Why Jelly Roll Felt Compelled to Lose Nearly 200 Pounds "In Front of Everybody"
The star may be basically unrecognizable by 2026!
Jelly Roll has already undergone an impressive physical transformation — and he's just getting started.
During an appearance on his wife Bunnie Xo's podcast in December, the four-time Grammy nominee spoke about his nearly 200-pound weight loss journey. The star recalled that at one point he wanted to lose weight "in front of everybody" — and he did just that.
At his heaviest, Jelly Roll weighed 550 pounds. Almost 200 pounds later, he's feeling better than ever. Still, fans will be happy to know that his epic weight loss journey isn't over yet — he's got big plans for 2026! Speaking to his wife on her Dumb Blonde Podcast, he talked about possibly losing his sense of identity from losing so much weight.
"I think that people who become as big as I became, when they lose the weight, they're kind of ashamed," Jelly Roll theorized. "They're so ashamed that they go hide and lose the weight, and then they come back out and they don't really know how to interact with the world."
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That's when Jelly Roll came up with an idea. He would lose weight while still maintaining his place in the public eye, and it would become a journey, and he would take his fans along for the ride!
"What I want the world to know, and I want people to see ... is that I didn't become successful because of my weight," he explained. "I became successful in spite of it. I somehow managed to be this successful carrying 550 pounds. That's insane."
According to Jelly Roll, he's struggled with obesity his entire life. In fact, his mother was the one who first gave him his nickname-turned-stage name.
"I've been fat my whole life," revealed during a 2022 appearance on The Bobby Jones Show. "[My mother] started calling me Jelly Roll when I was young, and I spent the next 20 years trying to grow into the name."
Looking forward to the rest of 2025 and beyond, he revealed to his wife on her podcast that he has a very ambitious goal he wants to meet by 2026!
"I wanna be on the cover of Men's Health by March of 2026," he said, revealing that information for the first time. "That's my new goal. I wanna have one of the biggest transformations."
If anyone can accomplish that goal, it's Jelly Roll.
Jelly Roll missed out on Opry 100 — but you don't have to
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Jelly Roll may have missed appearing on Opry 100: A Live Celebration, but he (and you!) can watch the special from home on Peacock. The all-star lineup of country performers stepped up and gave viewers one of the greatest musical tributes ever!
Kelsea Ballerini, Blake Shelton, and Reba McEntire represented The Voice's past and present like only they could, but the performances didn't stop there.
Brad Paisley, Carly Pearce, Carrie Underwood, Clint Black, Dierks Bentley, Garth Brooks, Lainey Wilson, Luke Combs, Marty Stuart, Trace Adkins, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill, and many more country icons also lent their talents to the Grand Ole Opry stage!
If you didn't catch all the memorable moments of Opry 100 live as they happened, you can stream the event on Peacock whenever you like — and trust us; it's a night that will live on for a long time!
