Jelly Roll Has Been In the Recording Studio

Jelly Roll has been working on some new music. But he says that his record label in Nashville doesn't know that he plans to release a new song next month.

In an interview to celebrate a couple of number-one songs, Jelly told us, "Yeah, new music is coming. I've been in the studio. I suspect new music is coming as early as April; that's what I hope."

He pauses and giggles, "I know the record label just s--- themselves."

Jelly loves his buddy Lainey Wilson's new single "Country's Cool Again" as well, noting that it makes him feel at home. He said, "For what it's worth, 'Country's Cool Again,' I was in Indiana doing a show this week. I was doing a TNT thing and something for the NBA. It was a smaller room, and there was a group of girls that had on white cowboy hats, and for whatever reason, It made me feel at home. It was fifteen girls wearing matching cowboy hats, and it felt like a Broadway (Nashville) bachelorette party."

Jelly Roll told us in the same interview that his life changed when he uploaded one special song. He said, "The truth is weird. The truth is, I think if I would have never hit upload of 'Save Me' and been bold enough to try that different thing, I think I never would have achieved what I thought my dream was at the time."

Jelly admits he was hesitant to put the song out at first. He said, "Dude, I was so uncomfortable... I've referenced the YouTube comment under the original 'Save Me' post. It was something along the lines of 'I'm nervous about this. I've never done anything like this. Should this make the album?' I asked the question, and it wasn't to trip engagement; it was if it didn't go good, at least I could hide behind me, 'Hey, I told ya'll this was different.'"

He concluded with a big grin, "It completely changed my life. My wife was my A&R. She called it. My wife is a critic and a half. Let me tell you something. She is the first person to tell me a song is mediocre, and she's also the first person to tell me what's going to work. I could have never imagined this is what could have happened."

Jelly Roll has become a country music sensation, topping the country charts, winning his first CMA award, and being nominated for a couple of GRAMMY Awards, one in the all-genre New Artist category and the other in the Best Country Duo/Group for his collaboration "Save Me" with Lainey Wilson.

Everyone, including his fellow country stars, is talking about him. Luke Bryan told us his thoughts on Jelly when we interviewed him recently. He said, "Jelly Roll and I have been at some events together. We hung out at a backstage festival a month and a half ago briefly. I think what Jelly Roll embodies and represents is something really, really special. When I'm around him, the way he holds himself. You are just drawn to him. He's such a star in that role."

Bryan added, "Every time I'm around the guy, he's just so intriguing and interesting. I think his form of country music speaks to a potentially forgotten box of people in country music, and he's able to really speak to that crowd."

He continued, "What makes him special is, as a fan, you get to see into his world, which is a world of a lot of people, and I think that's what you have to do to rise where he has risen. To speak to people and tell your story honestly. He tells his story the good, the bad, and the ugly, and I think that's what people love about him. You know, life's journey is not all squeaky, clean, and beautiful, with no bumps in the road. I think he lets a lot of people not feel alone."

It's been a whirlwind of a year for the native Nashvillian. Jelly took fan questions on his Insta Stories not long ago and touched on several subjects, including his mental health, after wrapping his headlining "Backroad Baptism Tour" and why he is going without his phone through the end of the year.

When a fan asked about his mental health, Jelly replied, "This is probably too honest, but exhausted and unstable. Definitely when I get through the holidays, and I've got a lot of stuff to do between now and the holidays, but when I get through the holidays, I really need to take some personal time."

Jelly Roll talked about the importance of therapy in a recent interview on Comedy Central's The Daily Show. Jelly described himself as an "old-school Southern man." He noted that his relationship with God and faith are also key parts of his evolution.

Jelly added that he believes in "God and therapy." He said he is "extremely open-minded" in his "old age." Jelly offered, "I quit searching to be happy, and I started searching to be useful." That's when everything changed for him, and he strives to "be a man of service" and to help people.

We all know his country hit songs like "Son of A Sinner," "Need A Favor," and the duet remix of his song "Save Me" with Lainey Wilson. As we continued celebrating this unique and gracious artist, we thought we would get familiar with some of his songs before he made such a significant mark in country music.

This hard rock song was released two years ago from his Ballads of the Broken album. That album is the first major-label album by Jelly Roll. "Dead Man Walking," released as a single, reached number one on the US Mainstream Rock chart. The album also included "Son of a Sinner," his first country chart-topper.

See that video here.

This song comes from his 2015 album, Therapeutic Music 5. The song talks about smoking weed and being in jail. In the song, Jelly does a lot of rapping along with singing the chorus, which includes the lyrics, "I hope that Heaven has a smoking section/ I hope that Heaven has a smoking section/ When it's said and done and we're all gone/ I hope they got a place that we can blow / I hope that Heaven has a smoking section." Jelly's mom appears in the music video.

This song came off of Jelly's 2017 album, "Addiction Kills." The music video for the song has over 53 million views and features his wife, Bunnie Xo. The couple were married in 2016. The song and video include a lot of swear words, sexual situations, and guns.

See that video here.

This song also comes from his album, Addiction Kills. The music video for the song starts with Jelly in a chair getting his hair cut and shaved. Much of the music video was filmed in Sally's Famous Kitchen in Jelly's home neighborhood, a suburb of Nashville: Antioch.

See that video here.