Ray J is keeping the odd public moments coming after his recent arrest, now saying he’s hitchhiking across the country for a reality-style project — all while juggling a six-figure lawsuit from American Express.
On Saturday, December 13, Us Weekly confirmed that the 44-year-old singer and entrepreneur shared on Instagram that he was hitchhiking from Tampa, Florida, all the way back to Los Angeles.
Ray J shared that the trek is being filmed for a potential new show called Celebrity Hitchhiker, which he described as a social experiment where he stays with strangers along the way.
“I’m hitchhiking right now to try to get a place to stay tonight,” Ray J said in the video. “Hopefully I can be the new family, and it can take me in and teach me about their rules and their goals and life, and then send me on my way to the next destination.”
He added that his aim is to make it back to Los Angeles before Christmas, calling the journey a “scouting run” for the pilot and stressing that nothing is staged. “It’s real, and I’m all by myself,” he said. “Nobody’s with me.”
His hitchhiking announcement comes as he faces growing legal problems. On November 19 — just days before his arrest — American Express filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Ray J, whose legal name is Willie Norwood, and his company, Tronix Network.
According to court documents, the credit card company alleges breach of contract and claims Ray J and the company owe $139,849.85. The filing says payments stopped in May, leaving the balance outstanding. Ray J has not publicly addressed the lawsuit.
Tronix Network is a streaming platform Ray J unveiled in 2024, though the lawsuit does not detail how the charges tied to the account were used.
In his Instagram video, Ray J hinted at recent chaos without naming specifics. “I need some food, and I need shelter. Just a lot of s**t that’s happened,” he said. “And I just wanna get back home and see my kids.”
Ray J was arrested on November 27 after police responded to reports of threats and a domestic dispute at his Porter Ranch, California home.
Earlier that morning, he livestreamed himself saying he was having “the worst Thanksgiving in the f***ing world.” During the livestream, he appeared to hold a firearm while arguing with his estranged wife, Princess Love, and others present.
Princess Love accused him of pointing a gun at her, while Ray J claimed she was intoxicated. He was taken into custody and released later that day. He has not publicly commented on the arrest.
Ray J and Love, who married in 2016, share two children — daughter Melody Love and son Epik Ray. The couple has filed for divorce multiple times, with the most recent filing happening earlier this year.
