“I'm Falling Apart”: Jelly Roll Gets Candid About Missing Home On Tour and Pays Touching Tribute to His Wife, Bunnie XO

While on tour in Australia as part of his first ever run of shows Down Under, Jelly Roll has shed some light on the struggles of being away from home for long stretches of time, as well as offering a heartwarming homage to his wife, Bunnie XO.

Shortly after Jelly stopped by No Filter with Kate Langbroek, one of the staples of the Mamamia Podcast Network, he was forced to cancel his final tour-stop in Auckland, New Zealand due to illness. In this conversation, the ‘Son of a Sinner’ singer-songwriter touched on some of the physical troubles he'd been contending with during this series of shows, perhaps foreshadowing the eventual cancellation.

It's difficult to listen to Jelly and not feel inspired by the Nashville native's redemption arc, after spending much of his formative years in and out of the criminal justice system, to now serving as a beacon of hope for others facing similar demons.

While reflecting on his journey, Jelly touchingly paid tribute to his wife, Bunnie XO, underlining that she knew she was entering a complex household with various challenges, but simply walked in with the pure intention of helping him and his family.

He admits that he used to be more of a “rambling man” when it came to romance, before striving to find “a woman that set my soul on fire. Just truly finding somebody that I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt I want to spend forever with, and I'm willing to go through whatever it takes and work through it. Whenever I started to rush to repair stuff as quick as I used to rush to leave, that's when I knew I'd found a different person. I was always looking for the first reason to go, you know? I mean, even if I created the reason to go, I was okay with whatever the reason was to pick the fight...I'll start the fight so I can leave and do what I want. It was a super unhealthy and very selfish way to live life, and when I found a relationship [with Bunnie] that I rushed to repair, that was the difference”.

He endearingly describes them as two slightly damaged parts of one beautiful whole, “What appeared to be two completely broken pieces were actually meant for each other the whole time. On every other puzzle board, it looked like we didn't belong”.

Jelly confesses he's been desperately missing home and Bunnie, “I'm falling apart. It's a horrible week. Yeah, I'm doing the worst mentally I've done for a long time...I'm really far from home, and it's really hitting me that I'm really far from home, like, in an anxious way”, before revealing some of the health difficulties he's been experiencing, “This trip over here f***ed my stomach up...It f***ed my stomach up in a way that my stomach hasn't been f***ed up in a year or two”.

Now, Jelly is en route home - and possibly already back at his and Bunnie's farm - and we're hoping he starts recovering soon. His health has been making the headlines for other reasons in recent months, due to his immensely impressive weight loss.

As for his plans for the winter, Jelly has a smattering of shows left on the calendar, but we imagine his attention will be returning to his and Bunnie's attempts to conceive through IVF. He movingly reflects, “We are working. Thanks for asking. It means a lot. We are working hard on it. It's a big journey. So we've got to kind of pray it through. It's definitely a bigger undertaking than I anticipated”.

In another interview with The Human School podcast, Jelly confirmed he's already at work on his eagerly anticipated Beautifully Broken follow-up album, which will pivot around an innovative new concept. Given the fact that he's already successfully navigated rap, rock and country, and his penchant for faith-based themes and Contemporary Christian Music crossovers with the likes of Brandon Lake, we're wondering if Jelly is gearing up for a full-blown gospel record next...

Listen to the full conversation below:

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