Love: Kaya J. Jones & Wale Oyejide

June 14 at Salem Baptist Church in Jenkintown, with the Rev. Leslie Callahan officiating. A reception for 250 followed at Melrose Country Club.

They met

A shared affinity for the hip-hop group the Roots and a little matchmaking by another fan brought Kaya and Wale together. In 2002, both were members of the Roots' fan club, as was mutual friend Koku Kaijage. Wale knew Koku from his college days. Kaya knew her only online, through the fan club. Koku persuaded both of them to get to know each other, and they swapped e-mail and phone contact information.

Wale, who is originally from Nigeria and has lived in the United Arab Emirates as well as in several states in this country, was living in California, working on his music. (He has released two Afro-beat albums, one under his name, and the other under the name Science Fiction). Kaya, who grew up in Wyncote, was living here, working and getting ready to start medical school. They met in person in late 2003, when Wale made a business trip to New York.

Later that year, Kaya moved to Atlanta to study at Morehouse School of Medicine. As an alum of Morehouse College, Wale already knew Atlanta well. Sick of the West Coast and interested in getting to know a certain future doctor better, he moved to Atlanta, too.

He asked

In 2007, the couple spent the two months prior to Kaya's graduation on separate continents while she completed a medical fellowship on scholarship in Ghana. At her graduation party, Wale called everyone into the dining room, saying he had an important announcement. With everyone gathered, he asked Kaya to marry him.

9 to 5

Kaya is a resident in family medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Wale, a Temple law student, is spending the summer interning for Common Pleas Court Judge Sheila Woods-Skipper.

Making a home

The couple lives in West Philadelphia.

First steps

To Stevie Wonder's "As."

Doing it their way

The night before the wedding, there was an Idana - a traditional Nigerian engagement party - at Kaya's parents' home. Wale's family came dressed in traditional clothing and, with drummers playing on the lawn, sought permission for their Wale to marry Kaya.

Part of the event is fun and pageantry. Per tradition, Kaya's family at first said no. Then Wale's family presented gifts. Kaya's family sent out two of her friends, their faces covered, and Wale's family shouted "That's not her! Bring out Kaya!"

The party is a chance for the two families to get to know each other, and both the Oyejides and the Joneses read letters expressing their joy about the marriage.

Friends and relatives traveled from Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Amsterdam and Japan to attend the wedding.

Both the church and the pastor were very important to the couple. The Rev. Callahan, a family friend, was once the interim pastor at Salem - the church in which Kaya grew up and the one where her parents were married 31 years ago.

Not a dry eye

Kaya's father had just walked her down the aisle. Wale was standing next to her. Her lifelong friend, Chanell, began singing Donny Hathaway's "A Song For You." That's when it really hit her: She was getting married!

Bloopers

The pastor asked for the rings, so she could bless them. "Nobody knew where Wale's ring was," Kaya said. "Everybody thought that somebody else had it." Pastor Callahan blessed Kaya's ring and promised she'd bless Wale's later. Afterward, it was found in the trunk of the bridesmaids' limo.

Kaya says

Don't take anything too seriously, and be flexible. Appreciate your family and friends and their contributions to the wedding.

The honeymoon

A five-day Mediterranean cruise that departed from Barcelona and included Pisa, Cannes and Rome.