In shocking celebrity relationship news this week, we learned that Jelly Roll and wife Bunnie Xo were divorcing after nearly a decade of marriage. While the couple reportedly asked for privacy at first and seemed to be keeping their issues close to the vest, both parties have since broken their silence. Bunnie Xo — whose real name is Alisa DeFord — got especially candid, recalling the fight that led her husband to file for divorce and how she reacted.
Bunnie Xo Explains How Mother’s Day Argument Led To Divorce
Bunnie Xo opened up on her Dumb Blonde podcast, where she said she and Jelly Roll — real name Jason DeFord — didn’t fight a lot. That wasn’t because they got along all the time, but because they weren’t good about communicating their issues. Instead, she explained:
He would be holding things in. I would be holding things in, and that’s a recipe for disaster, and we always preach you gotta be comfortable having the uncomfortable conversations. And we did just that for 8 years, and then the past year and a half, we kind of got away from that because we’re in a different life right now, different timeline.
Things apparently went south for the couple in May, when Alisa DeFord reached her tipping point during a disagreement. She continued:
So, on Mother’s Day, we had a little bit of an argument, which I don’t think the details are necessary. And in that argument, I was so fed up and so tired that I just looked at him, and I said, ‘Well, then file the fucking divorce papers.’ And in our relationship, that is the one cardinal thing that you don’t say, even though my husband has said it numerous times because he’s the runner. But when I say it, it really holds weight, because I’m not the type of person who says what I don’t mean. And I ended up leaving. I packed a bag, and I left.
Bunnie Xo said she and Jelly Roll didn’t talk probably for weeks after that argument, and the “Need a Favor” singer was still so angry and emotional that he filed for divorce. She acknowledged that she was the one who told him to do it, and despite not being the kind of person to say things she doesn’t mean, it doesn’t sound like she actually wanted to end the marriage. She said:
Was I blindsided? And was this divorce mutual? No, it was not mutual. Even though I told him to file the divorce papers, I was speaking out of anger and frustration. But was it necessary for us to have a wake-up call and to actually start having these real conversations? Absolutely.
Bunnie Xo said she immediately started hormone replacement therapy and seeing a counselor. It sounds like she wanted to work on the relationship but that Jelly Roll allegedly didn’t feel the same way. In her words:
I lost 15 pounds over this, because it has been so — he’s my best friend, I don’t care how fucked up our relationship was — which it wasn’t that fucked up. I don’t care how much we didn’t communicate or how things shook out. I was riding this motherfucker till the wheels fell off. I didn’t care. I felt like we deserved a chance to go to therapy and figure shit out. He didn’t feel that way, and I respect it.
Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo always were an unconventional couple — a PR nightmare, some have said — with the singer’s strong faith seeming to conflict with her history as a sex worker. Bunnie said their divorce is equally unique and that they’re on the “best possible terms you could ever have in a divorce.” She even said the two still plan to have a baby together.
What Jelly Roll Said About Bunnie Xo’s Candid Podcast
The “Save Me” singer seemed to cosign his estranged wife’s comments because Jelly Roll told the crowd at his Saratoga Springs concert that “every word” of Bunnie Xo’s podcast was true. Before continuing with the show, he said she will be his best friend forever, then shouted out a sweet message:
Bunnie, I love you baby. Thank you for those 10 years. They were incredible. Thank you for the next 10 years of friendship and 20 beyond that.
Bunnie Xo is right — I don’t think I’ve seen a divorce quite this friendly ever. No wonder the news caught everyone off-guard. It will be interesting to see how things continue to play out for these two, especially the part about still possibly having a family together.
As for what’s next for Jelly Roll, he’s guest-starred on Fire Country, was one of several celebs to show up at Wrestlemania 42 and performed on Tulsa King, not to mention the work he’s done on competition shows like American Idol and Star Search. So there’s no telling where else he might pop up.
