Highly successful singer/songwriter Jelly Roll has scored a surfeit of hit songs in recent years. In his native USA he has had eight chart-topping singles and two number one albums. In total he has released 25 singles, 10 studio albums, nine collaborative albums, 22 mixtapes and two EPs (extended plays). But it is his return to his Christian faith that has stirred even more interest in this highly accomplished musician.
Humble beginnings
Born Jason Bradley DeFord, his rise to fame took nearly 20 years, but eventually in 2022 he rose to mainstream prominence following the release that year of two chart-topping singles ‘Son of a Sinner’ and ‘Need a Favor’.
Jelly Roll started off as a rapper, singer, and songwriter specialising in hip-hop. His music career began in 2003, and in the early years he performed mainly at local venues selling his music on mixtapes out of the back of a car.
Initial breakthrough
As a hip-hop artist, Jelly Roll’s first breakthrough album was a collaborative effort. ‘Year Round’ was made in 2011 with fellow artists Lil Wyte and BPZ. He continued with limited success for a decade, but it was his departure from drugs, a return to faith, and the surprising move to country music in 2021 that changed everything. That year his first country album Ballads of the Broken performed respectably in the music charts. Two years later he had a huge breakthrough with the Whitsitt Chapel album reaching number one on the album charts and establishing him as major artist. His country music albums generated the singles ‘Son of a Sinner’, ‘Need a Favor’, ‘Save Me’, ‘Halfway to Hell’, ‘I Am Not Okay’, ‘Liar’, and ‘Heart of Stone’, all of which went to number one on Country Airplay.
A slow road to success
Jelly Roll was born and raised in the Antioch neighbourhood of Nashville, Tennessee. His father was a meat salesman and worked as a bookie on the side. His mother suffered from mental health issues and addiction. When he was a child, his mother nicknamed him ‘Jelly Roll’ due to his love of doughnuts. School friends picked up on the nickname and it soon became the name he was mostly known by.
Christian Faith
Although brought up a Christian and baptized at age 14, he says that very soon afterwards temptation took hold and he began dabbling in drugs. His church attendance eventually stopped altogether. It all happened very quickly and he now realises that there is a real spiritual enemy who is out to get young Christians. He remarked,
“The same year that I got baptized, I got arrested, and that started what would be a 10-year cycle of incarceration, in and out!”
From his teenage years into his twenties, he was arrested numerous times and jailed for multiple felonies including possession with intent to distribute and aggravated robbery. It wasn’t until he was in his 30s that Jelly Roll returned to his faith. He credits much of this to the patient endurance, prayer and dedication of his wife, and he acknowledges that God never really let him go. Like the Parable of the lost Son in the Bible he was a prodigal who eventually hit rock bottom and realised that only his Heavenly Father could get him out.
Grammy award and public witness
He says that God ‘saved him from himself’ through his long-tern addiction battles and that his time in prison was time to reflect, to pray, and to realign his life with the Christian faith of his early youth. As the new reborn Jelly Roll he frequently shares his faith at concerts, in interviews, and to fans. During the acceptance speech for his Grammy Award he told the audience that “Jesus is for everyone!”
Worship for Sinners
Jelly Roll now calls his music ‘worship for sinners’ and says that his concerts are ‘healing experiences’. Since turning back to his faith, he now sees his music as a way to connect with ‘the broken’. Sharing his own experience and offering hope to the tens of thousands who heard him, he said at his Grammy acceptance speech,
“Music had the power to change my life and God had the power to change my life… I want to tell you now Jesus is not for one political party, Jesus is not owned by a record label, Jesus is for everybody!”
Two pardons
In the Bible parable of The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) the younger son returns home humbled and penniless, content to be treated ‘like a hired servant’ for his foolishness. But the father is kind and forgiving to his younger son and restores him, knowing that he has learned a valuable life lesson. In like manner, Jelly Roll recognised his mistake and returned to church in 2023, receiving love and compassion, not judgement, from his fellow Christians. Then, on 18 December 2025, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee gave him a full pardon for his previous criminal convictions. The prodigal has truly returned.
Story by Ralph Burden
Video of Grammy acceptance speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0OH0DsLSH8
Photos: Jelly Roll at the 2025 Grammy Awards Ceremony, courtesy of YouTube
