Jelly Roll Height, Age, Girlfriend, Wife, Children, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Jelly Roll

• He used to write poems during his childhood.
  

  Jelly Roll during his childhood with his grandmother, father, and brothers

• His mother, Donna “Buddy” DeFord, suffered from mental illness and drug addiction when Jelly Roll was growing up.

• His mother gave him the nickname “Jelly Roll” because he was fat during his childhood.

• His parents divorced when he was 13 years old.

• In an interview, he claimed that divorce led him to drug addiction and he began selling drugs as he felt responsible for taking care of his mother.

• He credits his mother for his interest in music as she would often play her favourite songs, and often, according to Jelly Roll, their neighbours also joined them and turned their kitchen into a nightclub.
  

  Jelly Roll with his mother Donna Buddy DeFord

• Jelly Roll launched his career in hip hop after being inspired by rappers such as Three 6 Mafia, UGK, and 8Ball & MJG.

• He sold his first mixtape, ‘The Plain Shmear Tape’ out of his car in 2003 and followed it up with the ‘Gamblin’ on the White Boy’ series from 2004 to 2011.
  

  Cover of Gamblin’ on the White Boy

• He earned his GED (General Educational Development) at the age of 23 while he was still in prison.

• He has a daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord from his previous relationship with Felicia Beckwith and a son, Noah Buddy DeFord from his relationship with Melissa.
  

  Jelly Roll with his daughter Bailee and son Noah

• His daughter was born when he was still in prison, which, according to Jelly Roll, was a significant moment that changed his life completely.

• He met his wife Alyssa DeFord, who is also known as Bunnie Xo, in 2015 during a concert of the band, Moonshine Bandits, in Las Vegas’ Country Saloon.
  

  Jelly Roll with his wife Alyssa DeFord

• They entered a relationship after Alyssa invited him to stay in her house while he was visiting Las Vegas to film a music video in 2015 as Jelly Roll was still a struggling artist.

• In 2017, he and his wife, Alyssa DeFord, gained custody of his daughter, Bailee, from her biological mother, Felicia Beckwith.

• Jelly Roll and Alyssa DeFord separated after two years of marriage in 2018. They reconciled their relationship soon after.

• When his daughter, Bailee was 14, her mother allowed her to drink alcohol and use drugs, which made her addicted to intoxication.

• Jelly Roll and his wife Alyssa DeFord later conducted an intensive therapy session to help Bailee get sober.
  Eventually, she cut off contact with her mother.

• In 2019, after the death of his father, he took to Facebook and wrote an eulogy, in which he revealed that his father taught him how to be a man and how to interact with people.
  

  Jelly Roll with his father and kids

• In 2020, he released the song, ‘Save Me’ which became his first gold-certified song from the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) by selling over 5 lakh units of records, tapes, and compact discs.
  

  Jelly Roll in a still from the song Save Me

• He often talks about his troubled childhood in his music and interviews.

• In an interview, he talked about his addiction and how it affected his life in an interview and said,
  

  I took a lot of Xanax, did a lot of cocaine, just really took it overboard. I’ve had years — dude, I don’t remember years. Also, addiction for me is more than just my problems. My child’s mother disappeared from her life for almost five years because of a heroin addiction.”

• According to him, he was exposed to different genres of music while growing up as his sister listened to rock music, his brother listened to rap, and his mother listened to outlaw country music.

• In 2021, he moved from the hip-hop genre to country music.

• In April 2021, his wife revealed that they were in an open relationship.

• In November 2022, he announced a donation of nearly $250,000 to the aid programs for the incarcerated and underserved youths in Nashville while partnering with ‘Impact Youth Outreach,’ a local non-profit mentoring organisation.

• The donations were used to fund five scholarships worth $10,000 each for the graduation students in Davidson County along with Impact Youth Outreach’s holiday season food and toy drives.

• On 30 May 2023, his documentary was released titled ‘Jelly Roll: Save Me.’
  

  Jelly Roll in a still from the documentary Jelly Roll Save Me

• On 17 July 2023, he met Suzanne Durham, a stage IV cancer patient who had previously suffered from substance abuse issues as part of her dying wish in Life Church, Nashville and performed a private concert for her.
  

  Jelly Roll hugging Suzanne Durham

• On 31 August 2023, he visited Las Vegas and renewed the marriage vows with his wife.
  

  Jelly Roll and Alyssa DeFord during the renewal of their wedding vows

• In November 2023, he accidentally dropped and broke the trophy of his Country Music Association Award. He was later given another trophy by the organisation.

• In December 2023, he donated a semi-truck filled with toys to a non-profit organization of Nashville, ‘The Last Minute Toy Store.’
  

  Jelly Roll’s semi-truck filled with toys donated to children

• In January 2024, he revealed in an interview that due to being a convicted felon, he doesn’t have a right to vote.

• Jelly Roll testified in favour of anti-fentanyl legislation before the U.S. Congress in January 2024.

• Speaking as a former distributor of illegal drugs, he claimed that he wants to be a part of the solution and said,
  

  I was a part of the problem. I am here now, standing as a man that wants to be a part of the solution.”

  

  Jelly Roll speaking on the anti-fentanyl legislation

• In 2024, he was nominated for two Grammys at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards but did not win the award.

• In April 2024, his wife revealed that he doesn’t use social media anymore due to the constant online bullying.

• In 2024, he opened a recording studio inside the Davidson County Juvenile Detention Center, Nashville, where he was previously incarcerated before becoming a singer.
  

  Jelly Roll during the opening ceremony of his recording studio

• In an interview in May 2024, Jelly Roll said smoking marijuana has kept him sober and helped him with anxiety. He further claimed that without Marijuana, he would use hard drugs such as Xanax and cocaine and said,
  

  I think a world without weed, Jelly Roll’s drinking codeine and popping Xanax and snorting cocaine again, but a world with weed, I’ll be alright.”

• In May 2024, he participated in the ‘2 Bears 5K’ event as part of the ‘Netflix Is A Joke’ comedy festival held in Los Angeles and completed his first 5K run.
  

  Jelly Roll after completing the 5K run

• In June 2024, during an episode of the podcast, ‘Bussin’ With The Boys,’ he revealed that he revealed his plan of becoming a father using in vitro fertilisation.

• In October 2024, he revealed that he had lost over 100lbs in preparation for a 5K race.

• In December 2024, he appeared on his wife’s podcast, ‘Dumb Blonde Podcast,’ and revealed that he wants to lose more weight and get on the cover of Men’s Health magazine by March 2026.