Jelly Roll is reflecting on one of the most painful chapters in his adult life — cheating on his wife, Bunnie XO.
“One of the worst moments of my adulthood was when I had an affair on my wife,” the country star, 40, admitted during the Tuesday, October 21, episode of the “Human School” podcast. “Because it was the first time that I was like, ‘I really can’t get this right at all. I know I’m in love with this woman.’ It just really, really, really blew me back.”
The admission came while the “Need a Favor” hitmaker (real name Jason Bradley DeFord) was reminiscing on how far they have come as a couple after their ninth wedding anniversary.
Jelly Roll and his spouse (full name Bunnie DeFord) exchanged their vows at Vegas’ Stained Glass Wedding Chapel in August 2016. They first crossed paths in 2015 while she was attending one of his Sin City concerts held at the Country Saloon.
Country Star Jelly Roll and Wife Bunnie XO’s Relationship Timeline
After stepping out on Bunnie, Jelly Roll confessed that he put in “a lot of work to repair” their connection, noting that as a result, they are now “stronger than we could have ever been.”
“I wish our story would’ve went in the way that it never had an affair,” he said in hindsight, revealing there was somewhat of a silver lining. “I’m proud of who we are today,” he added. “I truly am.”
Jelly Roll revealed that he wasn’t in the best company and was spending time with men who thought infidelity wasn’t a big deal. “I was hanging around a bunch of people that were cheating on their wives,” he explained, revealing the crowd around him would influence his decisions.
“When I was doing cocaine, I was hanging around a bunch of people that were doing cocaine,” he continued, pointing out that history between pals doesn’t always mean it’s a healthy bond.
Jelly Roll clarified, “I used to be proud of long-standing friendships just because they had a number attached to them. Horrible humans. But I would just be proud to say, ‘That dude’s been with me 12 years.’ S***ty human!”
Jelly Roll’s Family Guide: Meet His Two Children and Wife Bunnie XO
Although he didn’t go into details about the cheating incident, Bunnie did hint about a dark chapter they went through in a TikTok clip last year.
“Who knew that us breaking up in 2018, me moving back to Vegas & you coming to get me back — would have put us on this wild journey called life,” she wrote in the caption of her clip from March 2024. “We finally committed to each other & did everything we promised each other the first night in 2016. Our castle in the sand had to crumble so we could rebuild on solid ground.”
These days, Jelly Roll is more intentional about who is in his inner circle, sharing that he wants to “only be around people I want to be like” and inspire him to be the best version of himself.
