Anthony Bowens and Michael Pavano know how to celebrate a milestone. The handsome Hollywood couple commemorate all of their major life events in delightful fashion, from memorable vacations to buying their first house.
On Tuesday, the pro wrestler and YouTube star posted about their 8-year anniversary, as well as Pavano’s 30th birthday. What a sweet day indeed!
“Happy 30th birthday AND 8 year anniversary @michaelpavano ❤️❤️❤️ #love,” Bowens posted.
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The photo dump features eight pictures of the pair being adorable with one another: kissing in front of a cherry blossom tree, wearing cute winter outfits, smiling near the sand. When describing Bowens and Pavano’s relationship, only word one word comes to mind.
Love!
The two first met in 2017, when Bowens was still closeted. The pro wrestling trailblazer says he noticed Pavano’s profile when scrolling Instagram, and wanted to send a message. Though Bowens was initially apprehensive, he finally worked up the nerve to slide into his crush’s DMs.
That’s when he discovered Pavano was in an on-off relationship with somebody else.
As the couple explains in a YouTube video, they got off to an uneven start. Pavano and Bowens started talking; but then, Pavano and his ex decided to try and rekindle their relationship. That’s when Pavano told his then-beau about the handsome pro wrestler who tried to grab ahold of him. The conversation didn’t go well.
The ex sent Bowens a terse DM of his own: don’t message my bf again.
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“Checking off life goals one by one together.”
Opting to avoid the drama, Bowens unfollowed Pavano. But three months later, they connected again. Pavano was single (for real this time), and wanted to meet.
They instantly bonded, and have been together ever since.
As you can tell from Pavano’s frosted tips, they’ve been through a lot together, including many different looks!
They’ve posted about every anniversary since then, always with a sweet message.
“6 years ago, I was in the closet and I decided to take a chance texting this 🔥 guy to hang out,” Bowens posted in 2022. “Turns out it was his birthday, so I went…6 years later here I am to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the love of my life @michaelpavano I love you so much! ❤️”
One of their more memorable anniversary celebrations came in 2018, when Bowens wrote a single dedicated to Pavano for his 24th birthday. The song, a smooth R&B jam, is titled “How We Met.”
“I’m really bad at gift giving and I wanted to make sure that I did something special for him,” Bowens told Outsports. “I was wracking my brain as to what it could be and I decided to go the creative route instead something material.”
He teamed up with producer Nicco DiRenzi to make the track happen.
“I tried to convey how much Michael has impacted my life and how he helped heal any pain and dismiss any fears I had prior to coming out and living my life freely,” he said.
As one can tell, the two studs aren’t shy about expressing their love. Memorably, they once kissed in front of homophobic protesters at a Pride march, and shared the photo for the world to see.
We must say… the background is pretty iconic.
Since publicly coming out in 2017, Bowens has used his platform to promote LGBTQ+ visibility. The first out champion in AEW history, one of the hallmark moments in Bowens’ journey came last June, when a raucous crowd showered him with a self-affirming chant: “He’s gay!”
A female commentator, Harley Cameron, said she could tell Bowens was attracted to her. He quickly corrected the record, with the help of thousands.
Bowens credits coming out, and the freedom he’s felt since, for his success in the ring. He published a moving letter last fall in The Players’ Tribune, in which he talks about getting passed over when he tried out for WWE.
While Bowens says evaluators told him he looked great and performed well, he lacked charisma when holding a microphone.
The feedback wasn’t surprising. Bowens, like many closeted individuals, suppressed his personality. If he was going to thrive as a wrestler, he needed to put himself out there.
“I think I knew the truth: As long as I was closeted as a wrestler, I wasn’t going to reach my full potential. Because I wasn’t going to be able to tap into everything that makes me me,” he writes.
It’s apparent that Pavano has only helped Bowens discover himself, and vice versa. They collaborate all the time, and you know what they say about couples that create content together…
They stay together!
Bowens and Pavano are both reaching new levels of their careers. They have 226,000 followers on their YouTube channel, and Bowens is now a Calvin model.
We have the pics to prove it!
Though Bowens and Pavano look great on their own, like all fearsome duos, they’re better together. Here’s to many more milestones… and pics!
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