Jeezy and Jeannie Mai: What We Know About Their Relationship and Ongoing Divorce
Jeannie Mai and Jeezy have called it quits after two years of marriage, and now the divorce proceedings have taken a dark turn.
According to court documents obtained by ET, Mai claimed she suffered physical abuse at the hands of Jeezy over the course of their marriage. In a statement to ET, Jeezy vehemently denied the claims as blatantly "false but also deeply disturbing."
It was Jeezy, whose real name is Jay Wayne Jenkins, who filed for divorce. He pulled the plug on the marriage more than two years after he and The Real co-host tied the knot during an intimate ceremony in Atlanta on March 27, 2021.
In court documents, the rapper said he's been separated from his wife, with "no hope for reconciliation," and that they have a prenuptial agreement. He's seeking joint legal and physical custody of their daughter, Monaco, whom the couple welcomed in January 2022.
ET has reached out to Jeezy and Jeannie's reps for comment.
Here's a look back at the timeline of their romance, from making things Instagram official, to welcoming their first child together.
GETTING TOGETHER
The pair -- who first met when Jeezy was a guest on Jeannie's daytime talk show, The Real -- were first spotted publicly together in a photo on Malika Haqq's Instagram in January 2019, months after Jeannie's divorce from first husband Freddy Harteis was finalized. Soon after the since-deleted pic was posted, Jeannie opened up about their relationship on The Real -- but was hesitant to put a label on it.
"Jeezy and I hang out. He's very special to me, so we don't really have a label to define what it is we're doing. We're just having a good time together," she shared.
Later that year, a source confirmed to ET that the pair were a couple, and they made things Instagram official in September 2019.
"Life is amazing," Jeezy told ET at the time when reflecting on his life and career, before subtly giving Jeannie a shout-out. "She's amazing too, by the way."
The pair quarantined together during the COVID-19 pandemic, and got engaged on March 27, 2020.
In a statement to People, Jeannie's rep revealed that Jeezy was initially going to pop the question during a trip to Vietnam, but changed his plans when the vacation was canceled due to the pandemic.
"Jeannie and Jay were set for a trip to Vietnam this April. What Jeannie didn’t know is that Jay was planning to propose," Jeannie's rep said. "Instead, Jay decided to bring Vietnam to Jeannie with a surprise quarantine date night in his home filled with Vietnamese food and decor."
Jeannie posted about the engagement on Instagram, writing, "I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life loving you....YES? Thank you, everyone, for celebrating this journey with us. We are praying love over everyone from here."
HARD TIMES
During their engagement, Jeannie competed on season 29 of Dancing With the Stars, paying tribute to her fiancé with one of her very first dances.
However, The Real co-host was forced to pull out of the competition after shocking medical complications. Jeannie was rushed to the hospital in November 2020 and forced to undergo emergency throat surgery, after it was found that an abscess was partially blocking her airway.
"I am absolutely devastated that my journey on Dancing With the Stars has to end this way," she said at the time, in a video filmed from her hospital bed. "I found out that I have a throat abscess where my tonsils and throat had gotten so infected, it started permeating to the rest of the areas behind my neck and ears. I had to get emergency surgery, which is why I'm here now."
"It was hands down one of the best journeys of my life, so thank you so much," she said of her time on the show. "I love you, guys."
Jeezy later joined Jeannie's co-hosts on The Real to share an update on her recovery.
"For me, it was real, you know? I told her, it was the hardest thing ever, because you guys know Jeannie more than I do -- she's not a quitter, she's a fighter," he said. "I thank y'all for y'all prayers and y'all support... She’s doing well; she’s eating everything in the house. But she’s definitely doing well."
THE BIG DAY
After a difficult and emotional year, Jeannie and Jeezy tied the knot on March 27, 2021, in an intimate ceremony at their Atlanta home.
Jeannie looked incredible in a custom nude Galia Lahav wedding gown with a corset top detailed with appliqués, and a billowing skirt. She completed the look with a handmade headpiece with a 15-foot Galia Lahav veil and diamond and morganite drop earrings created by Rosalina Lydster. Jeezy, on his end, looked dapper in a bespoke champagne blush suit, designed by his favorite tailor, Teofilo Flor, and stylist Chris Shelby.
The couple told Vogue -- who shared the exclusive first photos from their nuptials -- that they originally wanted to get married in Lake Como, Italy, or the south of France. However, amid the coronavirus pandemic and the unexpected death of Jeezy's mother, they changed their plans.
"We were really looking forward to having all of our friends and family there to celebrate,” Jeannie told the magazine. "We had to change all of our wedding plans due to COVID. After Jeezy’s mother unexpectedly passed, we quickly learned that life is too short. And at the end of the day, Jeezy and I really just wanted to become husband and wife. So we decided to turn our original wedding into a mini-mony, where we exchanged our vows in front of our immediate family and a few close friends."
Nearly three months after their intimate wedding, Jeannie shared with ET why being married to Jeezy felt "1,000 percent" different.
"Oh my god. Married life feels 1,000 percent different than when we were dating, in the greatest way," she said at the time. "I loved our dating life because we really spent such concentrated quality time getting to know each other and making sure that we were right for each other. And now being married, it's even more handled with such delicacy and such thoughtfulness, because we're in our 40s and we both grew up in households that weren't healthy marriages. We have never seen what that looks like."
BABY MAKES THREE
Just a few months after their wedding, the couple announced that their family was growing -- they were expecting their first child together!
Jeannie showed off her baby bump on The Real's season 8 premiere, revealing that she'd never planned on having kids until she became comfortable in her relationship with Jeezy, who has three children from previous relationships.
"You know, I was like, I know exactly what I want, I know exactly what kind of woman I want to be, and I always said, 'I'd never be a mom,'" she shared. "And there's so many reasons now that are coming to fruition as to why I would have said that then, but I do know that you never say never, and that love can really change you."
"I think the reason why it’s such a big deal is because Jeezy made me realize that I've never really felt safe in my life, you know?" she continued, holding back tears. "I've never really truly felt safe. And of course, it has to do with things that happened when I was younger, but when you know what feeling unsafe is like, that becomes your world. And falling in love with Jeezy, meeting someone who also didn't feel safe in their life, we began to really create a place where our happiness spelled out what safe looked like around us. So, as soon as you feel safe, in a healthy relationship, all of a sudden you start having visions and dreams and for both of us at the same time, it would be becoming parents, having kids."
Jeannie had previously opened up about being sexually abused as a child, and said in a video on her Hello Hunnay with Jeannie Mai YouTube channel that a fear of not being able to keep her child safe was a contributing factor in not wanting to have kids of her own.
She even recalled telling Jeezy on their first date that she didn't want kids, but as their relationship blossomed, so did her desire to build a family with the rapper, and give their child the childhood they "never had."
"I'm so thankful because I've never felt this ready. I've been through so much, and I've survived and I'm shining. My heart is ready. I was meant to be a mom," she said.
The couple welcomed their daughter, Monaco Mai Jenkins, on Jan. 11, 2022.
In a video posted to her YouTube, touring the baby girl's nursery, Jeannie revealed that Monaco’s name pays homage to the small country on the French Riviera, where she and Jeezy first solidified their relationship. After considering giving the baby a J name, The Real co-host said she and her husband opted for something more personal.
"That’s really the theme of the nursery, what Monaco is about. Family, moments, traveling, discussions, important key points in my life and Jeezy’s life, that brought Monaco here," she reflected.
At the annual Baby2Baby Gala in November 2022, Jeannie opened up to ET about motherhood and the support she was receiving from her family.
"It's not hard to get away, because I have a village, my family. They actually take Monaco away too much," she joked. "Mama Mai thinks she gave birth, my dad thinks that's his new little friend. And my husband's parents are hands-on, too."
SPLITTING UP
Without many external rumblings about trouble in their marriage, Jeezy filed for divorce from Jeannie on Sept. 14, 2023.
According to the court documents obtained by ET, Jeezy, whose real name is Jay Wayne Jenkins, says he's been separated from his wife, with "no hope for reconciliation," and that they have a prenuptial agreement. He's seeking joint legal and physical custody of their daughter.
Jeannie's last post with Jeezy was a Father's Day celebration in June, though she was photographed with her wedding ring still on during New York Fashion Week events in early September.
ET has reached out to Jeezy and Jeannie's reps for further comment.
MAI CLAIMS PHYSICAL ABUSE
In court documents obtained by ET, Mai claims Jeezy choked her during an April 2022 incident at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in San Francisco, California. She claims the rapper choked her from behind as she was heading up the stairs before pushing her down the steps.
Mai went on to also claim Jeezy verbally assaulted her by calling her a "f**king b**ch" and repeating "I can do so much better than you." Mai claims hotel security soon intervened after she told them she didn't feel safe being around him.
In a separate incident, Mai claims Jeezy grabbed her so violently during a December 2022 incident inside a car that it resulted in multiple two to three-inch scratches across her right breast. In her court filing, Mai claims Jeezy apologized for at least one incident. She attached a series of text messages and photos of the alleged injuries.
In one such text message exchange, Mai purportedly sent Jeezy a series of photos showing a big bruise on her knee and scrapes and bruises on her elbow. She also What'sApp'd him, "Babbbby... I have a lot of dresses to wear this week," followed by a face with a peeking eye emoji.
In a statement to ET, the "All There" rapper said the domestic abuse allegations "are not only false but also deeply disturbing, especially coming from someone I loved." Jeezy added, "This malicious attempt to tarnish my character and disrupt my family is ridiculous. It's disheartening to witness the manipulation and deceit at play and at this time my main concern is being an active father to our daughter as I continue to fight for court mandated joint custody. Rest assured, the truth will prevail through the proper legal channels."
RELATED CONTENT:
Jeezy Files for Divorce From Jeannie Mai After Two Years of Marriage
Watch Jeannie Mai's 1-Year-Old Daughter Recite an Adorable Affirmation
Jeannie Mai Jenkins on Postpartum Anxiety, Motherhood and ‘Holey Moley’ Season 4 (Exclusive)
