Jelly Roll Returns 6/8-9

This weekend, Jelly Roll returns for a second week as Lon’s co-host on Country Countdown USA. This week, he talks about hosting the CMA Fest TV show on ABC. He talks about his recent testimony in front of Congress on the drug epidemic. He talks about his current duet with Dustin Lynch. And he looks ahead to his 40th birthday.

It was just announced that Jelly will host the CMA Fest TV special. “I get to play the stadium, and I get to host the TV show.  This is the stadium I grew up in.  To headline there on a Saturday night is a really big deal.  Plus, I’ll host the TV show with Ashley McBryde, and she is a hoot & a half.  She could be a comedian if she wanted to.”

Jelly’s current hit Halfway To Hell has a line that caught Lon’s attention, one that quoted Merle Haggard:  ”Merle for me was one of the guys.  Merle did time in prison.  I connected to his story at such a young age.  If it wasn’t for Merle, guys like me wouldn’t have a chance in country music.”

Lon also asked about Jelly’s segment on CBS This Morning where they took him back to his prison cell: ”It was way more emotional than I anticipated being.  I knew that cell was small, but I forgot how small it was.  It smelled the same. It brought me back to being in jail.  Being able to go back has been more meaningful than anything I thought music would bring.”

Lon also asked Jelly about his testimony for Congress: ”They asked me to address them about the fentanyl epidemic.  What I didn’t expect was for the speech to go viral, and thee bill passed into law.  This may be the most meaningful thing of my career.”

Jelly wanted to talk about his good friend Ernest: ”We have a song out now called ‘I Went to College, I Went To Jail,’ that he wrote with Luke Bryan.  It’s on Ern’s new album.”

Lon also asked how Jelly will celebrate his 40th birthday: ”I don’t know what I’m gonna do, but I’ll probably go to the comedy club.  I might rent it and book my own favorite comedian.  That’d be a dream night for me.”

Jelly also has great stories this week about Luke Bryan, Dustin Lynch, Ashley Cooke, Bailey Zimmerman, and Lainey Wilson.

NEXT WEEK: Jackson Dean

Tags: featured

Category: CO-HOST