.
“For her, I mean she has been married to me, and we have been together for six years now, and she quit all that music stuff so I could fulfill my dream,” Kane said in an interview with Cody Alan. “I just told her, I was like, ‘I think it would be beautiful if you were on this song with me,’ and she was like, ‘No, no.’ so I kind of begged her a bit.”
Just don’t expect to see them on stage together anytime soon. Brown added, “When I told her that she was going to have to get on stage and sing it with me, she threw that out the window.”
Katelyn Jae And Kane Brown Welcomed Their First Daughter In 2019
On October 29, 2019, Jae and Brown became the proud first-time parents of a healthy baby girl.
“Obsessed with my little family? Kingsley Rose we are absolutely in love with you,” Jae wrote in an Instagram announcement.
“My love for this little baby girl though y’all,” Brown added on Twitter.
Brown wasted no time honoring Kingsley in his work. Three days after her birth, he wrote the song “For My Daughter.”
“Someone to scare the monsters when it’s dark in your room, someone to put their foot down when you want a tattoo,” Brown sings in the tune. “And not just say I love you, but show you what it means. I grew up without a dad, I’m gonna be the best one I can be.”