Selena Gomez's Mom Mandy Teefey Introduced Her to Fiancé Benny Blanco: 'I Liked Him Before He Liked Me'

Mar. 15, 2025

Mandy Teefey and Selena Gomez pictured alongside a photo of Gomez and Benny Blanco.Photo:David Livingston/Getty; Michael Buckner/GG2025/Penske Media via Getty

David Livingston/Getty; Michael Buckner/GG2025/Penske Media via Getty

Selena Gomez’s mother played cupid in her relationship with fiancéBenny Blanco.

Speaking in theirfirst joint interview withInterviewmagazine, published Feb 14, the singer and actress, 32, and music producer, 36, opened up about how Gomez’s mom,Mandy Teefey, first linked them up.

“I was around 16, 17,” Gomez said of when she first met Blanco, to whom she gotengaged in December 2024.

Blanco then revealed that Gomez’s mother had set up a meeting for them to discuss music.

“And we first had music come out in 2013 or something,” Blanco added to the outlet. “Her mom set up a meeting between the two of us. This is right when I became big and she wasn’t a singer yet.”

Along with Gomez’s stepfather,Brian Teefey, Mandy, 48, managed her daughter’s career for eight years as she rose to fame on the Disney Channel.

“When she started putting out music, I was so into it. I feel like she was the original sad girl," Blanco shared of Gomez being with Disney Records at the time. “Everyone was like [beatboxes] and she was like, [sings] ‘I just want to look good for you.’ [Laughs] I was drawn to it."

Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco watch the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Miami Heat basketball game at Crypto.com Arena in January 2024.Allen Berezovsky/Getty

Allen Berezovsky/Getty

Gomez went on to explain how she started to develop feelings for her other half while they were working on a song together.

“It was really simple,” theEmilia Pérezstar said. “We got in the studio to work on a song and we just talked; that’s how easy it was for me. I liked him before he liked me.”

Mandy Teefey and Selena Gomez at the premiere of Netflix’s ‘13 Reasons Why’ in March 2017 in Los Angeles.David Livingston/Getty

David Livingston/Getty

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Blanco added to the outlet that he “had no idea” Gomez was romantically interested in him, recalling that he was telling her he could “hook” her up with some of his friends.

“I hadn’t thought about it at all. And then we were texting afterwards and we decided to get dinner the next day,” he toldInterview. “I guess she thought it was a date and I had no idea it was a date.”

Blanco then revealed that it was on their second date that he realized Gomez was “the one” for him.

“You know when you think you met the right person, you’re like, ‘Oh my God.’ But it feels so different,” he said. “The second we started hanging out, I was like, ‘This is my wife.’ I was telling my mom, ‘This is the girl I’m going to marry.’ She’s my best friend."

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Elsewhere in the interview, Blanco gushed about how perfect Gomez is for him and shared that he wished their relationship had began sooner.

“It’s like, ‘How did we not figure this out sooner?’ I’m 36 years old,” he said.

They then made their firstred carpet appearancein January 2024 at the 2024Emmys.

The duo collaborated on Gomez’s 2019 song, “I Can’t Get Enough,” before beginninga romantic relationship in June 2023. Two months later, Gomez released her track"Single Soon," with Blanco also producing the song.

And on Feb. 13, the couple announced that they have teamed up once again and are releasing theirnew collaborative album,I Said I Love You First,on March 21.

source: people.com