How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to ‘Bel-Air’ princess Coco Jones
Sunday Funday #SundayFunday
In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.
As a proud Capricorn, Coco Jones has never been the type of person to shy away from hard work.
The 25-year-old singer and actor delved head first into the entertainment industry at 9 years old when she caught the attention of Disney Channel executives and landed her first breakout role in Disney’s “Let It Shine” film before her 13th birthday.
Jones stars as Hilary, the fabulous eldest daughter of the Banks family, on Peacock’s modern-day reinterpretation of the Will Smith comedy “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” Simply called “Bel-Air,” the drama premiered its second season in February. Also last month, Jones was honored for her music, winning the NAACP’s outstanding new artist award for her debut EP, “What I Didn’t Tell You.” She’s scheduled to perform at two back-to-back shows in April at the Peppermint Club in West Hollywood.
In addition to juggling her singing and acting career, Jones stars in a hilarious, unscripted YouTube show called “T and Coco” with her best friend, singer Terrell Grice, who’s also the host of “The Terrell Show.”
As of late, Jones’ professional life has been “very hectic,” she says, adding that she plans to release a full-length album this year. “There’s a lot of momentum so I’m really on the go every day, and I think I’ve had to adjust to that.
“In a good way,” she quickly adds.
Because of her increased workload and demand, Jones has to be more intentional about spending time with her loved ones, while also prioritizing her own well-being. She’s recently added a handful of activities to her self-care toolkit to help her stay grounded, she says.
“I love a good devotional or something spiritually edifying,” says the Lebanon, Tenn., native who moved to L.A. nearly a decade ago. “I’m really big on massages. I used to not really like them because it forced me to not be on my phone and sit there. But I’ve kind of challenged myself to do something like that more [often] because I’m so connected to my phone — not even by choice, just obligation.” She also enjoys reading, falling into YouTube black holes and eating ramen from Silverlake Ramen.
On the occasional Sunday that she gets off, Jones likes to put these methods into practice. Here, she takes us on her ideal Sunday in Los Angeles. This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for length and clarity.
9 a.m. Ease into the day and order a breakfast burrito
There are days when I really don’t want to get up early, and that’s when I’ll really just stay in bed. But I’m going to be up regardless around 9 a.m. I don’t even know why. It’s just not even my choice. But I wouldn’t [physically] get out of bed until 10:30 or 11 a.m. So I’d just vibe in the bed for a little bit. I probably would read a devotional in bed. I might even order breakfast from Uber Eats if I just don’t got it.
Dialog Cafe has really been doing it for me. They have a breakfast burrito from Christ himself. Another thing that I like to do is order groceries to my house because sometimes I want to know what’s in my food, not what I’m assuming is in it. So I’ll make cinnamon rolls or biscuits with eggs, bacon or whatever I’m feeling. But if not, then it’s probably Dialog Cafe for breakfast.
I love a good latte. I’ve really gotten into them. I was going to [recommend] the pistachio latte from Starbucks, but I’m so tired of everyone always promoting them. So there’s this other coffee shop called Javista Organic Coffee Bar in Hollywood. Y’all, there’s this almond croissant and this honey lavender latte there. What the hell? It’s fire.
12 p.m. Have a “normal” day with my homegirls
I’d want to do something that feels really normal. Normal to me means not industry or entertainment associated at all. Like literally something anyone could do anywhere in the world because I think it’s important — at least for me — to have that separation. I just personally want to be able to make sure that I can hold conversations and have other things to say that don’t deal with my career. I think all of my girls and I are like-minded in that way.
So I’d probably go with my girls to somebody’s house if we’re feeling like being indoors. Or we might pop out and do something like a cute little lunch moment. Maybe we’ll go shopping together. We also like to do workout classes together. Of course, all the girls are doing Pilates, but we’re a little more active with it. We like a kickboxing or Rumble boxing moment.
The other day, we went to a Korean spa together, which was so hilarious and fun. We had our bathing suits on and were ready to get in the hot tub. And they were looking at us like, “No ma’am.” And we were like, “No, ma’am — what?”
Then they were like, “This is a nude spa.” [Laughs] We were just cracking up at just the shock of it all, but we were like, “Let’s do it. We’re here.” Then we actually loved it.
3 p.m. Embrace cheat day
I feel like we’re probably going to have lunch, and just chill and talk somewhere for a while. In L.A., there’s the going to eat where you’re basically going to an appearance, so you like dress to impress and then you eat a small portion of food in a very vibey place. Or there’s eating to actually have great food, and you can wear sweatpants. And it won’t be an issue. But given that it’s Sunday and we’re probably just more on a chill tip, I feel like we’d be eating to eat. We might even do a cheat day type of moment like a Wingstop or we really like Berri’s lobster pizza, which is delicious. But if we’re dressing to impress, we’re probably going to go somewhere like Katsuya, Delilah or the Nice Guy.
5 p.m. Head to a local bar, then do an activity
If we’re already dressed and looking cute, we’d probably go to a bar that has a fun vibe like El Tejano where you can play cornhole. Sometimes we’ll be very impulsive and go somewhere like Dave & Buster’s or an escape room. Or if we’re more on a chill tip, we’ll go to the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema to get drinks and go see a movie. We also like the Rooftop Cinema Club that’s sometimes at the top of E.P. & L.P.
8 p.m. Try new cocktail recipes at home
Assuming that we’ve all been outside for the whole day, we’d probably order dinner in at somebody’s house and we’d make drinks. We really like trying new drink recipes. My homegirl started it. She made this gingerbread cookie martini during Christmas, and ever since then, we’ve been sending each other recipes like, “Oh girl, we got to try this.” Now, some of them are just insane, and they don’t seem realistic. Or we try to figure out how to make drinks that we always order. Like I’ll always get a lemon drop or a cucumber martini, so we learned how to make those just so we can have that same drink effect without having to be outside.
For dinner, if this is a Sunday of cheating, we’re just really going there. So probably crab legs at the Kickin’ Crab. Or maybe Hot Wings Cafe on Melrose, but if someone is forcing us to be healthy, we’ll do Sweetgreen.
11 p.m. Hit up another bar with a good DJ
We might go to the Highlight Room because you can have dinner there, and then it can also turn into like a little club. When the DJ is right, it’s giving what it needs to give. I also like a really chill lounge like the Sunset Rooftop, which is next door to Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles. If you really want a chill evening, you can eat Roscoe’s and then go there and vibe. The music is always giving what it needs to give. They also have a really fun paint-and-sip.
2 a.m. Time for bed
I’ll probably get home by 2 a.m. When I’m working, I will stay up a little later just to have my own personal time of silence and do whatever I prefer to do at that moment. But because it’s Sunday and everything I did was by choice, I’m probably going to go straight to sleep.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.