BRIDE: Liana (29)

GROOM: Armen (30)

LOCATION: Los Angeles, CA

Wedding Date: September 21st, 2024

Liana and Armen had their meet-cute in New York city roughly six years ago. While hanging with some friends, Liana spotted an old photograph of her friend-group at Armenian camp, and in the photo was one person she couldn’t quite place. When she asked her friends, it turned out to be someone named Armen. She looked him up on social media, and wow! A handsome guy with a killer smile, can play the guitar and he’s Armenian?! She slid into his DMs. They went on an awkward first date, and although he seemed to be everything that she was looking for, Liana decided that they should be just friends. Sadly, Liana then entered into a two-year, toxic relationship fraught with red-flags and arguments. During those two years Armen and Liana would run into each other through Armenian community events and shared connections which allowed them to develop a friendship. Eventually, Liana and the bad-boyfriend broke-up, and only two weeks later Armen reached out. They’ve been together ever since!  

Armen proposed to Liana roughly 1.5 years ago in 2023 during a surprise engagement while on vacation in Chicago. She happily said yes, and the two have been planning their big, fat Armenian wedding since! The couple is getting married on September 21st of this year at a resort in San Diego. Although they are excited, it’s a big wedding with all of their friends and families flying out to be there for the couple. There are roughly 200 people invited and all close family members, his parents, siblings, and her parents and siblings will be in town the week before the wedding. However, as the wedding day approaches, concerns and questions from friends and family have emerged. Therefore, Armen and Liana are willing to submit to the questions, concerns, doubts and uncertainties of their family members before they get married. They are so confident, that they are willing to answer, carte blanche, any questions and concerns from anyone while connected to a polygraph machine. Although they have the opportunity to clear the air, once and for all, they also realize that they might be bring up sensitive topics, stir-the-pot and create conflict the week of their wedding. Either way, Armen and Liana are willing to give it a try because they know the results will be worthwhile.

Both Armen and Liana come from Armenian families. Armen is third generation whereas Liana is 1st generation. Traditionally, in the Armenian culture, especially as new generations to the United States, there’s an emphasis on women marrying men with stable and high net-worth careers. Armen originally went to school for business and finance, but decided to pursue music, a surprising and unconventional pivot from where his life was originally headed.

The life of a musician brings creativity and spontaneity but it also brings unpredictability, time away, long-hours and uncertainty. A litany of questions therefore arises based on Armen’s career choice. Being a musician means a life of travel and time away in a studio. Will Liana be able to adjust and cope with her husband not physically present all the time? Is she really supportive and comfortable with his career choice, or would she honestly prefer him to do something stable that brings him close to home? Armen is a handsome man and he’s made even more attractive by his musical prowess, he’s therefore going to get plenty attention of women (and probably some men!) while he is working and performing. Will Armen remain faithful to Liana when he is away? How will Armen respond to flirtation, temptation and the advances of others if and when he is put in that situation? Additionally, there is no guarantee if Armen will succeed in the industry. If it appears that music isn’t working for his career, is he willing to sacrifice a career in music? Is he willing to consider a career outside of music? If Liana finds the career too difficult for her personally, is he willing to sacrifice his career for her?

Additionally, Liana works as a social media manager for a major software company and is career and goal-oriented in her own right. Which then begs the question: If put in the situation, whether for children, or burn out, or any other reason and one person needs to give up their career, would Liana or Armen be willing to end their career for the sake of their relationship or to focus on children and their family?

Armen is originally from Boston and lived in New York City for several years. His entire family is back on the East Coast. It’s an understatement to say that his family has misgivings about him living in Los Angeles. They would prefer that he is back East to be closer to the family. They want to know: Would Armen consider moving back to the East Coast? Would Liana be willing to move to the East Coast if that’s what Armen truly wanted? Is Los Angeles truly their forever home? The issue has created conflict in Armen’s family. It also doesn’t help that Armen and Liana are closer to her parents and family who are considering moving to Los Angeles. Their inclination to move to Los Angeles only throw salt in the wound for Armen’s family, and underscores the support of something that brings them anguish.

Liana’s parents, who have always been proud of their Armenian heritage, are particularly concerned about the future of their culture within the couple’s life. They wonder if Armen, who did not grow up speaking Armenian, is willing to learn the language? More importantly, they hope he will be committed to passing on the rich traditions of their ancestry to their future children. The preservation of Armenian culture is not just a matter of pride for Liana’s parents; it is a legacy they wish to see carried forward, and they want to ensure that Armen shares this value. Is learning Armenian really important to Armen? Is his Armenian culture as important to him as it is to Liana? Will Armen raise his children in the Armenian culture? And will Liana also continue to follow the traditional duties of a wife and mother in the Armenian culture?  

Liana's brother, Arek, is another voice of concern. Protective of his sister, Arek is not shy about confronting Armen with difficult questions. He is particularly interested in Armen's past relationships, wanting to know if Armen has ever had a history of infidelity or if there are any lingering doubts about his commitment to Liana. Additionally, Liana’s past relationships are also a target of scrutiny. She’s had four serious relationships in her life: a high school sweet-heart, a man named Mark, a toxic-red-flag and now, Armen. Although the past guys are in the past, Liana’s best friend, Cesar, wonders if Mark is really the one that got away? He’s curious if she still harbors any feelings for Mark before entering a relationship with Armen?

Armen’s friends and family have had some judgements, doubts and speculations as it relates to Liana, more specifically how fast they got together. Liana and Armen spent two years as friends while Liana was in a relationship with a toxic-jerk. Armen and Liana also maintained a friendship during that time. It was important for Armen to cultivate a relationship with her, even if it was just a friendship. Once Liana finally ended that relationship, she and Armen started dating two-short weeks later. The speed of entering another relationship and the type of person that Liana transitioned from certainly raised eye-brows for Armen’s friends and family. Why didn’t Liana date Armen sooner? Why did she stay in a relationship she knew was wrong for her? Does Liana see any of the same qualities in Armen that were red-flags about her last relationship? Does Armen have any concerns about Liana’s past relationships?

For Liana and Armen the idea of bringing everyone together for an open, and honest forum is intimidating and nerve-wracking, mostly because they don’t know what is going to come up and how everyone will react. Their hope is that this experience will cultivate a new level of understanding between their loved ones. Their goal is for everyone to see and understand what they see in each other, understand their love and commitment and for any doubt or uncertainty to be cast aside. But addressing vulnerable issues always comes with risk, as feelings can be hurt, even further misunderstanding could manifest and the whole endeavor could backfire on them. And with the added pressure and tension of an upcoming wedding, the heightened emotions might strike nerves or create conflict couple isn’t even aware of! Either way, it’s now or never and the couple is willing to give it a shot!