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James Kennedy Is "So F--king Happy" Without Alcohol: Inside His Sobriety Journey

By Brett Malec May 06, 2021 9:00 PMTags
Watch: James Kennedy Practices Marriage Proposal on Lisa Vanderpump

James Kennedy hasn't been over served in nearly two years. But that didn't stop him from having a blast on E!'s Overserved With Lisa Vanderpump.

"It was really fun," the Vanderpump Rules star told E! News exclusively ahead of tonight's new episode of Overserved. "Normally when I'm over at Lisa's house I'm normally in a bit of trouble, but I was really excited to be there for dinner. I obviously know Jim Jeffries, he's hilarious. And it was really fun to catch up with Lisa, especially after not seeing her for so long."

Once known for causing drunken fights and major drama on Pump Rules, James is nearing a big milestone in his sobriety journey.

"July 5 will be my two years," he shared. When asked about the key to maintaining his sobriety, he explained, "It's gratitude. It's the feeling of being so thankful for my sobriety. I wake up every day thanking god that I've got it. My life has just gotten so much better from quitting drinking. I'm never hungover, I'm able to focus on my music so much more. My relationships and friendships are excelling. When I see these amazing things happening right before my eyes, why would I want to go back?"

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The Bravo star and DJ continued, "Then it's the whole matter of getting over the fact that you think that you're missing out on the party because you're not drinking. I got over that, in the first six months I was still struggling with the whole, ‘Well, everyone else is getting to go out and have fun but I don't.' When I got over that hump and I realized I'm actually able to have just as much fun, if not more, than everyone else drinking.

"It was like a lightbulb went off in my head and it's just an amazing thing. Like I walk into a room now with people drinking everywhere and I'm just so f--king happy I don't, you know? I'm just so thankful and I feel so good about it. I can still be the life of the party, I can still be my charismatic self and I still end up chatting even more than most people do to drink, they drink just to get more chatty. But I've never needed that and I never really realized that I didn't need alcohol until I quit it. So being able to maintain the sobriety has thankfully been the easiest part of it."

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In a surprising sneak peek at tonight's Overserved, James admits to seriously thinking about asking girlfriend and VPR co-star Raquel Leviss to marry him during a conversation with Lisa Vanderpump.

"I definitely just want to keep enjoying our time together," James told E!, adding, "I definitely wanted to let Lisa know that I'm headed in the right direction. I think it would be unhealthy if I wasn't thinking about it at all, but there's no plans or anything as of now. Can't really tell you what's coming up with the next season because I don't really know yet."

For all the scoop James told E! News about the upcoming ninth season of Vanderpump Rules, read our exclusive interview here!