Jelly Roll Is the First Artist to Perform at Oregon State Penitentiary in 20 Years

Jelly Roll is setting records from behind bars. This week, the rapper-turned-country singer took a short break from his Beautifully Broken Tour 2024 to visit the Oregon State Penitentiary to meet some of the inmates and sing some songs, making him the first artist to perform at the prison in 20 years.

In a post on Instagram, the “Save Me” singer shared some photos of his visit and explained in the caption how it all came together. “My brother Cam Hanes called me a few months back telling me about a trip he had to the Oregon State Penitentiary,” he shared. “I was as excited as he was about it, after we chatted for a minute he told me that he had an idea that maybe I could come with him next time and sing songs. I told him right then we was going to make it happen.”

“Fast forward, yesterday was the first time they let live music on the Prison Yard of OSP in 20 years,” Jelly Roll went on to reveal. “It felt so good bringing a little light to such a dark place. I am a firm believer that if we commit crimes we should do our time and be held accountable for our actions, but I also believe that every human deserves love no matter how bad of a decision they have made. It felt good to go love on these guys.”

“I remember being in a dark place and no one ever coming through and showing us any hope of changing the path of our lives, if one inmate was inspired to do better by my presence yesterday it was worth my weight in gold to stop by and sing,” Jelly Roll added. “Thank you to the staff and especially the captains. It was chicken soup for the soul. I’m sure I speak for Cam and myself when I say we came into that Penitentiary hoping to bless people and left feeling blessed. Thank yall.”

Jelly Roll’s real name is Jason Bradley DeFord. He is a musician from Nashville, Tennessee, who grew up in a suburb of Music City. As a teenager, he began a career as a rapper in the early ’00s, playing local venues and selling CDs out of the trunk of his car. At the same time, he found himself in and out of prison, after getting in trouble with the law on multiple occasions. 

Over the years, Jelly Roll has worked with other rappers such as Yelawolf, Lil Wyte, Tech N9ne, and Struggle Jennings. While he’s incorporated country into his sound many times over the years, it wasn’t until his most recent album, Whitsitt Chapel, that Jelly Roll fully embraced being a country music star.