Jelly Roll

Jason Bradley DeFord (born December 4, 1984), known professionally as Jelly Roll (often stylized as JellyRoll), is an American singer, rapper and songwriter from Antioch, Tennessee. Beginning his career in 2003, he rose to mainstream prominence following the release of his singles "Need a Favor" (2023) and "Son of a Sinner" (2021), the latter of which won three CMT Music Awards. That same year, he received a Grammy Award nomination for Best New Artist.

Early life

DeFord was raised in the Antioch neighborhood of Nashville, Tennessee. His father was a meat salesman and worked as a bookie on the side; his mother suffered from mental illness and addiction.

Throughout his teenage years, Jelly Roll was arrested several times and spent time in jail for various charges including possession of marijuana and attempted robbery.

Career

Jelly Roll launched his career in hip hop after being inspired by rappers such as Three 6 Mafia, UGK, and 8Ball & MJG. He sold mixtapes out of his car, starting with a string of releases from his first project The Plain Shmear Tape in 2003 then following with the four part Gamblin' on the White Boy series from 2004 to 2011.

His 2010 collaboration "Pop Another Pill" with Memphis rapper Lil Wyte reached over 6.3 million YouTube views. This song led to the album Year Round by the hip-hop group SNO, of which Jelly Roll was a member. Over the next few years, Jelly Roll released many mixtapes and independent solo album including collaborations with Lil Wyte, Struggle Jennings, Haystak, and Tech N9ne.

Jelly Roll's 2013 mixtape Whiskey, Weed, & Women was originally named Whiskey, Weed, & Waffle House, but was later changed after the restaurant threatened legal action over the use of their name and logo on the cover. The replacement cover featured a "cease and desist" stamp in place of the Waffle House logo.

Jelly Roll made his Grand Ole Opry debut on November 9, 2021. On July 7, 2022, he was invited by fellow country singer Craig Morgan to join him on stage at the Opry to perform "Almost Home".

On May 9, 2022, Jelly Roll scored his first number one on rock radio with the track "Dead Man Walking". In January 2023, Jelly Roll scored his first number-one song on Country radio with his debut country single "Son of a Sinner", written by Jelly Roll, Ernest and David Ray Stevens. The track was the second single from the 2021 album Ballads of the Broken and also peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. In February 2023, he made history with a record-breaking 25th week at number 1 on Billboard's Emerging Artists chart.

Jelly Roll sold out Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on December 9, 2022, to 15,000 fans and was joined by Chris Young, Sam Hunt, Riley Green, Shinedown, Ernest, Struggle Jennings, Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko. In the summer of 2023, he completed a 44-city 'Backroad Baptism Tour'.

At the 2023 CMT Music Awards, Jelly Roll won for Male Video of the Year, Male Breakthrough Video of the Year, and Digital-First Performance of the Year, all for the song "Son of a Sinner".

Jelly Roll released his album Whitsitt Chapel featuring the single "Need a Favor" on June 2, 2023.

In November 2023, Jelly Roll won the award for New Artist of the Year at the 57th Annual Country Music Association Awards.

In January 2024, Jelly Roll testified before the U.S. Congress, in support of anti-fentanyl legislation. Explaining his perspective as a former distributor of illegal drugs, Jelly Roll stated before the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee “I was a part of the problem. I am here now, standing as a man that wants to be a part of the solution".

In April 2024, Jelly Roll was sued by Pennsylvania-based wedding band Jellyroll for trademark infrigement.

Personal life

Jelly Roll is married to Alyssa "Bunnie XO" DeFord. He has one daughter born in 2008 and one son, both from previous relationships. Jelly Roll earned his GED at the age of 23 while in jail.

Awards and nominations

Discography

Studio albums

• Year Round with Lil Wyte and BPZ (2011)
• Strictly Business with Haystak (2011)
• The Big Sal Story (2012)
• No Filter with Lil Wyte (2013)
• Business as Usual with Haystak (2013)
• Sobriety Sucks (2016)
• No Filter 2 with Lil Wyte (2016)
• Addiction Kills (2017)
• Waylon & Willie with Struggle Jennings (2017)
• Waylon & Willie II with Struggle Jennings (2018)
• Waylon & Willie III with Struggle Jennings (2018)
• Goodnight Nashville (2018)
• Whiskey Sessions II (2019)
• A Beautiful Disaster (2020)
• Self Medicated (2020)
• Waylon & Willie IV with Struggle Jennings (2020)
• Ballads of the Broken (2021)
• Whitsitt Chapel (2023)