Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon spill wedding beans to People

NEW YORK (AP) - Mariah Carey really did get married to Nick Cannon in the Bahamas last week - and they have the tattoos to prove it.

The 38-year-old singer and the 27-year-old actor confirmed to People magazine that they tied the knot at Carey's Bahamian estate April 30 after a courtship that began in late March.

In an interview from the magazine's May 19 issue, Cannon said they clicked instantly when Carey cast him as a lover in the video for her new single, "Bye Bye."

"From the first time we sat down to discuss the video at the Beverly Hills Hotel, we connected," Cannon said. "We had so much in common spiritually, and we laugh at the same things. I didn't have to put on my Mac Daddy suave mode. I was able to be myself with her. We are both eternally 12 years old."

They began a whirlwind romance, and raised eyebrows when Carey was seen sporting a huge diamond ring on her finger at the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of her movie "Tennessee," in which she plays a waitress. Carey said she told "only about four people" about the wedding.

Were Carey's friends surprised?

"Some were, but some weren't," she said. "One thing (few people) knew was we got tattoos a few weeks earlier. So anyone who saw my (Mrs. Cannon) tattoo wasn't surprised."

Chiming in, Cannon said, "To me rings are special and exciting, but tattoos mean more than anything. They're forever and ever. They professed our love."

A dozen guests attended their sunset wedding, where they served Maine lobster and Dom Perignon champagne. The bride wore a gown by Nile Cmylo that showed off her curves and faded from off-white to pale pink.

"My pastor Clarence Keaton flew in from New York," Carey said. "The whole wedding was really beautiful and sweet. Being there with loved ones under the sky ... it was a spiritual moment."

Cannon said he was speechless watching Carey walk down the aisle: "I was elated, but I was thinking, `Don't pass out.' ... (The pastor) said, `The eyes are the window to the soul,' then gave us an entire minute to stare into each other's eyes. So I was saying, `Don't cry.'"

The pair said they've thought about having kids.

"It's part of the whole purpose of getting married," Carey said. "I'd just want our children to have the best childhood and upbringing they possibly could."