Every Wednesday night, Jeezy puts on his best fit, sits down at his favorite sushi restaurant, orders a bottle of sake, a bottle of wine, and eats alone, by choice.
The Atlanta rapper, fresh off announcing his Las Vegas residency, appeared on TODAY on June 2 to talk music and, unexpectedly, to deliver one of the more quietly radical statements in recent celebrity interviews. Asked about his return to the dating scene following his 2024 divorce from TV personality Jeannie Mai, Jeezy wasn’t in a rush.
“I’m dating myself right now and I feel like, as a man, you should always take time to be with yourself,” he said.
His Wednesday sushi ritual isn’t a consolation prize for being single. It’s intentional.
“I get dressed up, I do the whole thing,” Jeezy explained. “And I go out and I have a bottle of sake, a bottle of wine and my favorite sushi and date myself. I think it’s amazing.”
The sentiment might catch some off guard — solo dining still carries an unfair stigma, particularly for men — but mental health professionals say Jeezy is onto something with real psychological weight behind it.
Dr. Deborah Gilman, Ph.D., owner and chief licensed psychologist at Fox Chapel Psychological Services, says our culture’s discomfort with being alone is itself the problem. “Going on a date alone can be a powerful act of self-affirmation and autonomy,” she told Weekand. “It signifies a willingness to step outside one’s comfort zone, challenge societal norms and prioritize personal fulfillment.”
San Francisco-based therapist Stephanie Macadaan frames it in terms of what she calls “psychic space.
“Alone time fosters independence and allows you to be more in touch with yourself, which then allows you to feel more grounded in all areas of life,” she told InStyle, as cited by The List. “I refer to this as a ‘psychic space,’ a time where you are not focused on someone else but rather attuned to your own feelings, needs, and wants.”
Frank Thewes, LCSW, a therapist and owner of Path Forward Therapy in New Jersey, puts it even more plainly: “Going on dates by yourself is self-care. It’s a way to feel good alone and to be secure with yourself. People can and should head out once in a while and do fun things for themselves solo.”
London-based psychologist Dr. Natalie V. Bailey connects the practice directly to emotional resilience. “Solo dating is all about self-love, self-discovery, growth and empowerment,” she explained to Service95. “It’s an invitation; a time to discover more about yourself without the noise and the influence of others.”
She adds that the practice has grounding in cognitive behavioral therapy and attachment-based theory — “each solo date is an opportunity to develop and refine your coping strategies, enhancing your ability to adapt and recover from stress and adversity.”
Psychotherapist Whitney Goodman, author of “Toxic Positivity,” specifically highlights the value of solo dates after a period of emotional exhaustion or relational upheaval. “When you’re alone, you have a lot more access to your own thoughts and emotions,” she told Bumble. For anyone navigating the aftermath of a divorce, which research consistently links to elevated stress, anxiety, and social isolation, that kind of internal access isn’t a luxury. It’s recovery.
Jeezy’s openness is significant beyond the personal. Psychology Today has noted that single and divorced men tend to fare worse in mental health outcomes than their married or female counterparts, a disparity often tied to fewer emotional outlets and a cultural reluctance to seek support.
A 2022 study published in Qualitative Health Research found that men navigating post-relationship breakups relied heavily on “solitary work” as a coping mechanism, including self-help resources, social activities, and intentional alone time, suggesting that structured solo practices like the ones Jeezy describes are not only instinctive but clinically relevant.
There’s also the post-divorce identity question. Innerspace Counseling notes that solo dating helps individuals “gain deeper self-awareness, boost confidence, and improve overall mental health,” particularly valuable for anyone rebuilding a sense of self outside of a relationship.
Jeezy and Mai finalized their divorce in 2024 after two years of marriage. The former couple share a four-year-old daughter, Monaco, and previously navigated a public custody dispute. Jeezy also has son Jadarius, 28, and daughter Amra, 12, from prior relationships.
When Jeezy appeared on “The Breakfast Club” last June, he framed the post-divorce chapter in terms of peace rather than pain.
“I don’t want no enemies, I don’t want no issues, I just want peace, I just want joy and I just want freedom. I love my freedom,” he said.
That freedom, it turns out, looks like a Wednesday night, a sake bottle, and his own company. Therapists would call it a prescription. Jeezy just calls it a date.
