Jelly Roll

“You know what, man? This is my coming-of-age record,” Jelly Roll—aka Jason DeFord—recounted to Apple Music of his 2023 breakthrough (and ninth studio album) Whitsitt Chapel, which became a kind of new beginning for the singer. Born in December 1984 and raised in the Antioch area of Nashville, DeFord had been putting out music as Jelly Roll (“my momma gave me the name”) since the mid-2000s, most of it tough Southern rap detailing exploits and attitudes that put him in prison for a good part of his youth. “I was tearing my community apart making CDs bragging about it,” he said. Eventually, he got a glimpse of the bigger picture. “Some of the most honest people I’ve ever met in my life were in jail,” he added. “Some of the smartest people I ever met were in rehab.” Like a lot of classic country artists from Johnny Cash on down, his more recent music—like 2024’s Beautifully Broken—doesn’t judge so much as take inventory of the goods-and-bads and ups-and-downs that make our lives feel real to us. “The biggest problem we got right now is that I might drink a little too much and get a little rowdy,” he said. “I’m doin’ great, man. God’s looking at me with two thumbs up.”