Hip-hop heavyweights Cardi B and Offset have been making headlines since the two were first linked. But even their most die-hard fans have had to endure questions about whether or not they were together, rumors of a secret wedding, and, of course, Cardi famously divorcing Offset to teach him a lesson — only she never technically went through with it.
You've heard the songs, you've seen the over-the-top declarations of love (Lamborghinis? Check. Birkins? She's got plenty.), here's everything you need to know about the two headliners and their family.
2016
Neither Cardi nor Offset can pinpoint the exact day that they met, but reports claim that it was at an "industry event."
"He was very consistent," Cardi said of that night in a video posted to her Twitter account. "He really wanted to talk to me."
January 2017
The two release a song together, "Lick," which was in all likelihood recorded way before the night they first met. When the song hits the airwaves, the pair insist that they are professional collaborators and nothing else. Remember, this is still before Cardi dropped her star-making track "Bodak Yellow." She was still seen as a reality TV star and Migos had just released "Bad and Boujee" back in late 2016, so Offset was getting closer and closer to topping the charts.
February 5, 2017
The two are seen together at the Super Bowl in Houston, Texas. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Offset called the fact that their first official date was at a huge event was "a power move."
February 14, 2017
Cardi seemingly confirms their relationship with a post on Instagram. According to Vibe, the post has since been deleted, though nobody is sure what it means or when she did it.
She doesn't call him her boyfriend during an interview published that summer. Instead, she points out how motivating it is to be around him and his collaborators.
"It's been a blessing, me meeting him and meeting his friends. I see how hard they work. And that motivated me to work even harder," she told Fader. "And I see how good things are going for them and how popping it is to be number one. And I'm like, I want that."
August 27, 2017
Cardi not-so-subtly brings up the possibility of marriage before she performs at the MTV VMAs.
"I'm a woman. Every woman, I think, wants to get married and wants to have children. It's never too early to get married now. You know, if you want to propose to me, you can."
September 20, 2017
It worked. Cardi and Offset get married at a secret ceremony in Fulton County, Georgia. TMZ wouldn't break the news for almost a year. The gossip site published the couple's wedding certificate in June 2018.
October 2017
Fans get relationship whiplash when Cardi claimed she's single and then backtracked.
"So listen babes, I exaggerated alil [sic] bit earlier cause I was really upset and the Bronx girl in me always have to go to the extreme," she wrote over a photo of Offset. "I came to my senses now. Im sorry ... waffle house on me ?"
A few days later, Offset "proposes" to her onstage, even though they were married. She mentioned the big moment on Twitter the following year. Several outlets claim that he offered up a 20-carat diamond ring that reportedly cost half a million dollars.
"I appreciate and love my husband so much for still wanting for me have that special moment that every girl dreams of," she tweeted. "When he got down on his knee and put a ring on my finger and he did that for me!!"
January 8, 2018
Cheating rumors start to circulate. Offset reportedly cheated on his wife at the beginning of 2018. Reports even claim that he made a sex tape with someone else.
"I'm going to make a decision in my own times with my heart and mind," Cardi wrote on Twitter after the news broke, though the post was later removed. "I don't need to be rushed or be told what to do. Its [sic] my life! I belong to me not to the world."
February 2018
As the dust settles from the cheating rumors, they're replaced by the possibility of a Cardi B pregnancy. Well, Cardi being Cardi, she just wants everyone to let her be "fat in peace."
"Is there maybe a Kylie Jenner secret that we need to know about lol Just asking," a fan asked during an Instagram Live broadcast.
Cardi answered, "No, bitch, I'm just getting fat. Let me fat in peace."
On Valentine's Day, TMZ reports that Cardi is pregnant, but she brushes it off, too.
In a cover interview for Cosmopolitan, Cardi finally addressed the cheating scandal, the sex tape, and basically everything else.
"Everybody is coming down my neck like, 'Why are you not leaving him? You have low self-esteem.' I don't have low self-esteem," she said. "I know I look good. I know I'm rich, I know I'm talented. I know I could get any man I want — any basketball player, football player."
"I want to work out my shit with my man, and I don't got to explain why," she added. "I'm not your property. This is my life ... I'm going to take my time, and I'm going to decide on my decision … It's not right, what he fucking did — but people don't know what I did, 'cause I ain't no angel."
April 2018
Cardi confirmed her pregnancy during a performance on Saturday Night Live.
June 2018
Cardi and Offset finally confirm their marriage via a tweeted Notes App statement.
"There are so many moments that I share with the world and there are moments that I want to keep for myself! Getting married was one of those moments!" it read. "Our relationship was so new breaking up and making up and we had a lot of growing to do but we was so in love we didn't want to lose each other. We found someone to marry us, and she did, just the two of us and my cousin. I said I do, with no dress, no makeup and no ring!"
July 10, 2018
Offset and Cardi B welcomed their first child together, a daughter named Kulture Kiari Cephus. She broke the news with an over-the-top maternity photo on Instagram.
September 20, 2018
Using a #TBT, Cardi shared a never-before-seen photo from her wedding. Cardi wasn't kidding when she said she wasn't wearing a dress. The two tied the knot wearing his-and-hers tracksuits.
October 2018
Cardi opens up about how rumors of Offset's infidelity make her feel. Spoiler: it's not great.
"Every single day there's rumors about me and my dude," she told W magazine. "And it almost drives me crazy, because I start to believe them. I don't have no proof. I don't have receipts. But I just got to know my man. We practically on the phone 24 hours a day. If I can't find him, I'm going to find his friend. Somebody going to answer the phone. But I cannot be feeling insecure, to a point that I would drive my dude away, because these people want that to happen."
That same month, the two attend the American Music Awards together.
December 5, 2018
Cardi and Offset are officially done. The two announce that they've separated.
"So everybody been bugging me and everything, and you know I've been trying to work things out with my baby father for a hot minute now," she said in an Instagram video. "And we're really good friends and you know, we're really good business partners — you know he's always somebody that I went to to talk to, and we got a lot of love for each other but things just haven't been working out between us for a long time."
"And it's nobody fault," she finished. "It's just like, I guess we just grew out of love, but we're not together anymore. I don't know it might take time to get a divorce, and I'm going to always have a lot of love for him because he is my daughter's father and yeah."
When CommentsByCelebs posted the clip, Offset commented, "Y'all won."
December 15, 2018
Offset apologized on Instagram, saying he was a "selfish, messed up husband."
"I wanna apologize to you, Cardi," he said. "I know I embarrassed you. I was partaking in activity I shouldn't have been taking in."
The next day, he makes a surprise appearance during Cardi's headlining set at the Rolling Loud Festival.
"I get that he's trying," she said of the incident, according to BuzzFeed. "It's hard. It's gonna take a long time to — I don't know what's going to happen next [...] I just feel bad. This is why I don't like surprises."
Later that month, the two go on vacation together. TMZ published photos of them in Puerto Rico on a romantic jet ski ride.
"I just had to get fucked. That's all," Cardi said during an Instagram Live, E! News reported. Okay, then.
January 31, 2019
The couple reportedly reconciled and Offset got Cardi's name tattooed on his neck.
Cardi told People that the two are working things out. "I hang out with him, I talk to him every day and we do our thing ... It's just like to make things perfect ... it takes time," she said. "You know, fucking and hanging out doesn't mean that you guys are on like a perfect note, it takes time. It takes time. And it's a marriage and there's a child involved and family involved."
February 2019
The two attend the Grammy Awards together. It was a big night: Cardi became the first solo female artist to take home the gramophone trophy for Best Rap Album for Invasion of Privacy.
"I want to thank my daughter. When I found out that I was pregnant, my album was not complete. I had like three songs. We was like, 'We have to get this album done so I can shoot these videos before I am showing.' It was very long nights," she said before thanking Offset. "You, husband, thank you. Nah, serious, because he was like, 'You gonna do this album, girl. We gonna have this baby. We gonna make this album.'"
May 2019
Cardi and Offset attend the Billboard Music Awards together. She wins six awards.
July 17, 2019
Cardi and Offset perform their duet, "Clout," at Jimmy Kimmel Live!
September 2019
Cardi commemorates the couple's second wedding anniversary. Offset also posts a tribute to his wife.
December 2019
Cardi addresses her breakup and subsequent reconciliation with Offset in Vogue.
"Everybody has issues. I believe in forgiveness. I prayed on it. Me and my husband, we prayed on it. We had priests come to us. And we just came to an understanding like, bro, it's really us against the world. He has my back for everything, I have his back for everything, so when you cheat, you're betraying the person that has your back the most. Why would you do that? We have come to a clear understanding. For me, monogamy is the only way. I'll beat your ass if you cheat on me."
May 11, 2020
Cardi posts a Mother's Day message with a sweet snapshot of her family. Offset posted a similar photo.
June 2020
The pair post similar celebrations on Father's Day.
August 2020
Cardi opens up about her relationship during an interview with Elle, admitting that it's not always easy and that drama seems to follow her, whether she wants it or not.
"I don't really like talking about love much, but I feel like I have to do it, just because I want people to know a little bit," she said. "There's always rumors about me and my husband, and I feel like people would rather start rumors because they want me to be heartbroken. They want me to be hurt."
"But there's a lot of love there's a lot of passion, there's a lot of trust, there's a big friendship," she finished. "It's always us against the world."
September 2020
Cardi B filed for divorce. People reported that more allegations of infidelity played a role in her decision. For the next few months, nobody is sure exactly what is going on. There are lavish gifts, expensive birthday parties, and hints that the two are actually still together.
November 2020
Cardi filed papers in Georgia to dismiss the previous motion for divorce, TMZ reported.
June 2021
Cardi announced her second pregnancy during her 2021 BET Awards performance with Migos. She posted a stunning photo on Twitter after, just in case anyone was questioning the news.
September 2021
E! News reports that Cardi and Offset welcome a son together (In addition to Kulture, Offset has three children — Kalea, Kody, and Jordan — from previous relationships).
"We are so overjoyed to finally meet our son," the announcement reads. "He is already loved so much by family and friends and we can't wait to introduce him to his other siblings." They don't reveal his name.
Later, she would tell the network that she was glad that the two managed to stay together.
"Of course, we went through some challenges," she said. "We had to get to know each other better. But I feel like I've never been happier. I really feel like [it's] not even just like marriage, it's the family, the unity, the friendship that we have, the 'I have your back, you have my back.'"