Bunnie Xo is speaking publicly after court records showed her husband, country star Jelly Roll, filed for divorce following nearly 10 years of marriage.
For many country music followers, Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo had long been seen as one of the genre’s most devoted couples.
Only a few months ago, the 41-year-old Grammy-winning artist publicly praised his wife, saying she had changed the course of his life for the better.
But by the spring of 2026, the pair’s relationship was already under strain. Court records later obtained by multiple outlets showed that Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, filed for divorce in Tennessee on May 18, with May 9 listed as the date of separation and “irreconcilable differences” cited as the reason.
On a new episode of her Dumb Blonde podcast, the 46-year-old host shared her account of what happened, including when tensions began to build and the final confrontation that pushed them to this point.
Bunnie also appeared to address the breakup on social media, posting a cryptic message shortly before the divorce news became public.
Bunnie told listeners that the couple’s sudden rise in visibility over the last year changed the way they handled conflict and communication.
“J and I have never really been good at having disagreements. So, we were the type of couple who never argued. So, he would be holding things in. I would be holding things in, and that’s a recipe for disaster,” Bunnie admitted.
She said the communication habits that once helped maintain their relationship had faded as their lives became more complicated.
“We always preach you gotta be comfortable having the uncomfortable conversations, and we did that for eight years. Then the past year and a half, we kind of got away from that because we’re in a different life right now.”
According to Bunnie, the decisive moment came during an argument on Mother’s Day in May, shortly before the divorce filing was submitted.
She chose not to go into the personal specifics of the dispute, but described it as the final tipping point after a long period of frustration.
In that moment, she said she gave Jelly Roll an ultimatum.
“In that argument, I was so fed up and so tired that I just looked at him and said, ‘Well, then file the f***ing divorce papers,'” Bunnie confessed.
Bunnie added that although divorce had been brought up by Jelly Roll during difficult periods earlier in their relationship, she had never said it herself until then.
“When I say it, it really holds weight because I’m not the type of person who says what I don’t mean.”
The split has sparked intense reaction online, especially because Bunnie released her memoir, Stripped Down, earlier this year. In the book, she discussed forgiving the singer after a 10-month cheating scandal in 2018.
The couple’s daughter, Bailee Ann, also addressed the attention on TikTok this week, saying she was “disgusted at how invested everyone is” and telling people to “worry about your house, not mine.”
Even with the split and the ongoing legal process, Bunnie said she and Jelly Roll are still trying to work through what comes next, including plans tied to their family planning and IVF journey.