Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO may seem like an unlikely pair, but their eight years of marriage says otherwise. The rapper-turned-country star was in a very dark place when he met the future influencer, and she's been at his side for every major achievement since.
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00:00Jelly Roll and Bunny XO may seem like an unlikely pair, but their eight years of marriage says
00:05otherwise. The rapper-turned-country star was in a very dark place when he met the future influencer,
00:11and she's been at his side for every major achievement since.
00:15Even those with limited knowledge about Jelly Roll probably know that the singer's song,
00:19Save Me, was a huge hit. A remixed version of the song,
00:22featuring country singer Laney Wilson, was on the Billboard Top 100 for 37 weeks in 2023,
00:28peaking at number 19. It's well known that the singer comes from a troubled background and even
00:33spent time in prison, and Save Me isn't his only hit song to touch on those parts of his life.
00:39Jelly Roll's I Am Not Okay and Somebody Save Me also reference his struggles and need for guidance.
00:45Someone did, in fact, step in to save Jelly Roll, but it wasn't Wilson or any other musical
00:50collaborator. Jelly Roll has praised Bunny XO countless times for totally turning his life
00:55around, but a few instances stand out. In a 2023 Facebook post that the singer made
01:01in appreciation for his partner, he wrote,
01:03"...to watch what this woman has overcame and her passion and determination to be something better
01:08has inspired me from the moment I met her. She's saved me in one of the darkest times of my life.
01:13She has been nothing but supportive."
01:15In a Facebook post from five years prior,
01:17Jelly Roll expressed similar sentiments about Bunny's impact on his trajectory, writing,
01:22"...this woman changed my life. She literally changed the way everything works for me and how
01:26I function as human. She made me step my game up in all facets."
01:32Jelly Roll and Bunny XO eloped in 2016 in a small chapel in Las Vegas,
01:36less than a year after first meeting. But long before they were even a couple,
01:40Bunny was helping Jelly Roll get his life on track. The pair first met in 2015,
01:45when Bunny attended one of the singer's shows at the Las Vegas Country Saloon.
01:49Though they spent time talking backstage, Bunny was in a relationship at the time,
01:53and nothing romantic occurred. As Jelly Roll recalled on the King and the Sting and The
01:57Wing podcast, the pair kept in touch, and before long, Bunny was back on the market.
02:02"...they split and I just, I'm not gonna act like I shot my shot, she kinda shot hers."
02:07Armed with the knowledge that Bunny was interested, Jelly Roll let her know that
02:10he intended to drive to Vegas, where she lived, to shoot some video. Since the singer was unhoused
02:17at the time, Bunny offered him a place to stay.
02:19"...it's a white trans love story, man."
02:22Jelly Roll later told the Taste of Country Nights podcast the second they hugged,
02:25he felt something special. Things quickly escalated from there.
02:29"...when I hugged her, I could just feel the genuineness off of her. I could tell it wasn't an
02:33act." When they started getting to know each other, Jelly Roll was transparent with Bunny XO
02:38about his messy situation. At the time, he had one daughter, Bailey Ann DeFord, over whom he wanted,
02:44but did not yet have, full custody. He also had a child on the way, his son Noah Buddy DeFord,
02:49with another previous girlfriend. None of this deterred Bunny, who had no biological kids of
02:54her own. Instead, she made it her mission to help Jelly Roll gain custody over his daughter,
02:59probably unaware that she would be helping to raise Bailey Ann in the future.
03:03"...I was like, you don't have to do this alone, dude. Like, I got you. Like,
03:05you know, if this little girl has a chance at life of being with you,
03:09then I'll help you as much as I can."
03:12In the years since, Bunny has become incredibly close with Bailey Ann, who calls her mom.
03:16But in those early days, her main concern was ensuring Jelly Roll got full custody.
03:21As Jelly Roll recalled on the Bustin' with the Boys podcast,
03:24this meant finding him a place to live and a lawyer to help him with his case.
03:28"...Dude, I'm broke. I can't afford the lawyer. I can't afford anything. I'm like,
03:32dude, what am I gonna do, put the kid in the van? Dude, I'm living out of like a 96 van."
03:37In response, Bunny stepped in and paid for the custody battle.
03:41Both Jelly Roll and Bunny XO had troubled childhoods that lacked stable parental role models.
03:47Jelly Roll's parents divorced when he was 13, and he lived mostly with his mom,
03:50Donna DeFord. He struggled with mental health issues and substance addiction.
03:55Bunny's mother left her when she was a baby, when the relationship with her stepmother
03:59was so toxic that Bunny left home at only 14.
04:03"...I think I've always had the fear of ending up like my mom."
04:06For these reasons, both Jelly Roll and Bunny care deeply about being fully
04:09present for the kids and setting a good example. Establishing stability and consistency for
04:14Bailey Ann has been especially imperative, as she has lived with Jelly Roll and Bunny
04:18full-time for nearly their entire relationship. For Bunny, becoming a stepmother and full-time
04:24guardian meant getting sober. At the time, she was addicted to pills, cocaine, and alcohol,
04:29but stopped cold turkey when she realized she was repeating familial patterns.
04:34"...Just being with Jay, I just wanted to be a better example for his daughter,
04:38because we ended up getting full custody of Bailey in January of 2017."
04:43While Bailey's birth mother is in her daughter's life, addiction and legal issues have kept her
04:47from being able to provide adequate care. This made Bunny want to be sober even more,
04:51having grown up in a similar situation.
04:54While Bunny XO got sober in 2018, her husband wasn't yet ready to do the same.
04:59In fact, Jelly Roll is still not sober in the strictest definition of the word. He has,
05:04however, made pivotal changes to his behavior and shifted his usage
05:08in ways that have benefited his life and family. Unsurprisingly,
05:11Bunny played a massive role in what she calls Jelly Roll's soberish journey.
05:16"...When Bunny got off of pills and coke, I got off of pills and lean,
05:22because I drank a lot of codeine."
05:24He quit cocaine a few years later, but has yet to fully quit weed or alcohol.
05:28While Jelly Roll still drinks, he now only does so with purpose. He'll indulge for celebrations or
05:34events like the Beer Olympics. The singer also goes to support meetings when he is struggling.
05:38As he told People magazine,
05:40"...I just add of an abundance of respect for the people who really got off the drugs completely
05:45and the alcohol and the weed don't necessarily claim to be a part of the program,
05:49because I respect their work and I would never want to diminish it with some of my actions,
05:53but AA has done a lot for me."
05:56Jelly Roll has also been trying to lose weight and work on his fitness,
05:59and Bunny XO has been in full support. Compared to past attempts, though,
06:03the singer told Bustin' with the Boys he has an extra motivator this time.
06:07He and Bunny are thinking about having a baby.
06:09"...It really made me realize at almost 40, I was like,
06:14that means I gotta live to at least 60. I gotta see this kid into college."
06:19Jelly Roll lost about 70 pounds in five months, training for a 5K race. He told People,
06:24"...I've been really kicking ass, man. I'm doing two to three miles a day,
06:28four to six days a week. I'm doing 20 to 30 minutes in the sauna,
06:32six minutes in a cold plunge every day. I'm eating healthy right now."
06:36He went on to say he's feeling good and would like to lose at least another 100 pounds, saying,
06:41"...if I feel this good down this weight,
06:43man, I can only imagine what I'm going to feel like by the time I go on tour."
06:47The 5K made the singer feel so great that he immediately declared a half-marathon was
06:52next up on the agenda.
06:54Jelly Roll has been struggling with his weight since he was a young child.
06:57In a 2018 Instagram post, the singer confessed to hating his relationship with food,
07:02as well as his embarrassment for having regained 60 pounds after losing 200.
07:06He also detailed his rock bottom, which happened in 2015.
07:10The doctor's scale only weighed to 500 pounds. They suggested I go to a meat processor or
07:15truck stop to get my actual weight. It was one of the most embarrassing days of my life,
07:19and the bottom line, I had done it to myself. I continued to spiral out of control and dealt
07:23with the news by more food, more drugs, and more liquor.
07:27Despite letting people in on his food addiction,
07:30multiple attempts to drop the pounds, and the ways that obesity affects him,
07:34not all fans have been kind when it comes to commenting on Jelly Roll's body.
07:38While the singer does not directly respond to the body shaming,
07:41Bonnie XO isn't afraid to go after bullies who leave hurtful comments.
07:45She has also defended Jelly Roll on her podcast,
07:47Dumb Blonde, where she acknowledged the impact of the online harassment.
07:51My husband got off the internet because he is so tired of being bullied about his f----- weight,
07:56and like that makes me want to cry because he is the sweetest angel baby.
08:00While neither the rap nor the country music industry are known for male singers expressing
08:05vulnerability, Jelly Roll makes no efforts to hide his sensitivity. There are dozens of instances of
08:10the singer crying on video, and he loves a long, poignant social media post, where he can express
08:16his deep feelings. While some of these posts are heartbreaking, others are incredibly uplifting.
08:21And none are sweeter than the appreciation posts he makes to honor Bonnie XO.
08:26He does these on birthdays, Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, and sometimes just at random.
08:31There's no question that Jelly Roll adores Bonnie, but their bond goes deeper than that.
08:36The star frequently references the way that his wife grounds him,
08:39providing a stability that he never had in his earlier years.
08:42He referred to Bonnie as his backbone in life in a 2020 Instagram post,
08:47and his anchor in a 2024 Facebook birthday tribute. He wrote,
08:51"[She taught me to not just weather the storm, but to dance in the rain.
08:55She taught me how to build a deep-rooted friendship in our relationship that supersedes
08:59everything. My wife is the epitome of sometimes God sends his most unlikely messengers
09:05with the biggest message."
09:07There are clearly many reasons for Jelly Roll to love Bonnie XO. But beyond love,
09:12he's also expressed how much he admires her, including her resilience and determination
09:16to start a podcast on her own terms. As he wrote in a 2023 Facebook post,
09:21"[I watched her build her own platform, her own podcast and her own team,
09:25with zero help from me. She wanted to do it on her own. She didn't want to be just
09:29Jelly Roll's wife."
09:31Jelly Roll is particularly proud of the way Bonnie creates community,
09:34and her desire to use her story to empower other women. In an Instagram post celebrating
09:39their eighth anniversary, he wrote,
09:41"[Watching what you have built on social media and with your podcast is amazing.
09:45To see the way you inspire people, especially other women, makes my heart want to explode
09:49with joy. The amount of women who come up to me and say they relate to you and love
09:53your content makes my soul smile."
09:57Bonnie XO has been in Jelly Roll's life for nearly a decade, and her impact cannot be
10:01understated. In addition to influencing Jelly Roll's desire to live more healthfully and
10:07be a great parent, Bonnie's presence has also affected his work. After all, Jelly Roll's
10:11brand has been built on sadness and struggles, not happiness. The fact that he has a full-on
10:16love song on his newest album, Beautifully Broken, is a clear change of tone for the star.
10:22A few weeks before the album's October 2024 release,
10:25Bonnie posted a teaser of the song Jelly Roll wrote for her on TikTok.
10:29Fans went crazy in the comments, despite not even knowing the song's title.
10:32Though the album is still filled with dark content about addiction, pain, and suffering,
10:36Bonnie's love song, Woman, was ranked number two by Billboard when it assessed the 22 tracks.
10:42And it's not the only song that evokes positive feelings. Others include Smile So Much and Grace,
10:48both of which emphasize the power of redemption and celebrate Jelly Roll's resilience.
10:53If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available.
10:57Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website,
11:01or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
11:12you