No, Taylor and Travis Wouldn't Be the First to Marry at MSG. Meet the Famous Couple Who Wed at the Venue in 1974
No, Taylor and Travis Wouldn't Be the First to Marry at MSG. Meet the Famous Couple Who Wed at the Venue in 1974
Caroline BlairWed, July 1, 2026 at 11:00 AM UTC
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Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift on March 26, 2026 in Los Angeles, California; Sly Stone marries Kathy Silva at Madison Square Garden in 1974.Credit: Christopher Polk/Billboard via Getty; Bettmann/Getty -
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are reported to be getting married at Madison Square Garden
Sly Stone and Kathy Silva got married at the arena before his concerts on June 5, 1974
Over 20,000 concertgoers attended the ceremony, while 400 guests joined the private reception afterward
While Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are reportedly getting married at Madison Square Garden (MSG) ahead of the Fourth of July weekend, they wouldn't be the first famous couple to do so.
The New York Timesreported on June 24 that the Grammy Award-winning singer and the Chiefs tight end rented the famous New York City arena for a multi-day event. The outlet reported that a smaller gathering of around 100 people is scheduled for July 2, while a larger celebration of around 1,000 people was planned for July 3.
Meanwhile, PEOPLE confirmed with New York City Hall that a permit was filed to shut down the surrounding MSG area to allow for a tent or canopy outside the arena for around 500 to 999 attendees. Neither Swift nor Kelce have publicly confirmed any reports or elaborated on their wedding plans.
While Swift and Kelce's star-studded wedding is sure to make headlines, they wouldn't be the first people to get married at MSG. In 1974, Sly Stone and his girlfriend, model Kathy Silva, tied the knot during one of his concerts in front of more than 20,000 people.
Although the Sly & the Family Stone frontman got married in front of a massive crowd, he and Silva held a more private party elsewhere in N.Y.C. afterward. Stone and Silva were married for around two years before separating in 1976.
In addition to Stone and Silva's nuptials, a record amount of more than 2,000 couples married at the venue in a historic mass wedding on July 1, 1982.
Here's everything to know about the famous couple who got married at Madison Square Garden over 50 years ago.
Who first got married at MSG?
Sly Stone and Kathy Silva during their wedding at Madison Square Garden on June 5, 1974 in New York.Credit: Oscar Abolafia/TPLP/Getty
Stone and Silva got married at MSG after dating for about two years, according to Far Out Magazine. Prior to tying the knot, the Sly & the Family Stone lead singer and the Hawaiian model welcomed a son together, Sylvester Jr., in 1973.
"I have a little boy now ... and I don't want him to be a liar when he says ‘dada,' " Stone told Vogue ahead of their wedding.
Meanwhile, Silva told the outlet, "When you are as much in love as Sly and I are, you just go to extremes and get married."
When did Stone and Silva's wedding take place?
Bishop B.R. Stewart officiates the onstage wedding of Sly Stone and Kathy Silva on June 5, 1974 at Madison Square Garden in New York.Credit: Peter Simins/WWD/Penske Media via Getty
When it came time to plan their wedding, Stone and Silva came up with the idea to get married on June 5, 1974 — the night Sly & the Family Stone were slated to play at MSG.
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Why did Stone and Silva get married at MSG?
Sly Stone and Kathy Silva during their wedding on June 5, 1974.Credit: PL Gould/Images/Getty
About a month ahead of the nuptials, Stone called the director of talent acquisition at Epic Records, Stephen Paley, and told him that he was thinking of marrying Silva in Hawaii. Paley jokingly told Stone that he could do it ahead of his MSG performance, to which Stone quipped, “Yeah. I could be my own opening act," per The New Yorker.
“I could do a gig, get paid, and get married at the same time," he recalled thinking in his 2023 memoir, Thank you (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin). "We set the date for June 5, a Wednesday. We'd have a ceremony just before the concert, right there on the stage. Then a concert, then a party afterward at the rooftop lounge of the Waldorf Astoria. Steve wanted everyone to wear gold to keep the shine high. Invitations went out."
By May 23, 1974, Stone and Silva had settled on saying "I do" before his MSG concert on June 5. From that point on, Stone and Silva started working with Halston for the fashion, Richard Avedon for photographs, Joe Eula for designing and planning, CBS for legal services and a public relations agency for public perception, among several other vendors.
The theme was a "golden affair," and they encouraged their guests to wear something in that color scheme. After scrambling to get the wedding together, Stone and his band rehearsed at sound check that afternoon.
Around 9:30 p.m. that night, the wedding ceremony began, and Stone and Silva were married a little after 10 p.m. Bishop B. R. Stewart, of the Church of God in Christ, in San Francisco, officiated the ceremony. Stone wore a Halston gold jumpsuit, while Silva dazzled in a Halston shimmering gold sequin halter gown.
Following their public nuptials, Stone began performing. After the band was done, Stone and Silva kept the celebrations going with a wedding reception at the Starlight Roof of the Waldorf-Astoria.
How many people saw Stone and Silva's nuptials?
Stone and Silva got married in front of all the concertgoers attending Sly & the Family Stone's concert that night, which was estimated to be between 20,000 and 23,000 guests, per The New York Times and Rolling Stone.
However, they held a more private reception for around 400 guests at the Waldorf-Astoria's Starlight Roof following the concert. Some of the notable attendees included Diane von Furstenberg, Eddie Kendricks, Andy Warhol, Halston, Penelope Tree, Donyale Luna and more, per Vogue.
Has anyone else gotten married at MSG?
4,150 couples are married during a mass wedding ceremony at Madison Square Garden.Credit: Bettmann/Getty
While Stone and Silva are the only celebrity couple to marry at MSG, years later over 2,000 couples got married in a mass wedding at the venue.
On July 1, 1982, Rev. Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church married 2,075 couples in a mass ceremony at MSG, The New York Times reported at the time. The brides and grooms were all dressed in the same outfits — with the men in blue suits and women in lace and satin gowns.
After Moon performed the ceremony in Korean, all of the newlyweds excitedly shouted "Mansei," meaning "eternal victory." The wedding broke the record for the largest single-location mass wedding at the time, until it was usurped in 2023, per Guinness World Records.
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