Jelly Roll, born as Jason Bradley DeFord, is an American singer, rapper and songwriter. He swept through the heights of independent rap success to cross-over greatness in country and rock. He gained mainstream attention with the release of his 2022 songs “Son of a Sinner” and “Need a Favor” in the mainstream. In 2023, Son of a Sinner was a three-time winner of CMT Music Awards.
He has huge fan base and they always eager to know about how old jelly roll is, and seek to know about his biography, his wife, daughter, weight loss, his career path and how much he has earned. It is that bigger picture that makes his biography so intriguing in 2026.
Jelly Roll Biography

Jelly Roll is one of the most well-known music celebrities in America due to the fact that his story is much bigger than the music hits. He has been associated with incorporating rap, country, rock and emotive narrative in a manner that is intimate as opposed to being refined. His ascension has resonated with fans since it was a result of years of perseverance, legal issues, drug addictions, and a tumultuous journey of independent music before mainstream recognition eventually came.
| Full name | Jason Bradley DeFord |
| Stage name | Jelly Roll |
| Born | December 4, 1984 · Nashville, Tennessee |
| Age (As Of 2026) | 41 |
| Raised in | Antioch neighborhood, Nashville, TN |
| Genres | Country Hip-hop Rock Gospel |
| Career start | 2003 (hip-hop mixtapes) |
| Mainstream breakthrough | 2022 — “Son of a Sinner” |
| Spouse | Bunnie XO (married 2016) |
| Education | GED earned in prison at age 23 |
| Pardon | Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, December 18, 2025 |
| Influences | Three 6 Mafia, UGK, 8Ball & MJG |
| Labels | BBR Music Group / Broken Bow / Stoney Creek / Republic |
| Key milestone | First #1 on Billboard 200 with Beautifully Broken (2024) |
| Congressional testimony | January 2024 — anti-fentanyl legislation |
Jelly Roll Age (As Of 2026)
Jelly Roll was born on December 4, 1984, and he is 41 years old and will be 42 on December 4, 2026. It is the most obvious response to the question that readers who seek to know how old is jelly roll would find.
His age would also be pertinent since 2026 would be a landmark in his life. He is currently in stage where his mainstream career, family life, health change and awards success are all occurring simultaneously.
Jelly Roll’s Physical stats
| Stats | Value |
| Height in Feet | 6 ft 0 in |
| Height in centimeter | 183 cm |
| Peak weight (c. 2020) | ~540 lbs (245 kg) |
| Weight (November 2025) | ~265 lbs or 120 kg, nearly 300 pounds |
| Total weight lost | ~275 lbs (125 kg) |
| Eye color | Brown |
| Build | Large / heavyset |
| Tattoos | full-body tattoo coverage |
Early Life Of Jelly Roll
Jelly Roll was born on the 4th of December, 1984. and grew up in Nashville, Antioch, Tennessee. His childhood was a challenging one that was influenced by instability. His father was a meat salesman and a bookie as well, and his mother was a mental patient with an addiction. He has also been very vocal about having been into trouble at a tender age and spending years in and out of jail.
That is an important background since it is the focus of how individuals perceive him as an artist. He frequently addresses the topics of pain, shame, redemption, addiction, and second chances in his music. His image as a perfect person was something that he did not construct. He construct it on survival and truth and that is one of the reasons why his songs resonate with his audience.
Family Background
He has parents, Donna DeFord and Horace “Buddy” DeFord. According to some sources, it was his mother, Donna who gave him the nickname Jelly Roll at the tender age.
At the age of 13, Jelly Roll witnessed the divorce of his parents and has said that it was a breakthrough that made him feel guilty as to why he needed to assist his mother.
It is reported that he became a kind of a care taker at home and the stress, instability and family problems was one of the reasons why he became an early drug user and a criminal.
Recovery journey
The same background later came into his recovery story since he has put addiction as a condition that he has to deal with with honesty and support as opposed to concealing. He has also been vocal on the therapy, accountability, and the use of music as a healthier medium to release pain and remain in touch with those he loves.
Jelly Roll Wife
Since 2016, Jelly Roll is married to Bunnie XO, the legal name of whom publicly is Alisa DeFord. A visible aspect of his public life, she is also a podcast host, internet personality and has her own following and identity.
Their relationship attracts much attention as they are more than usual open, funny and supportive in the openness. Meanwhile, the most crucial confirmed fact is that, since 2016, they are married, and she has been standing by him throughout one of the largest periods of his career and personal development.
Jelly Roll Daughter and Children
Jelly Roll has a father of two kids. He has a daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord (born May 22, 2008) and a son, Noah Buddy (born August 23, 2016). Bailee Ann has since been an inseparable aspect of his own family narrative, particularly following the fact that Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO have talked positively about parenting and family life. The media has also reported that Bunnie XO shares the kids, and is close to Bailee.
Jelly Roll’s 300 Pounds Weight Loss Journey
Jelly Roll has been shedding pounds: as he recently announced, he has lost 275 lbs almost 300 pounds in total, with previous steps such as 120 pounds by late 2024, and approximately 200 pounds by the end of 2025. His philosophy has focused on lifestyle modifications, in particular, walking/running, eating healthier, therapy, and creating lasting habits instead of using weight-loss medications.
Jelly Roll has identified food addiction as something he was forced to take as seriously as he had in his previous substance addiction, and has attributed therapy to assisting him in altering his attitude towards food. He has lost weight in the following way:
- 120 pounds lost in November 2024.
- Almost 200 pounds lost in October 2025.
- Almost 300 pounds to be lost under early 2026 reporting.
Bunnie XO, his wife, has also conducted a speech on the extent to which the transformation has been a life changer to him. The space surrounding them in 2026 implies that it is not only about the look that his loss of weight might be. It has impacted his self-esteem, physical ability, joy, and quality of life.
Jelly Roll Music Career And Achievement
Jelly Roll entered music in 2003 with the first step to gain recognition in hip-hop with mixtapes and collaboration. During several years, he had been a household name in independent rap circles as opposed to mainstream country world which he would join in the future. His crossover breakthrough was much later, particularly due to the popularity of such songs as Son of a Sinner and Need a Favor.
His career took a new turn in 2023, when Son of a Sinner assisted him to become a mainstream big name. He received several CMT Music Awards in 2023, was awarded New Artist of the Year at CMA Awards and would subsequently go on to scale to larger album cycles, collaborations, and television appearances.
By 2026, he had even more success. According to the public records, he won three awards at the 2026 Grammy Awards, one of the awards, Beautifully Broken, being in the Best Contemporary Country Album category. That proves that he is no longer a mere cross over curiosity. He has become a big-time award-winning artist in modern music in America.
| Song | Year | Peak — Hot 100 | Peak — Country | Peak — Rock |
| Pop Another Pill (feat. Lil Wyte) | 2010 | — | — | — |
| Dead Man Walking | 2021 | — | — | #1 Rock Airplay |
| Son of a Sinner | 2022 | #31 | #1 Country Airplay | #8 Rock & Alt. |
| Save Me | 2022 | — | #1 Country Airplay | — |
| Need a Favor | 2023 | — | #1 Country Airplay | #1 Mainstream Rock |
| Halfway to Hell | 2023 | — | #1 Country Airplay | — |
| I Am Not Okay | 2023 | — | #1 Country Airplay | — |
| Liar | 2023 | — | #1 Country Airplay | — |
| Heart of Stone | 2024 | — | #1 Country Airplay | — |
| Somebody Save Me (feat. Eminem) | 2024 | charted | — | — |
| Run It (Sonic 3 OST) | 2024 | — | — | — |
| Hard Fought Hallelujah (w/ Brandon Lake) | 2025 | — | — | K-Love Song of the Year |
| Amen (feat. on Shaboozey) | 2025 | — | — | — |
| Holy Water (w/ Marshmello) | 2025 | — | — | — |
| Lighter (w/ Carín León, FIFA 2026) | 2026 | — | — | — |
Studio album timeline
| Album | Year | Billboard 200 peak |
| Year Round (w/ Lil Wyte & BPZ) | 2011 | #67 R&B/Hip-Hop Albums |
| The Big Sal Story | 2013 | Heatseekers |
| Sobriety Sucks | 2016 | #12 Heatseekers |
| Addiction Kills | 2017 | #22 Heatseekers |
| Goodnight Nashville | 2018 | #12 Heatseekers |
| A Beautiful Disaster | 2020 | #97 |
| Self Medicated | 2020 | — |
| Ballads of the Broken | 2021 | — |
| Whitsitt Chapel | 2023 | #3 |
| Beautifully Broken | 2024 | #1 ★ Grammy winner |
Jelly Roll Net Worth in 2026
The specific net worth is not officially disclosed by Jelly Roll, so any figure is to be considered an approximate. The most plausible range of the public 2026 is between 16 million and 20 million. Those estimates are backed by various entertainment finance estimates published in 2026, one of the largest outlets estimating him between 16 and 20 million and another celebrity-wealth tracker estimating him between 20 and 24 million.
The estimate is reasonable when considering his sources of income. His streaming, album sales, touring, collaborations, live appearances and merchandise are also sources of income, and his mainstream development in recent years has undoubtedly increased his income potential. A more conservative estimate would be that he is safely in the multi-million-dollar category with the actual number depending on how various outlets are computing touring and business revenue.
Interesting Facts about Jelly Roll
Jelly Roll nickname was first used when he was a child due to his fondness of doughnuts and people around him started calling him by his nickname at a tender age. The name remained with him and became one of the most popular artist names in the modern country and crossover music.
The other notable fact is that he attained his GED when he was 23 years old and was in jail. That is a story about his life that is frequently left out in brief celebrity bios, but it is important as it demonstrates that so much of his adult life has been an attempt to reconstruct following painful years.
Conclusion
When the question of how old is jelly roll is your primary question, the straightforward response is simple; Jelly Roll was born on December 4, 1984, and he will be 41 years in 2026. But that fact is just a small part of his story. He is a singer, rapper and songwriter who made a decade of struggle one of the most successful late-blooming stories in American music.
He has a daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord, is estimated to be worth between $16 million to 20 million, is married to Bunnie XO and has gone through a dramatic weight-loss transformation that has become one of the most discussed celebrity health stories of 2026. All these facts demonstrate why he is such an attractive figure on the stage.
FAQ’s
In 2026, Jelly Roll is 41 years old. He was born on December 4, 1984.
Bunnie XO, or Alisa DeFord is the wife of Jelly Roll. Since 2016, they are married.
Yes. His daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord was born on May 22, 2008. He also has a son Noah Buddy.
His net worth is not officially verified but the amount is going to be between 16 million and 20 million as per the current public estimates.
Most recent 2026 articles report that Jelly Roll has lost almost 300 pounds, with other accounts indicating a loss of about 275 pounds, depending on when he lost the weight.
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