Jelly Roll Explains Why He And Wife Bunnie XO Are Doubling Down And Renewing Their Vows

“Everybody says to do it in 10 years, but we’ve heard about the 7-year itch. So we’re like, let’s get ahead of this thing. Let’s double down on year seven,” he shared.

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Melinda Lorge

Melinda Lorge is a Nashville-based freelance writer who specializes in covering country music. Along with Music Mayhem, her work has appeared in publications, including Rare Country, Rolling Stone Country, Nashville Lifestyles Magazine, Wide Open Country and more. After joining Rare Country in early 2016, Lorge was presented with the opportunity to lead coverage on late-night television programs, including “The Voice” and “American Idol,” which helped her to sharpen her writing skills even more. Lorge earned her degree at Middle Tennessee State University, following the completion of five internships within the country music industry. She has an undeniable love for music and entertainment. When she isn’t living and breathing country music, she can be found enjoying time outdoors with family and friends.

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Posted on August 20, 2023

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Bunnie XO, Jelly Roll; Photo Courtesy of Bunnie XO/Facebook

Jelly Roll and his wife, successful Dumb Blonde Podcast host Bunnie XO are planning to renew their wedding vows come their seventh anniversary, and now the “Save Me” singer is sharing why the two lovebirds have chosen to take that leap in the fall rather than waiting another few years.

Vow Renewal

In a recent interview on the Superstar Power Hour with Audacy’s Katie and Company, Jelly said, “Everybody says to do it in 10 years, but we’ve heard about the 7-year itch. So we’re like, let’s get ahead of this thing. Let’s double down on year seven.”

That’s not the only reason Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO will be reliving their wedding day. The pair, who tied the knot in a little Las Vegas chapel in 2016, say they don’t know the exact date they got married. 

“We never really had an anniversary because we can’t remember what date we got married,” Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, laughed while speaking to interviewer Katie Neal. “Listen, it gets even wilder. Because of the time we got married, the court said that we got married on the 30th of August, but they didn’t file [our marriage certificate] until the 31st. And the marriage license people said that it was officially stamped on the 1st.”

Jelly Roll and Bunnie DeFord (Bunnie XO); Photo Courtesy of Gilbert Flores for PMC
Jelly Roll and Bunnie DeFord (Bunnie XO); Photo Courtesy of Gilbert Flores for PMC

“Let’s Do This Right”

The 38-year-old Antioch native also shared that while he and Bunnie XO were present for each moment leading up to the exchange in nuptials and thereafter, they weren’t necessarily sober enough to pay attention to everything that was happening. With that in mind, they want a do-over as adults without the drinking spree. 

“We know we got married between the 30th [of August] and the 1st [of September], but we just don’t remember what day, which time anyways because we were partying and drinking in Vegas. It was like a 4 or 5-day bender, and the marriage just happened in the middle of it, so we’re like, let’s do this right, as adults now.”

Further sharing the couple’s big plans, he continued, “We’re going to parade down the Las Vegas Strip to that same little chapel that married us that drunken night, this time sober, to remember, is our deal. We’re going to renew our vows and party in Vegas like we did that one night seven years ago.”

Bunnie XO, Jelly Roll; Photo Courtesy of Facebook
Bunnie XO, Jelly Roll; Photo Courtesy of Facebook

Jelly Roll Said His Wife Bunnie XO Deserves A Feature Film

Aside from spending time together to exchange vows a second time, Jelly Roll and his bride have stuck close during his Backroad Baptism Tour, which launched on Friday, (July 28), at Bank Plus Amphitheater in Southaven, Mississippi. For the trek, Bunnie XO has offered meet-and-greets with fans through her own VIP package, produced by VIP Nation. The announcement came thanks to her growing popularity on social media. And Jelly Roll couldn’t be more proud of her. 

“Go Bunnie, go!” Jelly Roll, who in May, released an ABC News documentary called Jelly Roll: Save Me, cheered his wife on during the conversation, adding that “She’s sold a ton of [VIP passes]!”

“I think what it is too, is more of a testament to her story. The Jelly Roll story got a documentary. The Bunnie story deserves a feature film,” he said. 

Wants To Tell His Wife Bunnie XO’s Story

Of stepping out of the shadows, he added, “I wish she would come out and do this more and tell her story to make people understand what she’s been through, and how she overcame it and just her soul and personality. You see that in the way people connect with her just on Instagram and TikTok, and Facebook. She gets way more engagement than me [and] she gets way more TikTok views on her channel than mine [and] she is just so much more engaging with things, and it’s just that she deserves every bit of her own identity that she gets.”

Jelly Roll, Bailee Ann, Bunnie XO; Photo Courtesy of Instagram
Jelly Roll, Bailee Ann, Bunnie XO; Photo Courtesy of Instagram

Reacts To Success Of “NEED A FAVOR”

As for his success, Jelly Roll, who recently earned his second No. 1 hit on country radio with “NEED A FAVOR,” from his debut country album, Whitsitt Chapel, said, “These little things are like, that’s crazy, dude. I never thought I’d be, like, I thought maybe I’d at best be in Ripley’s Believe it Or Not for [eating] the most donut holes or something.”

“I’m elated,” he added. “These moments, they keep getting more unreal to me. Every day when I think this thing can’t get any bigger, something crazy happens.” 

Additionally, Jelly Roll is currently on his 44-date, headlining Backroad Baptism, with support from Ashley McBryde, Caitlynne Curtis, Chase Rice, Elle King, Merkules, Struggle Jennings, Three 6 Mafia, and Yelawolf for select dates.

The trek runs through Saturday (Oct. 14), where it will wrap in Tampa, Florida, at MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre.

For more information on Jelly Roll’s upcoming tour dates and new music visit his official website HERE.

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Melinda Lorge is a Nashville-based freelance writer who specializes in covering country music. Along with Music Mayhem, her work has appeared in publications, including Rare Country, Rolling Stone Country, Nashville Lifestyles Magazine, Wide Open Country and more. After joining Rare Country in early 2016, Lorge was presented with the opportunity to lead coverage on late-night television programs, including “The Voice” and “American Idol,” which helped her to sharpen her writing skills even more. Lorge earned her degree at Middle Tennessee State University, following the completion of five internships within the country music industry. She has an undeniable love for music and entertainment. When she isn’t living and breathing country music, she can be found enjoying time outdoors with family and friends.

See more posts from Melinda Lorge

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