He’s got a lot going on.
As first reported by TMZ, Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, filed for divorce from his wife Bunnie Xo, whose real name is Alisa DeFord, back on May 18 in Williamson County Chancery Court, just outside of Nashville. News broke earlier this week, and it’s made headlines and become a national news story at this point.
They were married for nearly ten years, and while neither of the two have publicly addressed the separation, though TMZ reported that it was a “mutual decision” and a “private family matter.”
Whiskey Riff obtained a copy of the divorce complaint that was filed by the “Save Me” singer, which reveals that the couple separated on May 9, a week and a half before the request for a divorce was filed. He cites “irreconcilable differences” as the grounds for the divorce, which in Tennessee is a no-fault grounds for divorce that means that the parties agree on the terms of the separation.
Jelly Roll has hired Rose Palermo, a high-profile divorce attorney to the stars who has represented other celebrities like Kelsea Ballerini, Kristin Cavallari, Conway Twitty, Wynona Judd, and many, many more. For her part, Bunnie is represented by Neil Campbell of Campbell Perky Johnson, PLLC, a Nashville-based divorce firm.
The couple were married back in 2016 before renewing their vows in 2023, and have been incredibly transparent about their relationship, including their struggles along the way. In an interview just a couple months ago with E! News, Bunnie explained that they were in a “beautiful place,” but things weren’t always sunshine and rainbows between them:
“I want people to know, ‘Hey, it took a lot of work, guts and grit to get to where we are, Everything’s beautiful now, but it wasn’t in the beginning. Just us being together was just two souls that were merging that were broken and just formed a whole piece. And we helped each other heal, and we have continued to elevate and grow in these past 10 years. I couldn’t be happier. That dude’s my best friend.”
Obviously, something changed, and their daughter, Bailee, has also spoken out, posting a story on her TikTok addressing the situation. The 18-year old Bailee made clear that the family plans to stay quiet on the situation – at least for now:
“I am disgusted at how invested everyone is in a very clearly private family matter. It’s fkn crazy. Go on somewhere yall. Worry bout your house – not mine. I’m not speaking on it – yet.”
It’s especially sad for her, and divorce is incredibly difficult and I’m sure they’re all going through it right now.
And as this news has come out, Jelly has been on the road opening for Post Malone, which kicked off in Charlotte, North Carolina last week. Jelly actually made an unexpected visit to the hospital ahead of the show, explaining in a video on Instagram that he got treated at Novant Medical Center for a really bad sinus infection:
“So I went to Novant Health last night in Charlotte, North Carolina. Shoutout to that whole hospital. They literally got me on my feet for the show.”
He says he was in bad shape before that, and they gave him steroids to help him feel better, but it was the first night he didn’t go sing “Losers” with Posty because he just couldn’t rally after his opening set:
“I was puffy-faced. It was just bad. It was the first night, as long as I’ve been touring with Post, that I didn’t get to come out and sing Losers with him because I just barely got through my show.”
Post sent him flowers as a “feel better soon” gesture:
“When I say on stage every night that Post Malone is the nicest human in the world, I’m not making that up. I love you, Post.”
It’s never fun to get sick, and considering how much he’s got going on in his personal life, it sounds like he could use a break, though I don’t think that’s gonna happen anytime soon considering he’s not only on tour with Post Malone but has his own headlining tour this summer too.
Big A** Stadium Tour Part Two Tour Dates
Tue Jun 09 – Charlotte, NC – Bank of America Stadium
Fri Jun 12 – Indianapolis, IN – Lucas Oil Stadium
Tue Jun 16 – Toronto, ON – Rogers Stadium
Sat Jun 20 – Wildwood, NJ – Barefoot Country Music Festival*
Mon Jun 22 – East Hartford, CT – Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field
Thu Jun 25 – Cleveland, OH – Huntington Bank Field
Sat Jun 27 – Milwaukee, WI – Summerfest*
Tue Jun 30 – Nashville, TN – Nissan Stadium^
Sat Jul 11 – Fayetteville, AR – Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium
Wed Jul 15 – Kansas City, MO – Kauffman Stadium
Fri Jul 17 – Ames, IA – Jack Trice Stadium
Tue Jul 21 – Missoula, MT – Washington-Grizzly Stadium
Fri Jul 24 – Edmonton, AB – Commonwealth Stadium
Tue Jul 28 – Salt Lake City, UT – Rice-Eccles Stadium
*Festival appearance
^ Without Jelly Roll
