Country music star Jelly Roll says he would walk away from his career without hesitation if he believed God was calling him in a different direction.
The 39-year-old performer, born Jason DeFord, has spent the past year both at the peak of industry acclaim and at the center of controversy, according to Western Journal. His recent comments about potentially leaving music altogether come on the heels of repeated attacks on President Donald Trump and Trumps supporters, a group that includes many of the blue-collar country fans who helped propel him to fame.
Speaking in March at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, Jelly Roll reflected on his career and suggested he has already achieved everything he set out to accomplish in the music world. Everything that Jason or Jelly Roll wanted to do in the music business, Ive done now, so at this point, I really need to go talk to God and see if he wants me to stick around, or what he wants me to do next, Jelly Roll said.
He made clear that, in his view, divine direction would outweigh fame, fortune or fan expectations. If God tells me to go work at a homeless shelter in Paducah, Kentucky, Im outta here, he added.
The singer went further, saying he would disappear from public life entirely if he believed that was Gods will. Yall will never see me again, and Ill be working at a he gave me everything I ever wanted, man Grammys, ACMs, CMAs, Im a member of the Grand Ole Opry, like God has done it.
Those remarks about leaving the industry landed amid growing backlash from conservatives after Jelly Roll used his platform to mock Trump and his supporters on late-night television. During an August appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, he delivered a monologue that many traditional country fans saw as a direct insult to a president they still strongly support.
Well, Mr. President, from one fat pig to another, take it from me that physical fitness is very important. And trust me, youll be happy to see your penis again, Jelly Roll said in one monologue, according to a report from Fox News.
He went on to compare his dramatic weight loss to the presidents size in a way that delighted liberal audiences but alienated many in his core demographic. Its crazy. Think about this, yall. In the last few years, Ive lost 300 pounds. That means Ive lost an entire Donald Trump.
After fans voiced their displeasure, particularly those who felt betrayed by a country artist ridiculing a Republican leader on a left-leaning late-night show, Jelly Roll did not retreat. Instead, he doubled down and mocked the idea that he was being manipulated by Hollywood writers.
A lot of people seem to think these Jimmy Kimmel writers have secretly been pulling the strings and forcing this good old country boy to poke fun at our commander-in-chief, he said on the show. But lets be real about this yall: Do you think I would take orders from some sweaty little dork named Josh? No, I was just telling it like it is, he continued.
He then escalated the rhetoric further, dismissing the outrage from viewers who objected to his attacks on Trump. And for some reason, that seemed to freak a lot of people out. I guess now that Ive lost all this weight, folks can finally see I have balls, he said.
Billboard noted that the past year has brought highs and lows for the rapper-turned-country star, underscoring the tension between his professional success and personal turmoil. While he won three Grammys in February and secured membership in the Grand Ole Opry, his marriage to social media personality Bunnie Xo ended in divorce.
Compounding the instability, the first six shows of his tour with Post Malone were delayed because of Post Malones production schedule. For a performer who now says he would vanish from the spotlight if he sensed a different calling, the combination of strained relations with his conservative fan base, personal upheaval and industry disruptions raises a larger question: whether Jelly Rolls next act will be on stage, or far from the entertainment world that made him a star.
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