Jelly Roll is a proud father of two.
Jelly Roll, Daughter, Bailee Ann, Son, Noah, Wife, Bunnie XO; Photos Courtesy Facebook
From the very start of Jelly Roll’s career, he has been extremely raw and honest about the ups and downs he’s experienced throughout his journey to stardom. Recently, fans got a further glimpse into his story when he opened up about a very important aspect of his life – his son.
Does Jelly Roll Have Kids?
Most fans are already familiar with Jelly Roll’s daughter,Bailee Ann, who was born on May 22, 2008. Jelly Roll was still incarcerated at the time of her birth, but after finding out he had a daughter waiting for him outside the confines of the prison walls, he made a promise to himself that he would turn things around. Then in 2016, he and his wife, Bunnie XO obtained full custody of Bailee and have continued to raise her together ever since.
Son, Noah
Over the years, fans came to learn that Jelly Roll also has a son named Noah Buddy DeFord, but unlike Bailee, he chose to keep things relatively private with the young boy. It wasn’t until recently that Bunnie shared a more formal introduction of the 6-year-old boy to the world.
Fans got to know a bit about Noah and his bubbly personality when Bunnie posted a video with him to social media on July 12. In the lighthearted clip, she can be heard asking the giggly young boy to share some of his favorite things like colors, sports, animals, the beach, and more.
One user took to the comment section to point out the fact that fans haven’t seen much of Noah before this moment. The main reason for this is that Jelly Roll has made a conscious effort to respect the privacy of Noah and his birth mother,Melisa.
According to Bunnie’s response to the fan’s comment, she made sure to receive approval from Melisa before posting about her son online.
“We asked and she said it was ok💖Always mama approved first,” Bunnie wrote.
@xomgitsbunnie Replying to @babyknockout45 The sweetest boy #jellyandbunnie ♬ Funny Music TikTok – Background Music for Video Edits
In a recent interview withTaste of a Country Nights’ Evan Paul, Jelly Roll shared a bit more insight into why he chose to keep his son out of the spotlight for all these years.
“Well, you know, what’s funny is that was more on Bunnie and his mother. So, they spoke about it, and he was on vacation, he always goes on vacation with us, and we just always try to shoot around him,” Jelly Roll explained. “And this year, my wife was like, ‘I’m just gonna hit her up and tell her I wanna post,’ and she was like, ‘Yeah, totally cool.’”
Daughter, Bailee
Since the “Need A Favor” singer does not have the sameparental rights with his son as he does with Bailee, he wants to respect the boundaries put in place by Noah’s mother and support her decisions in raising their son. This showcases just how seriously Jelly Roll takes his role as a co-parent.
“With Bailee, I’m the full-time parent, I’m the judge, the jury, and the executioner when it comes to decisions with her,” he continued. “I try not to get in the way of what she (Melisa) is building over there, and I never want to step on her toes, with what she’s doing with him, that I want to just respect that boundary.”
Luckily, when it comes to Jelly Roll and Bunnie’s relationship withNoah’s mother, it appears there is no bad blood between the co-parents. In fact,Bunnie recently revealed she and Melisa have become good friends.
Noah’s Mom
TheDumb Blonde Podcasthost took to social media to showcase a rare look into their harmonious life together through a photo with her, Noah, and Melisa who Bunnie said she “couldn’t imagine” life without.
“Sweet friends – Meet Noah’s beautiful mommy, Melisa💖I wanted y’all to get to see who Baby mama #2 is because we have been so public about Bailee’s mama, it’s only fair y’all get to see & love her as well,” Bunnie wrote on Facebook. “She’s one stand-up chick & we couldn’t imagine our lives without her – she holds it down for baby Noah & us especially because we are on the road so much. It takes a village to raise these babies & luckily we have her as a part of the family.💫Love you girl!✨.”
An Open Book
Jelly Roll has made it clear that he’s much more than a rapper turned country singer. In his new Hulu documentary,Jelly Roll: Save Me, the country-rocker uncovers the in-depth truth behind his past struggles with addiction, being incarcerated, and finding his way out of a bad situation to make a better life for him and his family.
During the interview withTaste of Country, he went on to explain that he will most likely wait a few more years before sitting down with his son and disclosing everything he went through in his past life.
Jelly Roll said, “God, he’ll probably be a teenager, dude. Bailee’s 15 and I think she just now kinda gets it.”
Rare Social Media Posts
While Noah hasn’t frequently appeared on the singer/songwriter’s social media pages in the past, he has popped up in a rare photo every now and then, including when he was born in 2016. In honor of this momentous occasion, Jelly Roll proudly showed off his baby,who weighed 9lbs 12oz,through an image taken from inside the hospital nursery.
His caption read,“Welcome to Earth.”
This post was followed by a black and white photo of Jelly Roll holding his baby boy in his arms.
“God Bless this Child to be everything I am not! Noah Buddy DeFord! I pray he nor Bailee ever have to pay for their father’s sins,” Jelly Roll wrote at the time.
A few days following the birth, fans got to see a glimpse into Jelly Roll’s growing family as he shared a loving photo of himself with both his children around him.
“Family Time – Noah Buddy DeFord and Bailee Ann DeFord! She’s so happy to be a big sister! I’ve seen it all, and nothing compares to this,” he gushed in the caption.
Then in 2022, Jelly Roll captured another milestone moment backstage with Noah during his hometown show at the Ryman Auditorium. The father and son were seen holding hands in one photo of the slideshow, and in another, Noah sat in Jelly Roll’s arms with a bright smile on his face.
In his caption, Jelly Roll made sure that fans understood just how much love he has for both of his kids, despite the fact that they regularly get to see and hear more about Bailee than Noah.
“One thing I pride myself on is being rooted in family. You will almost always see me with my daughter, my wife, and my nieces. I’m very close with my brothers and cousins. I’m close with my sister. My Uncle and Aunts,” Jelly Roll began in his statement. “This picture means the world to me because I don’t talk or post about my son very much, and that’s for respect of his mother and her privacy.”
He continued, “This was taken backstage at the Ryman. He came to see his daddy perform for the first time at the hometown show. My entire family literally my WHOLE family came to that show. I’ll be posting a photo dump from that show soon. It was truly special.”
On Tour
Jelly Roll is currently in the midst of his massive Backroad Baptism Tour. The 44-city trek kicked off on July 28 at Bank Plus Amphitheater in Southaven, Mississippi and continues through Saturday, October 14, where he will wrap up in Tampa, Florida at MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre.
Hosted by Josh Adam Meyers, Jelly Roll’s Backroad Baptism Tour features support from Ashley McBryde, Caitlynne Curtis, Chase Rice, Elle King, Merkules, Struggle Jennings, Three 6 Mafia and Yelawolf on select dates.
The trek comes in support of Jelly Roll’s recentlyreleased country album,WHITSITT CHAPEL. The 13-track project, which spawned singles “Save Me” and “NEED A FAVOR,” debuted at the top of the Billboard Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart and at No. 2 on the Billboard Country Album chart.
For a complete list of tour dates, visit Jelly Roll’s official websiteHERE.
