Jelly Roll declined to weigh in on politics while speaking to reporters in the press room backstage Sunday night at the Grammy Awards, where he won best contemporary country album for “Beautifully Broken,” the first-ever winner in the newly introduced category.
“People shouldn’t care to hear my opinion. I’m a dumb redneck,” Jelly Roll said when asked about the current state of politics. “I hate to be the artist that sounds aloof, but I just feel so disconnected from what’s happening. I didn’t know politics were real until I was in my mid-20s in jail. That’s how disconnected you are when you grow up in a drug-addicted household.”
The artist added that while he was not ready to share his views during the ceremony, his silence would not be permanent.
“I have a lot to say about it, and I’m going to in the next week, and everybody’s going to hear exactly what I have to say about it the most loud and clear way I’ve ever spoken in my life,” he said.
Jelly Roll was named the inaugural recipient of best contemporary country album at the 68th annual Grammys.
“I think this is awesome to be the first one to win the contemporary one,” he said. “It’s the Grammys always showing how hip they are — what’s actually going on in music. It’s been an undeniable tsunami of what country music’s done the last half decade.”
Reflecting on his younger self, he said a 16-year-old version of him might have believed such a moment was possible, even if he could not imagine how.
“As horrible as some of the things that are fitting to happen, God is going to use that in a way that you could never dream of,” he said, recalling years marked by addiction and incarceration.
The country artist also spoke candidly about his recent weight loss and mental health journey, describing it as another form of recovery.
“I had to fight my food addiction just the way I fought my drug addiction,” he said, adding that therapy and long-term lifestyle changes were key.
Faith remained a central theme in his remarks. When asked for advice on spiritual struggles, Jelly Roll urged listeners to block out political and cultural noise and focus on personal connection.
