Jelly Roll has revealed plans to step away from the spotlight for a while, only a few weeks after his divorce from Bunnie Xo was finalized.
The singer, born Jason DeFord, and Alisa DeFord, known publicly as Bunnie Xo, brought their marriage to an official close on July 17 after filing to end it in May. Court documents listed irreconcilable differences, and the couple had been together for close to 10 years.
Less than two weeks later, on July 28, Jelly Roll took the stage at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, during the closing stretch of his Big Ass Stadium Tour, a co-headlining run with Post Malone. His next stop was scheduled for Weidner Field in Colorado Springs, but he used the moment to tell fans he was preparing to step back.
“This has truly been a lifetime experience for me,” he proclaimed, as per Hello! Magazine.
“I go to Colorado Springs and do my last show for a year or two.
“I’m fixing to take some time off and heal. I love you all so much. Thank you for the opportunity.”
The timing of that announcement has also drawn attention because WWE SummerSlam is taking place in Minnesota on August 1 and 2. It would mark the first time since 2023 that he has seemingly not been involved in the event, although there is still a chance he could make an appearance before the two-night event concludes.
He has become a familiar face in WWE programming, especially after speaking openly about his in-ring debut at SummerSlam, where he teamed with Randy Orton against Logan Paul and Drew McIntyre in 2025.
“I told Triple H, ‘I want to lose at SummerSlam.’ No celebrity has ever taken an L,” he said on What Do You Wanna Talk About? With Cody Rhodes.
“You always put him over. If you don’t put me over, I always have a reason. There is always something lingering. I can pop up anytime.”
His most recent WWE moment came at WrestleMania 42, when he inserted himself into the headline match between Orton and Cody Rhodes.
The planned hiatus also follows months of public scrutiny around his personal life and significant achievements in his music career. In February 2026, Jelly Roll won three Grammy Awards at the 68th annual Grammy Awards ceremony, taking home Best Contemporary Country Album for Beautifully Broken, Best Country Duo/Group Performance for “Amen” with Shaboozey, and Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song for “Hard Fought Hallelujah” with Brandon Lake. He showed off a dramatic weight loss at the Grammy Awards, having lost over 300 pounds from his earlier weight of roughly 550 pounds.
During the breakup, he addressed speculation about cheating and insisted from the stage that he and Bunnie Xo were still ‘best friends’ after separating.
Since then, fans have noticed that the former couple no longer follow each other on Instagram. It has not been confirmed who made that move first, or whether one person removed the other as a follower.
Jelly Roll has also spoken candidly about the challenges he has faced in the wake of the divorce, including difficulties sticking to his weight-loss routine.
In a YouTube video alongside influencer Salvatore Reedus, the artist said stress had pushed him back toward unhealthy eating habits. After losing 200lbs, he explained that even a single indulgence can set off a larger spiral.
He said a ‘dairy-free skillet cookie’ handed to him backstage at a concert became the trigger for a binge.
“I don’t eat nothing like that. I’m like a drug addict. You can’t eat that ’cause if I ate one, I’ll eat two. I’ll eat four.
“So later that night, I’m at the taco truck getting a peanut butter fluff. Next thing I know, we’re at the rest stop, I’m looking for a chocolate bar.”
He compared that break from his meal plan to a ‘feeding frenzy’, saying it felt like a shark getting the taste of blood.
“Now it’s going to take me a whole another week to get that [taste] completely out of my mouth.
“I can’t have one anything. I’m like that with alcohol … I’ve never had a shot. I’ve never done a line of cocaine. I’ve never smoked a joint. You know what I mean?
“Either we’re smoking all day, we’re drinking all night, we’re doing coke. That’s how it’s working for me.”
The relationship between Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo stretches back to a very different stage of his career. They first met at one of his shows at the Las Vegas Country Saloon, long before mainstream recognition arrived. At the time, he was living in a van, the crowd was small, and Bunnie was still in another relationship.
After that relationship ended, Bunnie got his number through a mutual friend. She later said he would call and text her for support and advice, particularly about raising his daughter Bailee from a previous relationship.
Their connection eventually turned romantic when he returned to Las Vegas to shoot a music video and she offered him a place to stay.
Not long after, he proposed in public during a Yelawolf and Deftones concert in Las Vegas.
He tells her: “[I wanna know] will your fine a** marry my white trash a** tonight in Las Vegas?”
That same night, the pair got married at The Little White Chapel.
Jelly Roll later welcomed a son, Noah Buddy, with an ex, and in 2016 he and Bunnie also received primary custody of Bailee because of her mother’s substance abuse issues.
The marriage was not without setbacks. Jelly Roll previously admitted to cheating on Bunnie, which led to a temporary split. He later described the affair as ‘one of the worst moments of his adulthood’.
Speaking on the Human School podcast, he said he ‘did a lot of work to repair that relationship’, and the two eventually reconciled.
Over the years, both of their careers surged. Bunnie launched the Dumb Blonde podcast, which became a major platform and featured names including Dolly Parton and MGK. At the same time, Jelly Roll’s music reached new heights, with ‘Son of a Sinner’ hitting No. 1 on Billboard’s US Country Airplay chart.
Bunnie later stepped away from OnlyFans and left the sex industry, and the pair renewed their vows by returning to The Little White Chapel in Las Vegas.
She also shared on Instagram that the couple had decided to try IVF.
She writes: “W/all odds stacked against us, it’s always been hard & we have only just begun.”
In another moment that attracted attention online, Bunnie joked that after Jelly Roll’s 275 pound weight loss, his penis had gotten ‘severely bigger’.
The eventual divorce filing listed a separation date in May. Bunnie later said the couple had a heated argument during which she told him:
“Well, then file the f**king divorce papers.”
After that, Jelly Roll packed a bag and, according to Bunnie, the two went weeks without speaking. He then filed for divorce, again citing irreconcilable differences.
Attorney Holly Davis, who was not involved for either side, told People:
“It’s a very neutral and agreement-oriented filing. It doesn’t look like a contested divorce filing.”
Bunnie later discussed the end of the marriage on her Dumb Blonde podcast, saying there had been no cheating and claiming that, despite the split, they still intended to move forward with having a baby through IVF and co-parenting together.