While mapping out his elaborate 2013 proposal to Kim Kardashian, rapper Kanye West considered an element that was important to his future wife: having production cameras on-site to document the private moment.
In a no-holds-barred interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the famous reality family opened up about some of the most personal story arcs in the 10-year history of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, including Kim’s high-profile marriage to West. “It’s kind of hard not to at least reference [your relationship],” Kim said. “Kanye was like, ‘I’m not a part of the show. That’s not what I do. I have my own career and life.’ He’ll really surprise you though. He’ll be like, ‘I’m not filming’ and then randomly show up. But I will get [the footage] and show him.”
Despite West’s reticence about appearing on the show, he wanted to document one specific life moment. In October 2013, the rapper proposed to Kardashian in San Francisco’s AT&T Park, complete with a symphony orchestra, pyrotechnics, and a Jumbotron message that read, “Pleeease marry meee!!!”
The reality star was ushered into the space while blindfolded, and her family members and friends watched the proposal unfold from the stands. The moment later aired on KUWTK. “He knew I would love to have my engagement on camera so he filmed it and he said, ‘The look might be a little different because I need these type of cameras,’ and got music clearance,” Kim told THR. “But I won’t really ever talk about something that’s going on with Kanye. I’ll talk about how I feel. He knows that I’m really protective of him.”
E! President Adam Stotsky added, “Kanye has been gracious enough to be on the show quite a bit. If he had a story that he wanted to tell through the lens of E!, we would be very open to hearing it, that’s for sure.”
“Kanye does not have time or have any desire that I know of to do a show like that,” Kris Jenner added in the same interview.
Kim also touched on her lavish Florentine nuptials in 2014. “We had no intention of showing our wedding on the show. It was shot with only iPhones and my assistant on a handycam,” she claimed. “She [Steph Shep] was literally standing on top of a castle and freezing, because we knew we wanted to capture this gorgeous walk from up above. People were yelling at her like, ‘You can’t film up there!’ But then we loved the footage so much, [we used some of it on the show].”
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Indeed, Shep recalled the experience in May to Refinery29. “I didn’t even get to watch the ceremony because I was also filming,” Shep, now the COO of Kardashian West Brands, said. “I often producer-cam the more personal moments for the show, when they don’t want full-on cameras around—so I was filming everyone getting ready… I was in Adidas sweatpants and a T-shirt and hadn’t showered that day! And then I walked her down to the elevator so she could walk down that really long stone aisle, and then I ran back up and started filming her from the roof! That was the money shot for the show. Meanwhile, there was some security guy yelling at me, ‘You can’t film here!’”
Meanwhile, another Kardashian wedding could potentially be featured in future seasons. “When we first started, I jokingly said, ‘We’ll be on season 32, Kylie gets married,'” Kris said to THR. “I was kidding, and here we are, and it’s season 14, so be careful what you wish for.”
Long-running KUWTK executive producer Ryan Seacrest chimed in on the longevity of the reality series. “This family has been through things in their life that have introduced understanding and acceptance to people,” he concluded. “Everything from interracial relationships to addiction to the Bruce-to-Caitlyn transition. There will always be a story; as they’re committed to doing it, the show can go on.”
