Jelly Roll has opened up about his aggravated robbery charge from 24 years ago, and said he’d like to speak to the people he robbed.
The singer and rapper, who released his new album ‘Beautifully Broken’ on October 11, spent time in jail when he was younger for charges including possession with intent to distribute and aggravated robbery. He was charged as an adult for the latter and faced a potential 20-year sentence, though he ended up serving over a year with a further seven years of probation.
He told Jay Shetty on the author’s On Purpose podcast, “I really want to have a conversation with them. I’ve thought about reaching out. This has been 24 years ago now. I just don’t know how that would even start, or, you know, how I would go about it because sometimes I wonder if they might have even seen me in passing or are aware of my success. I wonder if they’ve even correlated.
“I mean, I’ve obviously dramatically changed. I was 15, dude, you know what I mean? I couldn’t grow facial hair at all. I hardly hit puberty. I still had my high voice when I did that robbery. So, I’ve thought about that a ton and they’re definitely on my list.”
Jelly Roll, real name Jason DeFord, said that he’d apologise, hold himself accountable, and ask for forgiveness. He added: “I had no business taking from anybody. Just the entitlement that I had, that the world owed me enough that I could come take your stuff. It’s just what a horrible, horrible way to look at life and people. What a horrible way to interact with the Earth.”
DeFord, who revealed in the summer that he was struggling to book a world tour due to his criminal record, continued: “I hope that they would see that I’ve made it my life’s mission to change and to change people because that’s what I’m representing the most in what I do. I think people cheer for me because they see a little bit of me in them, or they see their cousin – I’m a family member, they relate, and I speak for an unspoken group of people, and I hope they would know that.
“I’m trying to diligently prove myself that I’ve not only changed but also I took the platform serious and that it’s making me change more every day. I hope they would forgive me.”
He explained that he no longer relates to the person he was and is “embarrassed” to talk about that time of his life. “People are always like, you’re the nicest dude I’ve ever met. I’m like, I’m so glad y’all haven’t met nobody that knew me 20 years ago,“ he admitted.
Watch the full interview here:
Previously, DeFord has spoken about his experiences with drug addiction, sharing them in an plea to Congress for anti-fentanyl legislation. Meanwhile, his wife Bunnie said earlier this year that he quit social media due to bullying and body-shaming, leading Flavor Flav to come to his defence – though the singer has since returned online.
