NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Board of Parole on Tuesday recommended a pardon for country music star Jelly Roll, a Nashville native who has spoken openly about his criminal record and what it has taken to overcome it. The board's action leaves the final decision on a pardon up to Gov. Bill Lee.
The rapper-turned-country singer wants to be able to travel internationally to perform and share his message of redemption, after spending time behind bars as a young person.
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The board issued its nonbinding recommendation unanimously after a hearing that lasted about an hour and 45 minutes with several witnesses, including Nashville Sheriff Daron Hall, advocating for the 40-year-old musician named Jason DeFord. One board member recused themselves from voting.
Jelly Roll broke into country music with the 2023 album “Whitsitt Chapel” and crossover songs like “Need a Favor.” He has won multiple CMT Awards, a CMA Award and earned four Grammy nominations, including for new artist of the year.
“This was incredible,” he said of the board's decision. “I pray this goes through. But today was special for me, regardless.”
His most serious convictions include a robbery at age 17 and drug charges at 23. In the first case, a female acquaintance helped Jelly Roll and two other young men enter a house in 2002. Both of the others were carrying guns, although Jelly Roll was unarmed. They demanded money, and received $350 and a wallet with no money in it. Because the victims knew the female acquaintance, she and Jelly Roll were arrested right away. He was sentenced to serve a year in prison and additional time on probation.
Later, in 2008, police on patrol found both marijuana and crack cocaine in his car. He was sentenced to eight years of court-ordered supervision.
He also has two misdemeanor offenses for driving without a license and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Lee, a Republican, said every case seeking clemency, such as pardons, is equally important and goes through a thorough process.
“The reporting on Jelly Roll, that’s encouraging for his situation, but there are steps yet to happen in that case,” he told reporters Tuesday.
Jelly Roll told the board that while in a detention center, he fell in love with songwriting. “It started as a passion project that felt therapeutic and would end up changing my life in ways that I never dreamed imaginable and opened doors that I’ve never thought possible.”
These days, he often visits jails and rehabilitation centers before performing concerts. He has bought restaurants out for the day to feed people who are homeless and played basketball with kids at a youth center the same day that he performed in Winnipeg. He said he generally doesn't seek out news coverage when he makes these visits.
As a part of the pardon application, friends and civic leaders wrote to the board about Jelly Roll’s transformation and generosity. Hall, who runs Nashville’s jail, wrote that Jelly Roll had an awakening in one of the jails he managed. Live Nation Entertainment CEO and President Michael Rapino also wrote in his favor, pointing out all the money he's given from his performances to charities for at-risk youth.
One of the reasons Jelly Roll gave for needing a pardon is to be able to travel to Canada to perform, which his criminal record makes difficult. Currently, he would need to apply for a special permit that can include long wait times for a decision, according to a letter from an immigration attorney submitted with his clemency packet.
“I want to be an inspiration for people who are now where I used to be — to let them know that change is truly possible," Jelly Roll told the board. “One of the reasons I’m asking for your recommendation for this pardon is because I’m looking to take my message of redemption through the power of music and faith through the rest of the world.”
He said he would use the pardon for much more than going on tour, though.
“I’ll still be using this same pardon, God willing, to go do missionary work in my 50s and 60s,” he said.
Due to his criminal record, he told the board that every time he travels it “takes a team of lawyers and a mountain of paperwork to secure my entry into those countries.” He said he recently was able to make his first tour in Canada and took his first trip to the United Kingdom, where he spoke about a rehabilitation program.
The parole board began considering Jelly Roll's pardon application in October 2024, which marks at least five years since his sentence expired.
Lee has issued more than 90 pardons since taking office in 2019, all of them since 2021.
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Associated Press writer Kristin M. Hall contributed from Nashville.