Nicole Concepcion and Paolo Salud will tell you they were best friends first. Their wedding in Coron, which was all music, dancing, and the people who had always been there, was proof that some things never really change.
Set against the crystalline waters of Coron, Palawan, the wedding celebration of Nicole Concepcion and Paolo Salud was never going to be conventional. The couple already had exchanged vows in a traditional ceremony in Manila, so this weekend was something else entirely. Just their closest friends, their favorite island, and a music-festival energy that fit them perfectly.
It began on a secluded island, one they had gone to every year of their relationship. “We were excited to share our favorite place in the world with our favorite people in the world,” Nicole says, simply. Drinks in hand, friends dancing until the sun melted into the sea. From there, the weekend only grew. “There was never a dull moment,” Nicole recalls. “Just dancing, sunsets, ice cold beers, and core memories being made.”
When it came time for the ceremony, Nicole walked down the aisle with Paolo beside her, to a mix of Barry White’s “How Did You Know It Was Me?” crafted by their groomsman Saint Guels. At the altar, another close friend, Enzo Jalandoni, officiated, as the two exchanged tearful vows. It was, in many ways, the perfect question.
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Paolo Salud And Nicole Concepcion Take The Long Way Around
Nicole and Paolo found each other first as friends. This was long before she became Group Brand Manager at Standard Hospitality Group, and he Innovation Manager for Max’s Group, two people who would each build careers around bringing people together over good food and good times. But back then, it was simpler: “We were inseparable, either jamming to our favorite Beatles songs or singing the Kooks,” Nicole shares, “or more likely drinking cheap booze together.”
Life eventually pulled them in different directions, but only for a time. When they reconnected, it was seamless, like no years had passed at all. “It was like the universe wanted us to wait for the perfect timing before letting us be together,” she continues. The two fell back into their rhythm and never left. “Now we get to be best friends 24/7.”
The story of the proposal had its first spark on their very first date after reconnecting. Mid-conversation, as Nicole shared her dreams for the future, including starting a family, Paolo looked at her and said, “Why not with me?” She laughs about it now, but it was less of a joke than it seemed, and somehow, they both knew.
The real moment came over the holidays, with Paolo getting down on one knee by the sea, her closest friends hiding just out of sight, with both families emerging to celebrate the moment together.
They ended up holding their pamanhikan that very same day. “I blacked out,” Nicole admits. “I was so happy and dazed I had to ask Pao to send me his speech afterward so I could relive it.”
And The Music Played
The celebration that followed was everything they already were. With their closest people around them, the weekend unfolded without long programs or formality, just music and dancing.
Music, in particular, had always been a thread running through Nicole and Paolo’s relationship, from the Beatles and Kooks of their early friendship to the playlist that soundtracked their years together. So it only felt right that their wedding reflected that. The DJ lineup was made up of their best friends (Manila’s finest, as Nicole puts it).
Ask Nicole how she defines love and the answer comes without hesitation: “Best friends that kiss all the time.”
See more of Paolo and Nicole’s wedding below.
Photography by Joseph Pascual, courtesy of Paolo Salud and Nicole Concepcion
Frequently Asked Questions
Paolo Salud and Nicole Concepcion celebrated their wedding in Coron, Palawan, surrounded by crystalline waters, close friends, and a laid-back island atmosphere. The weekend followed their traditional wedding ceremony in Manila.
The couple chose Coron because it was a place they had visited every year throughout their relationship. As Nicole shares, they wanted to share their favorite place in the world with their favorite people.
Paolo and Nicole first met as friends and quickly became inseparable, bonding over music, from The Beatles to The Kooks, as well as countless moments spent together. Their friendship eventually became the foundation of their relationship.
Paolo proposed by the sea during the holidays, with Nicole’s closest friends hidden nearby and both of their families waiting to celebrate afterward. The couple even held their pamanhikan on the same day.
Music has always been a defining part of Paolo and Nicole’s story, from jamming to Beatles songs and singing The Kooks during their friendship to incorporating music into their wedding celebration. Their DJ lineup was made up entirely of close friends, reflecting the soundtrack of their relationship.
