Everybody loves stories about the transformation of a hopeless loser into a successful hero. Legends, myths and fairy tales of mankind's history are full of it. And yet, America does love them even more. For these success stories do not only bolster up, they are virtually part of American history: from the war of independence all the way to the Amercian dream from rags to riches.
The adulation for those who have made it, makes them not only role models, but sometimes glowing idols, that everyone wants to sympathize with and maybe one day do likewise. For no other music genre well-earned success and relatably making it, is more important than for country music. Sometimes that even becomes so focal, that it outshines the music.
Maybe that helps to understand why all of a sudden everybody talks about a 38-year old rapper and charged drug dealer from a Nashville suburb. "I got baptized in here some 20 years ago and have since done nothing but go to prison, treat a bunch of people wrong, make a lot of mistakes in life, turn it around, [then] go on to be a f–king multimillionaire and help as many people as I possibly can," says Jelly Roll on billboard.com with a blunt openness that is part of his rough, yet childlike charm.
His real name is
Jason DeFord, but he decided to keep the rather unflattering nickname, his mother gave him, when he was young, as his artist name. Another indication that he doesn't want to be somebody else, but rather feels comfortable in his own skin. That makes him authentic and real. At the same time he surprises with a 5-year marriage to the attractive social media model
Bunnie Xo and 2 kids from previous relationships.
It wasn't until the birth of his now 15-year old daughter that he decided to look for an honest way of earning his living. And since songwriting and rapping were the two activities he had the most self confidence in, he decide to go for a career in music. It took over 30(!) mostly self released projects (albums, EPs and mix-tapes) over roughly 10 years until he finally got signed by a bigger label:
Broken Bow Records (BBR), home to Jason Aldean,
Dustin Lynch and Lainey Wilson among others.
In the fall of 2021 the 17th album of his career ("Ballads of the Broken") and first on the new label turned out to be the lucky charm. First the song 'Dead Man Walking' climbed all the way to number 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay Chart. Then in 2022 'Son of a Sinner' reached number 1 on the Radio (Billboard Country Airplay) Chart and even number 31 on the Billboard Hot 100 all-genre chart. And in December of 2022 he eventually performed in front of 15,000 excited fans inside of the sold-out Bridgestone Arena in his home town Nashville. A dirty drug dealer has turned into a glitzy superstar, whose success story even gets celebrated on streaming platform Hulu with the brandnew exclusive documentary: Jelly Roll: Save Me.
On June 2, 2023 he opened the next chapter of his career with the release of his first official country album, named after the Baptist Church, where he was baptized at the age of 14: "Whitsitt Chapel". Produced by Zach Crowell, he presents a 13-song project, which had him not only write material with renowned Nashville songwriters, but also with well known artist-songwriters Hardy ('Church'), Miranda Lambert ('The Lost') and Ashley McBryde ('Unlive').
While he musically straddles a country path between rap and gospel, he thematically follows his own destiny. It's the outsider between drugs and prejudices, who does not give in, when trying to get back on the right track. A track which he missed, when he started out at Whitsitt Chapel, and on which he now hopes to take others along.
that I'm going somewhere where they never would.
I'm going to church, I'm [only] going to church.
That ain't the regular crowd.
I've been down and out,
I'm better with the lost than the found.
On 'She' he is hoping to help people who struggle with any kind of addiction. On facebook he comments: "This song was written for anybody who has ever dealt with depression to the point they felt they had nothing left at all… And the significance of this video just to try to show people that you never really know what people are going through… And how much we all have in common with the struggles of our day-to-day lives no matter what walk of life we come from please take the time to watch this 7 minute short film."
Recorded back in 2020, Jelly Roll first attracted wider attention with the dark and hopeless ballad 'Save Me', which currently holds as his most successful song with over 90 mio. streams on Spotify. It's this song, that he re-recorded for the new album, featuring Lainey Wilson, and which he was asked to perform with her at the ACM Awards this year for the first time. It's a tailor-made song that has become his personal soundtrack.
Baby, don't waste your time on me.
I'm so damaged beyond repair.
Life has shattered my hopes and my dreams,
I'm a lost cause.
Already on the way into the Top-10 on the radio (Billboard Country Airplay) chart, as well as into the Top-20 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart is his current single 'Need A Favor' from the current album. It unmistakeable presents a religous theme, which may however be easily applied as a metaphor to other topics in life.
I only talk to God when I need a favor,
and I only pray when I ain't got a prayer.
So who the hell am I, who the hell am I to expect a savior,
if I only talk to God when I need a favor?
(Need A Favor / Austin Nivarel, Jason DeFord, Joe Ragosta, Rob
Ragosta)
On apple.com Jelly Roll says: "This is my coming-of-age-record. It's kind of a journey through my
growth, the duality that I am still a wild card, but I am an immensely
changed man from who I was. The biggest problem we got right now is I
might drink a little too much and get a little rowdy. But God's looking
at me with two thumbs up."
Jelly Roll debuts his new project on number 3 of the Billboard 200 all-genre album chart, which goes to prove that he has arrived in the mainstream. Undoubtedly he did so in the country genre, where he was asked to perform both his country radio singles ('Son Of A Sinner', 'Need A Favor') in front of 60,000 fans inside of Nissan Stadion in Nashville as part of the 50th CMA Fest this past weekend. And currently it does not look like this was the last time the audience is chanting his name, long after he has left the stage ...
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