Sports

Gayle King Gets Surprise Ring Proposal During ‘CBS Mornings’ Interview With Usher

Usher knelt down to present a ring to Gayle King just hours before Super Bowl LVIII.
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Just days before Super Bowl LVIII, Usher found himself on one knee offering a ring to CBS News’ Gayle King. The moment is going viral but it’s really a throw-away joke from Usher’s extended interview with King for CBS Mornings. Here’s a little more context for those left scratching their heads.

Usher joined King for a 22-minute interview ahead of the 2024 Super Bowl, where he will headline the halftime show. As always, Usher was dressed to the nines with bold clothing, accessories and jewelry. The two sat close together in an empty restaurant at one point, and they actually seemed to be transitioning from one setting to another when King happened to comment on Usher’s massive ring. She said: “I think this is spectactular,” and Usher did not hesitate to take the ring off and hand it to her.

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As King tried to put on the ring, Usher said: “You gotta put it on your big finger – put it on your middle finger.” King asked: “Could you put it on me?” then asked the camera crew: “Could somebody take my picture?” Usher seemed to see where she was going with this, as he slowly knelt down to put the ring on King like you might do during a proposal.

After seeing the joke through, Usher actually gave some more details on this ring. He said: “Everybody has their championship rings, this is just something that we wanted to do that was extra special.” By we, he meant he and his jeweler, who worked with him to create this ring shaped like the Super Bowl logo. He showed King that the ring even had an inner compartment like a locket.

King was clearly close with Usher, holding his hand and speaking to him fondly, but there’s no indication that the 69-year-old journalist is actually looking for a romance with him. King was married to attorney Bill Bumpus from 1982 until 1993 and shares two children with him. Other than that, her love life is as private as possible. Usher, 45, may or may not be married to music executive Jenn Goicoechea, with whom he has two children.

Usher will perform live at the Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday, Feb. 11 on CBS. The game kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET, and it will stream live on Paramount+ here as well.