Jelly Roll may be one of the biggest names in music at the moment, but that doesn’t make him immune to some major struggles.
In a new sit-down with Jon Bon Jovi for Interview Magazine, the 39-year-old musician shared that as his team is working to take their act abroad for his millions of fans, they are encountering some difficulties due to his felony convictions.
“I’m so excited. We’re figuring out the final pieces of some legal puzzles for me to get overseas,” Jelly Roll told Bon Jovi, who responded with confusion. “Yeah. It’s funny, America has finally agreed to let me leave and give me a passport, but some countries won’t let me come because of my felonies.”
Jelly Roll added, “We’re working on that. I think it’s going to work in my favor.”
Jelly Roll (seen here at the ACM Awards in May) has been open about his struggles with drugs and the law in the past – Getty Images
According to PassportsAndVisas.com, most charged and accused felons are able to obtain a passport, but there are certain restrictions in place under special circumstances. It’s also well within a country’s right to deny entry to a U.S. felon. — this includes major forces like Canada and the United Kingdom.
Bon Jovi, shocked by the statement from his musician peer, told Jelly Roll that he too is hopeful the issues get resolved. “I hope so. Those are really archaic rules. Entertainers should be able to go and do their job,” the “It’s My Life” singer, 62, said.
Humble as ever, Jelly Roll — who has openly discussed his past issues with the law and drugs, even recently sitting before a Senate committee hearing on Capitol Hill to discuss the fentanyl crisis — responded that he is just glad to be where he is already.
“For the record, I’m a kid from Antioch, Tennessee, whose father never left the southeastern region until he was in his 50s,” he said, explaining how far he has already come in his life and his career.
“I don’t think my father left New Jersey,” Bon Jovi replied with a laugh.
Jelly Roll says his felony convictions are causing him issues when it comes to booking a tour outside of the United States – Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for Stagecoach
It was just last month when Jelly Roll opened up about his convictions for the first time since quickly rising to fame. In total the singer says he has been to jail some 40 times over the years.
During a conversation on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, the genre-bending singer discussed his aggravated robbery conviction, which occurred when he was just 16 years old. Despite being several years out from turning 18, he was tried as an adult and ended up serving more than a year in prison.
“We robbed a couple of guys for some weed,” he admitted to Rogan, 56. “It was a heinous crime, admittedly … it was an armed robbery, we went in there with a gun.”
For that incident, he was also sentenced to seven years of probation.
As his fans know, it’s his struggles that have led him to where he is today, topping the charts and making music that resonates with millions around the world.
At the 2024 ACM Awards in May — after taking the stage to accept the award for Best Music Event along with his collaborator, Lainey Wilson, for their song “Save Me” — he gave a heartbreaking — yet equally inspiring — acceptance speech about how music saved his life.
“I thought I would die or go to jail and I’m standing here as an ACM Award winner,” he said, visibly emotional from the win.
After thanking his fans and supporters, he popped backstage to discuss with ET his emotional speech and why he was nearly moved to tears in the moment.
“I was so emotional because it saved me,” he shared of their meaningful single. “‘Save Me’ was really the beginning of me finding my real voice and it was kind of me stepping out of my shell and being comfortable and just being open and vulnerable.”
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