Jelly Roll (Photo by Robby Klein)

What Jelly Roll Said To Cellmates As He Left Jail

By: Dave Palmer

3/7/2024

Country Music News

Jelly Roll’s life-story is wild.  He recently sat down for an interview and told some amazing stories.

In jail, when Jelly wanted to write music, he would start by beating on the steel bed bunk.  He said, “It had a real hollow sound, so you could at least keep your time that way . . . and then you kinda start humming melodies over that loop.”

He said that the hardest part was when, quote, “you write so many of them, that you start to forget the melodies.  I ended up coming home with a bunch of songs that I couldn’t remember the melodies to, but I had really good lyrics.”

But he seemed to know he was destined for greatness anyway.  Because on his way out of jail for the last time, he said, “I got my little knapsack of songs, because I wrote ’em all on paper, and I’m knocking on people’s cell . . . If I ever see you again, I’ll be at Madison Square Garden.”

For reference, he was last in jail in 2008.  And, he will be headlining Madison Square Garden this year on September 27th. (Whiskey Riff)

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