{"id":31179,"date":"2024-01-03T10:04:05","date_gmt":"2024-01-03T15:04:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=31179"},"modified":"2025-03-25T20:42:31","modified_gmt":"2025-03-26T00:42:31","slug":"jelly-roll-reveals-damascus-road-moment-that-led-him-from-drugs-to-fame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2024\/01\/jelly-roll-reveals-damascus-road-moment-that-led-him-from-drugs-to-fame.html","title":{"rendered":"“God Gave Me That Gift\u201d: Singer Jelly Roll Reveals ‘Damascus Road Moment’ That Turned His Life Around"},"content":{"rendered":"
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MORA \/ Everett Collection<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Singer Jelly Roll has had a shady past, having spent about 40 times behind bars for drug charges. However, he said it was his daughter\u2019s birth in 2008 that forced him to rethink his life, comparing the moment to Paul\u2019s Damascus Road encounter in the Bible. For the 39-year-old, whose birth name is Jason DeFord, arrests started when he was just 14 years old. His struggles ran deep, with drug use plaguing his life.<\/p>\n

He told <\/a>People Magazine,<\/em> \u201cI had to learn that you could drink alcohol without doing cocaine. It took me a long time to learn that. I\u2019ve never said that, but that\u2019s real.\u201d Addressing the severity of his issues, he added, \u201cThere was a long time where I just assumed, when people told me they drank without doing cocaine, I was like, I thought we only drank to do cocaine.\u201d The artist said he was in jail for crack cocaine when his daughter, Bailee, was born.<\/p>\n

That moment seemed to have a profound impact on Jelly Roll, who compared it to the \u201cChristian Scripture of when Saul turned into Paul on the Damascus Road.\u201d A few decades later, Jelly Roll is on top of the musical world, producing hit songs and nabbing Grammy nominations, as reported by People Magazine. <\/em>His album \u201cWhitsitt Chapel,\u201d which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard all-genre chart in June, is a collection of pop-rock anthems with flourishes of country, and it spawned a pair of hits \u2014 the introspective \u201cNeed a Favor\u201d and the new version of his viral breakout \u201cSave Me,\u201d featuring Lainey Wilson.<\/p>\n

He is nominated for two 2024 Grammys at next month\u2019s ceremony: Best New Artist and Best Country Group\/Duo Performance. At 39, with many mixtapes under his belt, Jelly Roll isn\u2019t a traditional new artist nominee, but his creative rebirth and move from underground circles to the mainstream spotlight makes him eligible by Grammy guidelines. His competition includes budding pop, rap, dance, R&B and country acts: Gracie Abrams,\u00a0Fred again..,\u00a0Ice Spice, Coco Jones,\u00a0Noah Kahan,\u00a0Victoria Mon\u00e9t, the War and Treaty.<\/p>\n

Despite his success, the singer hasn\u2019t forgotten his past, and he said he likes to give back to those in need. When People Magazine <\/em>reached out to him for an interview, he was on his way to play music at a prison, and he said he visits rehab and juvenile centers to encourage those struggling. He told the outlet, \u201cI always said that if I ever got in this situation, I would do everything I could to give back. The fact that just me showing up places can make people happy is such a gift, and I feel like, if God gave me that gift, I should show up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jelly Roll\u2019s relationship with faith is complex, as he indicated in an interview with Grammy.com last summer. Speaking about redemption, he praised the concept, spoke about how he views God and the church and reflected on Bailee\u2019s baptism. He said, \u201cAnd then you start thinking about redemption. Outside of religion, the idea of being able to be redeemed is just a great idea. The idea that who we were is not who we are is so powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jelly Roll still has his struggles but is continuing to avoid hard drugs. Pray for him for resilience, true faith, and peace as his fame increases.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Singer Jelly Roll has had a shady past, having spent about 40 times behind bars for drug charges. However, he said it was his daughter\u2019s birth in 2008 that forced him to rethink his life, comparing the moment to Paul\u2019s Damascus Road encounter in the Bible. For the 39-year-old, whose birth name is Jason DeFord,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":657,"featured_media":43348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7,8],"tags":[6078],"class_list":["post-31179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrities","category-entertainment","category-music","tag-jelly-roll"],"yoast_head":"\n"God Gave Me That Gift\u201d: Singer Jelly Roll Reveals 'Damascus Road Moment' That Turned His Life Around<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Singer Jelly Roll may be on a high now, but his story started with him spending time in jail for drugs. 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