logo
Tennessee board recommends that governor pardon country star Jelly Roll

Tennessee board recommends that governor pardon country star Jelly Roll

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Board of Parole on Tuesday recommended a pardon for country music star Jelly Roll, a Nashville native who has spoken openly about his criminal history and what it has taken to overcome it. The board's action leaves the final decision on a pardon up to Gov. Bill Lee.
The board issued its nonbinding recommendation unanimously after a hearing that lasted about an hour and 45 minutes with several witnesses, including Nashville Sheriff Daron Hall, advocating for the 40-year-old musician named Jason DeFord. One board member recused themselves from voting.
The tattooed rapper-turned-country singer broke out in country with his 2023 album 'Whitsitt Chapel' and crossover songs like 'Need a Favor.' Focusing on songs about his redemption after spending time in juvenile detention facilities, Jelly Roll has won multiple CMT Awards, a CMA Award and earned four Grammy nominations, including for new artist of the year.
'This was incredible,' he said after the vote, according to the board's recording of the meeting. 'I pray this goes through. But today was special for me, regardless.'
His most serious convictions include a robbery at age 17 and drug charges at 23. In the first case, a female acquaintance helped Jelly Roll and two other young men enter a house in 2002. Both of the others were carrying guns, although Jelly Roll was unarmed. They demanded money, and received $350 and a wallet with no money in it. Because the victims knew the female acquaintance, she and Jelly Roll were arrested right away. He was sentenced to serve 1 year in prison and additional time on probation.
Later, in 2008, police on patrol saw him quickly shut his car trunk as they approached. The officers said they smelled marijuana and searched the trunk, finding both marijuana and crack cocaine. He was sentenced to 8 years of court-ordered supervision.
He also has two misdemeanor offenses for driving without a license and possession of drug paraphernalia.
These days, he often visits jails and rehabilitation centers before performing concerts. He has bought restaurants out for the day to feed people who are homeless and played basketball with kids at a youth center the same day that he performed in Winnipeg. He said he generally doesn't seek out news coverage when he makes these visits.
One of the reasons Jelly Roll gave for needing a pardon is to be able to travel to Canada to perform, which his criminal record makes difficult. Currently, he would need to apply for a special permit that can include long wait times for a decision, according to a letter from an immigration attorney submitted with his clemency packet.
He said he would use the pardon for much more than going on tour, though.
'I'll still be using this same pardon, God willing, to go do missionary work in my 50s and 60s,' he said.
Due to his criminal record, he told the board that every time he travels it 'takes a team of lawyers and a mountain of paperwork to secure my entry into those countries.' He said he recently was able to make his first tour in Canada and took his first trip to the United Kingdom, where he spoke about a rehabilitation program.
A pardon is a statement of forgiveness by the state for a crime or crimes. Applicants are not eligible until they are five years past the date that their sentence expired in Tennessee. The parole board began considering Jelly Roll's pardon application in October 2024.
Lee, a Republican, has issued more than 90 pardons since taking office in 2019, all of them since 2021.
___
Associated Press writer Kristin M. Hall contributed from Nashville.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

S.F.'s Moscone Center books giant act for venue's first-ever concert
S.F.'s Moscone Center books giant act for venue's first-ever concert

San Francisco Chronicle​

time35 minutes ago

  • San Francisco Chronicle​

S.F.'s Moscone Center books giant act for venue's first-ever concert

The Moscone Center, San Francisco's largest convention and exhibition complex, has booked its first-ever concert. Home of large events like Salesforce's annual Dreamforce conference, the downtown venue is set to host electronic dance music giant Fisher on Dec. 19. House music DJs Chris Lorenzo and Partiboi69 will join as supporting acts. The Australian music producer, whose full name is Paul Nicholas Fisher, announced the launch event on Instagram, sharing a carousel of photos and videos teasing the show on Friday, July 25. One clip shows a cardboard cutout of Fisher behind a turntable at the Moscone Center, zooming out to highlight the vastness of the space. A few slides later, a fan snaps a photo with the cutout, which was placed on the lawn of a San Francisco park as part of a promotional campaign. Another states 'AI doesn't know how to party' above a photo of the DJ's grinning face. Ticket presales start at 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 1, and general on sale begins at 2 p.m. the same day. Fisher also announced in his recent post that he is giving away 10 tickets to the show. Fans must tag three friends in the comment section to qualify, and winners will be selected next week. The producer's upcoming Moscone Center performance marks a stark change in programming for the venue, which consists of three main buildings spanning more than 2 million square feet. Fisher's concert is slated for the Moscone South building, which features roughly 260,000 square feet of exhibit space. The buildings are best known for hosting large events such as Salesforce's annual Dreamforce conference and the Game Developers Conference. Fisher first rose to global fame as part of the DJ duo Cut Snake, and released his first solo single, 'Ya Kidding,' in 2017. The Grammy nominee has since released two EPs and is signed to San Francisco-based electronic music label Dirtybird. He has performed in the Bay Area on several occasions in recent years, including at San Jose City Hall in March, at last year's Portola Festival and at Outside Lands 2023.

Taylor Swift's supportive Travis Kelce post ended in 1 perfect emoji
Taylor Swift's supportive Travis Kelce post ended in 1 perfect emoji

USA Today

time35 minutes ago

  • USA Today

Taylor Swift's supportive Travis Kelce post ended in 1 perfect emoji

📷 | Taylor Swift showing support for Happy Gilmore 2'Happy Gilmore 2 had me cackling and cheering the whole movie! An absolute must watch, 13/10, go watch it on @/netflix as soon as humanly possible 🍯' Happy Gilmore 2 and all its cameos hit Netflix on Friday, finally giving fans a sequel to 1996's iconic comedy. The Adam Sandler-led movie has a 74% on Rotten Tomatoes from the audience, but there's one big-name fan of the golf-based comedy. Pop star Taylor Swift -- who does not make a cameo -- took to her Instagram on Friday to post a rave review to her story. "Happy Gilmore 2 had me cackling and cheering the whole movie!" the 14-time Grammy winner posted. "An absolute must watch, 13/10, go watch it on @netflix as soon as humanly possible." She even included a honey pot emoji, a direct reference to one scene in the movie. Why that scene, you ask? Swift's boyfriend of two years, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, had a small cameo in the movie. He played a waiter that had a couple scenes with both Sandler and Bad Bunny, the latter of which may have doused him with honey at some point. Travis Kelce Honey scene with Benito Sandler is a big fan of Swift and Kelce, having recently praised the couple during the Happy Gilmore 2 press tour. This is the second time in as many days that the couple has shared the other on their social channels as Kelce heavily featured Taylor Swift for the first time in an Instagram and Facebook photo dump on Thursday.

Victor Wembanyama may want the NBA to distance itself from Karl Malone
Victor Wembanyama may want the NBA to distance itself from Karl Malone

USA Today

timean hour ago

  • USA Today

Victor Wembanyama may want the NBA to distance itself from Karl Malone

San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama made a very noteworthy decision on social media Friday afternoon and it could make waves around the NBA. Wembanyama, who is currently recovering from a blood clot that sidelined him for the second half of last season, was recently cleared to return from his injury. He caught some attention based on some of his social media activity this week. The NBA made a post wishing a happy birthday to former NBA star Karl Malone. Here is what we wrote in 2023 regarding allegations that Malone impregnated his 13-year-old neighbor when he was 20: Blood tests showed a 99.3 percent probability Malone was the father of Demetress Bell, per AP. The family could have filed criminal charges against Malone for impregnating a minor because, in Louisiana, an individual could not consent to sex until the age of 17. While statutory rape could have carried a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, Malone was a 'neighborhood kid', so they didn't press charges. His actions are absolutely heinous and should make it hard for the NBA to look themselves in the mirror after honoring this man two years in a row. But the story doesn't stop there for Malone and his awful shortcomings. When the child's grandparents filed a lawsuit in 1985 requesting $200 a week to help their daughter raise their son, Malone did not respond, despite his career earnings topping $104 million. He was ordered to pay $125 per week in child support, but he appealed, eventually reaching a settlement that did not require him to acknowledge that he was the father. It seems more than possible that Wembanyama is aware of the history surrounding Malone. More: The NBA should be ashamed for honoring Karl Malone during All-Star Weekend He reposted DJ J. Strand reacting to the birthday wishes with a meme video of content creator Lil Rodney Son saying "Oh no, see, that's what we not about to do." Also in the video responding to the post about Malone, Lil Rodney Son is on camera saying someone belongs "under the jail" for their actions. To be fair, we don't know exactly why Wembanyama chose to repost this. Remember: Reposts do not equal endorsements (which is now officially the case, as decided by a judge) so unless Wembanyama directly says something about the matter, we do not know his feelings. But many, including Complex, are speculating that Wemby would like the league to distance itself from Malone. Even this, though, is more than most (if not all) prominent basketball players have said about this difficult topic. So perhaps just the speculation that the rising star wants no part of Malone is enough for the NBA to listen.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store