Jelly Roll Says Meeting His Wife, Bunnie, Was More Than Love at First Sight: ‘I Felt Her Soul’
Jelly Roll is opening up about how he met his wife, Bunnie, and while some people may call it love at first sight, he says it was much deeper than that.
"I felt her soul," the country rocker confesses to Taste of Country Nights host Evan Paul. "When I hugged her, I could just feel the genuine-ness of her. I could tell it wasn't an act."
The couple has been together several years and tied the knot in 2020. So, where did this love story begin?
"I was working at a plus-size male strip club, it was called Chip & Whales," Jelly Roll jokes. "And what happens is, women come in and the deal is we start naked and as we get tipped, we clothe. Thousand dollars a sock, you know what I'm saying?"
Although Jelly Roll loves to tell that fabricated tale — much to his wife's dismay — the real story is that Jelly Roll was opening at the Las Vegas Country Saloon when the two crossed paths. He admits she didn't even know who he was at the time!
"We hit it off," he says. "She said she fell in love with the saddest eyes in the room."
Jelly Roll — real name Jason DeFord — knows that he and bunny turn heads when they walk into a place, but he doesn't mind people's reactions. In fact, their quick judgments amuse him.
"I get tickled pink," he says, laughing. "I love it when they call her a gold digger, that's my favorite thing. She hates it. It infuriates her, it just flames her up."
"But it just tickles me pink because when I met her, I was homeless living out of a '96 conversion van. If anyone was digging for gold, it was I, Popeye. I was the one that was over here searching. I was couch surfing and made it to the bedroom," he adds.
The "Son of a Sinner" singer relishes in the misconceptions of both himself and his wife. Despite what you may see on Bunnie's Instagram, Jelly Roll says she is quite goofy. While chatting with Taste of Country he revealed that just that morning, she woke him up by impersonating a cat saying "hello."
Bunnie has also been very present in the life of Jelly Roll's daughter, Bailee, who comes from one of his previous relationships.
"She's helped me raise my daughter. We've had custody of her the last nine years. It just takes a real selfless person to help raise a child they didn't birth," he says, gushing.
While Jelly Roll pursues his music career, Bunnie spends her time modeling and hosting her own podcast. She calls herself "your favorite female shock jock" on the Dumb Blonde Podcast.
Later this year, Mr. Roll will hit the road on a handful of dates with Brantley Gilbert. The Son of the Dirty South Tour will make five stops between June 30 and Aug. 27.
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