Jeannie Mai Reveals She’s ‘Doing Better’ After Unexpected Jeezy Divorce Left Her Feeling ‘Gutted’
The Real host Jeannie Mai said she’s in a much better place than she was in September when she learned that husband Jeezy had filed for divorce.
“I think I’m doing better now,” Jeannie, 44, told Jennifer Hudson on The Jennifer Hudson Show during the Monday, December 4 episode. “I think at the time, when I found out at the same time as the rest of the world that my marriage was ending in divorce, I was gutted.”
Jeannie added that she’s now focused on “picking up the pieces,” “discovering” herself and “being a mom to the best blessing” in her life. The TV personality welcomed daughter Monaco with Jeezy, 46, in January 2022.
“Even though this year, I met the most broken version of me. I also met the strongest version of me,” Jeannie concluded.
Rapper Jeezy, whose real name is Jay Wayne Jenkins, filed for divorce from Jeannie after two years of marriage on September 12 at Fulton County Superior Court in Fulton County, Georgia, Life & Style confirmed at the time. The two were already separated and had a prenuptial agreement in place, according to court documents obtained by Life & Style. The docs noted that the former couple’s marriage was “irretrievably broken” with “no hope for reconciliation.” Jeezy asked for joint legal custody of Monaco.
A source told Entertainment Tonight at the time that although Jeannie and the “Put On” rapper’s relationship hadn’t “been great” for a few months, the divorce still took her by surprise. The former talk show host was the first to speak out about their split, telling Sherri Shepherd on October 12 that she “turned off every single device” in her home when she learned about Jeezy’s filing.
“I really needed to tune into the voices I really needed to hear, which was me and the truth,” she said.
Jeezy broke his silence regarding the divorce on October 19. The “Soul Survivor” artist told TMZ in a statement, “The decision to end this chapter in my life was not made impulsively and comes with a heavy heart. Despite this, my love and respect for Jeannie remains and the time we spent together holds a cherished place in my heart. Our beautiful daughter is the best gift from our relationship and I am committed to assuring she feels the love and stability she deserves.”
The divorce battle has since become slightly complicated, as Jeezy accused Jeannie of keeping Monaco from him. He filed a motion requesting a temporary custody hearing, according to court documents obtained by Page Six. Jeezy claimed that the “lack of consistency” in their informal visitation schedule has become “stressful” for Monaco. Though the rapper did not believe Jeannie was “acting maliciously,” he accused her of acting as a “gatekeeper” of their daughter.
Meanwhile, Jeannie implied that Jeezy had been unfaithful in their marriage when she asked her lawyer to enforce a paragraph in their prenup “regarding infidelity,” according to court documents obtained by Life & Style.
A rep for Jeezy responded to the insinuation, telling Us Weekly on December 2, “Any claim of infidelity on Mr Jenkins’ behalf are 100 percent false and we have no further statements at this time.”