The ex-fiancée of Jeremy Dufrene—the Louisiana swamp tour guide who recently tied the knot with singer Lana Del Rey—said she was “shocked” by how quickly the couple said “I do.”

Kelli Welsh, 45, revealed that she had been engaged to Jeremy for more than a decade before they called it quits in October 2023.

“I am in shock because we were engaged for 12 years, and he got married after one month,” she told the Daily Mail.

Jeremy Dufrene, a Louisiana swamp tour guide, married pop queen Lana Del Rey in an intimate ceremony last week

Image credits: Backgrid / Vida Press

 

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The Texas-based woman said she and the 49-year-old gator guide were teenage sweethearts, back when she was 16 and he was 19. However, they broke up after a year of dating, and Jeremy went on to marry his first wife, Gina, with whom he shares two sons and one daughter.

After his first marriage came to an end, the Louisiana-born man rekindled his romance with Kelli in 2011 and proposed to her the next year. They stayed engaged for the remainder of their relationship and never officially took each other as husband and wife.

Meanwhile, Jeremy and the Summertime Sadness singer first met in 2019 when Lana performed at the Buku Music + Art Project in Louisiana.

Ex-fiancée Kelli Welsh, 45, said she was engaged to the 49-year-old gator guide for about 12 years before their split in 2023

Image credits: Kelli Welsh

Image credits: Lana Del Rey

She also attended one of his tours at the time and shared pictures on social media with the caption: “Jeremy lemme be captain at Arthur’s Air Boat Tours x.”

“Jeremy and Lana started talking in 2019, but they never stopped,” an insider told the Daily Mail. “At one point, she messaged him on social media, and told him that she was taking a break for a while, but he can call her anytime.”

“This is while he was engaged to Kelli. Lana knew that Jeremy was engaged. He was very honest about this and had photos of Kelli and the kids on his own social media,” the source continued.

The Young and Beautiful singer shared pictures from Jeremy’s swamp tour she attended in 2019

Image credits: Lana Del Rey

 

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Kelli and Jeremy, the part owner of Airboat Tours by Arthur, split in 2023 after being engaged for 12 years. In August of the same year, he and the queen of melancholy pop went public as they were spotted having a date in London.

“I will say that he really does look happy with her. And she does with him which is a good thing to see. It’s not a fake happy – he truly is in love with her,” Kelli told the outlet.

“He has always been a giver so to have someone give to him, he deserves it,” she added. “He is a very solid guy.”

“I will say that he really does look happy with her. And she does with him which is a good thing to see,” Kelli said about her ex-fiancé’s marriage to the Grammy nominee

 

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The outlet claimed Kelli was blindsided by the news of their nuptials at the same bayou where he operates his swamp boat tours. Nevertheless, the ex-fiancée said she cares “deeply” for him and that he “deserves” happiness. She also said it was Jeremy who raised her now-20-year-old daughter, Alana, who still lives with him while she stays in Texas.

“I care about him deeply as a friend,” she added. “His ability to love and care and protect people makes him so attractive.”

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