{"id":52640,"date":"2026-09-18T10:55:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T14:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=52640"},"modified":"2026-09-18T10:55:53","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T14:55:53","slug":"jelly-roll-says-hell-walk-away-from-country-music-if-god-tells-him-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2026\/09\/jelly-roll-says-hell-walk-away-from-country-music-if-god-tells-him-to.html","title":{"rendered":"Jelly Roll Says He’ll Walk Away From Country Music if God Tells Him To"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Harvey Aspell Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jelly Roll has reached heights in country music he once could only have dreamed of. Now, the Grammy-winning singer says he’s asking God whether music is still where he is supposed to be.<\/p>\n

In an interview<\/a> with “Y’all Access Radio” recorded backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in March and released this month, Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, reflected on his success and what could come next.<\/p>\n

“Everything that Jason or Jelly Roll wanted to do in the music business, I’ve done now,” he said. “So at this point, I really need to go talk to God and see if He wants me to stick around, or what He wants me to do next.”<\/p>\n

And if the answer leads him away from the spotlight, Jelly Roll said he is prepared to follow.<\/p>\n

“If God tells me to go work at a homeless shelter in Paducah, Ky., I’m outta here,” he said. “Y’all will never see me again.”<\/p>\n

The singer pointed to his remarkable list of career accomplishments as evidence of how much he believes God has given him.<\/p>\n

“He gave me everything I ever wanted, man \u2014 Grammys, ACMs, CMAs, I’m a member of the Grand Ole Opry, as God has done it,” he said.<\/p>\n

A dramatic transformation has marked Jelly Roll’s career. After years of legal troubles and incarceration earlier in his life, he found success through music and eventually became one of country music’s biggest stars with songs including “Son of a Sinner” and “Need a Favor.”<\/p>\n

His success has continued in 2026. In February, he won three Grammy Awards<\/a>, including best contemporary country album for “Beautifully Broken” and best contemporary Christian music performance\/song for “Hard Fought Hallelujah”<\/a> with Brandon Lake.<\/p>\n

But Jelly Roll said determining his next step may require getting away from the noise surrounding his career.<\/p>\n

“I just got to go do a little bit of work on myself to make sure that I’m all the way ready,” he said. “I’m completely sober, though. I’m clear-headed, and I’m deep in therapy, I’m deep in my Bible.”<\/p>\n

For Jelly Roll, the question now isn’t simply what career milestone comes next. He said he wants enough distance from the demands of the music industry to discern what God is calling him to do.<\/p>\n

“I think that I got to separate from the chaos of the business,” he said, “for me to really hear what God wants to do for me next.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jelly Roll has reached heights in country music he once could only have dreamed of. Now, the Grammy-winning singer says he’s asking God whether music is still where he is supposed to be. In an interview with “Y’all Access Radio” recorded backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in March and released this month, Jelly Roll,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":516,"featured_media":52643,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-television"],"yoast_head":"\nJelly Roll Says He'll Walk Away From Country Music if God Tells Him To<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Jelly Roll says he could walk away from country music entirely if God calls him elsewhere as he considers what comes next.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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