Jelly Roll’s Father Knew He Would Make It

Jelly Roll's father (known as "Buddy" DeFord) knew his son's hard work would pay off one day as Jelly slugged it out for years in the music business. Jelly is now enjoying the view of country music from the top, with hit songs, awards, and sold-out concert dates all over the country.

In a recent interview, Jelly told us what kept him going in his desire to be a star. He said, "Probably insanity. You had to be crazy to put out as many projects as I did and failed. To blow that much time and money on something and it not work."

He added, "I think I just had this belief that I was here to represent a group of people that weren't represented, and I knew that one day, it could connect."

Photo - Nancy Brooks (from the interview) 

Jelly recalled what he told his late father several years ago, "I came in one day, and I said, 'I think I'm giving up. Do you think my brother or you would hire me to run a meat route?' They sold meat. I said, 'Maybe I could drive a meat truck or something.'"

"He looked at me, and this was probably ten years ago, and he said, 'Son if you're working as hard as I think you are and as hard as you're telling me you are, if you would have dealt with what my wish for you was and you'd have gone to Vanderbilt right after you left high school to be a doctor,' He said, 'You wouldn't have even had your masters to go into the doctor's program.' He said, 'If you're really working that hard, I believe that one day this will work.'"

His father's wish for him did come true, in a way. Jelly told us, "I had the coolest moment when I first moved into the Governor's Club (a high-end Nashville area neighborhood) a couple of years ago, that I moved in next to a doctor. And I thought to myself, 'That old man was right. It ended up working out for me.'"

Jelly concluded, "I don't believe you could truly work at something that hard and that long and not pay off."

Cody Johnson told us in a recent interview that he and Jelly are close and have some real similarities. He said, "I've said this in a few interviews over the last six months: Jelly's Roll face tattoos are as authentic as this cowboy hat. That's him unapologetic."

Something Jelly Roll told Cody when they met sticks with the real Texas cowboy. He told us, "Jelly Roll wears his walk on his face for everyone to see, and I wear this hat unapologetically. When we met, we just hit it off, and we both recognized what was real. He told me one of the very first times that I met him, 'I modeled my career after you.' He said, 'I wanted to stay indecent because I wanted to be myself. I didn't want anybody to change me.' He said, 'I wanted to go through the ups and downs and the hardships of trying to do it on your own the way you did it.' He said, 'Because I feel like it instills more of an appreciation.'"