Jelly Roll, born Jason DeFord in Antioch, Tennessee in 1984, came up through underground rap before crossing over to country. Whitsitt Chapel (2023) made him a major force, and Beautifully Broken (2024) debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 — start with either. Dig into Jelly Roll vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Jason Bradley DeFord, performing as Jelly Roll, was born in Antioch, Tennessee on December 4, 1984. He spent significant time incarcerated in his youth and launched his music career while still navigating the criminal justice system. He has been active in underground hip hop and rap since the mid-2000s before crossing over to country and rock music in the early 2020s. His 2020 album Self Medicated and 2023 album Whitsitt Chapel established him as a major commercial figure in contemporary country, with extensive autobiographical content addressing his prison time, addiction recovery, and faith. His 2024 album Beautifully Broken debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. He has spoken extensively about his recovery and has been involved in prison reform advocacy.
Jelly Roll's sound combines country rap, country, southern hip hop, rock, southern rock, and crossover country with his distinctive raspy vocal delivery and lyrical content addressing addiction recovery, faith, prison experience, and personal trauma. His work bridges contemporary country with hip hop traditions.
Stoney Creek and Republic pressings of the Jelly Roll catalog have been issued in multiple color variant editions and retailer-exclusive pressings.
Listeners new to Jelly Roll typically start with Whitsitt Chapel (2023) or Beautifully Broken (2024).
