[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/new-jersey-backyard-wedding-for-up-and-coming-actors\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/new-jersey-backyard-wedding-for-up-and-coming-actors\/","headline":"New Jersey Backyard Wedding for Up-and-Coming Actors","name":"New Jersey Backyard Wedding for Up-and-Coming Actors","description":"With her wife by her side, a Rutgers graduate pursues her love of acting and improving the lives of urban children","datePublished":"2015-12-23","dateModified":"2015-12-23","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/author\/pattiv\/#Person","name":"Patti Verbanas","url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/author\/pattiv\/","identifier":5219,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fefabc37fdff4be46aac42cb02f4e96a27aa12915ddebe6ec2a96bf5c6d651cd?s=96&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fefabc37fdff4be46aac42cb02f4e96a27aa12915ddebe6ec2a96bf5c6d651cd?s=96&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Equally Wed","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"http:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/equally-wed-lgbtq-weddings-logo.jpg","url":"http:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/equally-wed-lgbtq-weddings-logo.jpg","width":218,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/diamond-lesbian-wedding-brides.jpg","url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/diamond-lesbian-wedding-brides.jpg","height":666,"width":1000},"url":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/new-jersey-backyard-wedding-for-up-and-coming-actors\/","about":["Real LGBTQ+ Weddings from Equally Wed"],"wordCount":720,"keywords":[" two brides","black weddings","flower crown","lesbian weddings","New Jersey weddings","outdoor weddings"],"articleBody":"[title maintitle=”” subtitle=”With her wife by her side, a Rutgers graduate pursues her love of acting and improving the lives of urban children”]\u00a0Sade Grandberry (l) and Diamond Davis (r) were married on Aug. 29, 2015, in a backyard ceremony in Upper Montclair, NJ.Diamond Davis didn\u2019t have a job lined up after graduation in 2012. She didn\u2019t even know where she would be living. She was certain of only two things then: She wanted to work in the entertainment industry and to continue living with her long-time girlfriend, Sade Grandberry.Three years later, she has landed a couple of TV gigs and, more important, recently married Grandberry.\u201cNeither of us had a plan after graduation, but we didn\u2019t want to separate after living together in college,\u201d says Davis, now 26.The couple moved in with Grandberry\u2019s mother in Newark soon after they both graduated from Rutgers. They lived there rent-free, allowing the couple to save money while they looked for a permanent place to live.Davis began building her resume so she could eventually secure an agent.\u00a0 The criminal justice major and philosophy minor decided late in her college career that she wanted to pursue acting as a profession instead of law. She had stayed an extra year to take courses and secure an internship to help her get a job in the entertainment industry.Although she had performed in cabarets and in student films, that wasn\u2019t enough. \u201cI needed to feel comfortable on set and have professional credits,\u201d she says.Davis signed up with CastingNetworks.com, an online service similar to LinkedIn that helps actors connect with producers for non-speaking roles.\u00a0 She commuted regularly to New York City to appear on shows such as \u201cOrange is the New Black\u201d and \u201cThe Following,\u201d and in commercials.She also began modeling for a stock photo service. \u201cIt\u2019s fun: I\u2019ll get dressed up and the photographer will take pictures of me, for example, on a train talking on a cell phone,\u201d she says. \u201cI never know where these pictures will end up. Friends will call and say, \u2018Hey, I saw you in a T-Mobile ad.\u2019\u201dIn July, she and Grandberry, who is also pursuing a career in acting, launched\u00a0\u201cLet\u2019s Talk About It,\u201d\u00a0a YouTube talk show that focuses on current issues and highlights people doing positive work in the community. \u201cThe idea came about when a friend, who was starting a nonprofit targeting childhood obesity, asked us to produce a show that could highlight his work,\u201d she says. \u201cAs aspiring actors, Sade and I thought this could be a vehicle to give us more exposure.\u201dThis variety of experience has made Davis more comfortable on the set. \u201cI am now ready to audition for speaking roles,\u201d she says.To supplement her income, Davis is a Match Support Specialist for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Essex, Hudson and Union Counties. She also is a Big Sister to a teenage girl from Newark. She originally planned to attend law school to become a juvenile defender, and now finds mentoring fulfilling. \u201cI always wanted to make a difference in the lives of urban youth,\u201d she says.While they were living with Grandberry\u2019s mother, the women actively hunted for a residence with easy access to Manhattan.\u00a0 They now live in a gated complex in Newark. \u201cWe are right across from the train station \u2013 perfect for us to zip in and out of the city,\u201d she says.Soon after the move, Davis began planning her marriage proposal to Grandberry, whom she has dated since 2010. She bought a ring and booked a trip to Atlantic City to celebrate their anniversary in June 2014. When they were alone on the beach, Davis knew the moment had come. \u201cI always kidded with her, \u2018What would you do if I proposed?\u2019 \u201d she says. \u201cSo, I kidded again, but this time, I was pulling out the ring as I said the words. I knew she would say \u2018yes,\u2019 but I was still nervous.\u201dDavis and Grandberry wed August 29 in a backyard wedding in Upper Montclair, New Jersey. \u201cEvery relationship rolls through cycles,\u201d Davis says. \u201cWe\u2019ve already been through some \u2018better\u2019 and some \u2018worse\u2019 \u2013 and I am happy that we will be by each others\u2019 sides for whatever comes next.\u201dPhotos: Courtesy of Diamond Davis\u00a0\u00a0"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"New Jersey Backyard Wedding for Up-and-Coming Actors","item":"https:\/\/equallywed.com\/new-jersey-backyard-wedding-for-up-and-coming-actors\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]