Jelly Roll pardoned for past drug and theft convictions by Tennessee's governor

Jelly Roll received a pardon for his past criminal offenses in Tennessee from Governor Bill Lee on Thursday in Nashville.

'His story is remarkable,' the politician said at a annual holiday event at the governor's mansion, in which 33 people were for pardoned for past crimes.

The two-time Grammy nominee, 41, was recognized by officials after he turned his life around from the depths of drug addiction and prison to become a Grammy-nominated artist preaching a message of positivity.

The governor said Jelly Roll's comeback was 'a redemptive, powerful story, which is what you look for and what you hope for.'

The Antioch, Tennessee native, whose full name is Jason Bradley DeFord, has sought to spread his story to others through his material, visits to correctional facilities, and testimony before Congress.

The Son of a Sinner vocalist was past convicted of robbery and drug-related felonies.

Jelly Roll, who is married to Bunnie XO, did not receive any special treatment in his application process, the governor said, according to the AP.

The musical artist's application for a pardon was unanimously approved by Tennessee's state parole board this past April, according to the governor. State law dictates people must complete their full sentence prior to being pardoned. 

Lee said that he never crossed paths with the musical artist until Thursday, when he presided over the ceremony and embraced the star in front of a holiday-decorated fireplace.

The Save Me vocalist said that his checkered criminal past had an adverse impact in his career in hindering his ability to travel through the world without complications or delays.

Jelly Roll said that he also travels to perform missionary work for Christian organizations, and the pardon will help on that front as well.  

Jelly Roll told The New York Times last year that he changed his life and quit using drugs while he was in prison after his daughter Bailee Ann was born in May of 2008.

'I’m learning to forgive myself for the decisions I made when I was that young. They were wrong and I knew they were wrong, and I was doing them with a sense of pride and excitement.   

Jelly Roll said that he believes 'that dramatic change happens' and that the idea that it's not easy or possible 'is the opposite of what happens in Alcoholics Anonymous every single day.'

He added: 'I think that you saying that shows me that you’ve never been a part of that culture and never seen people have those rock-bottom experiences where they woke up and said, "Today is the day I quit shooting heroin."

'There is a lot of steps after that. They have to go to rehab. They have to detox. There was a lot of steps I had to change. So yeah, maybe the change wasn’t dramatic but the decision was dramatic.'

Jelly Roll in the discussion was asked if recent material based on addiction and adversity was more difficult to write amid years of success.

'First of all, I hear these stories every night,' he said. 'I hear what the songs are doing for people. All of a sudden, what I thought was just my story becomes the story of tens of millions. It’s deeper than my story.'

The singer added that people close to him, including relatives, 'just got out of rehab,' and that after two decades of turbulent living, he's 'still catching up' amid 'a pretty unbelievable, amazing life for 24 months.'

Asked if he speaks with children about his past incarceration, Jelly Roll said he's 'always been honest' with them.

'I was trying to describe what addiction was to an eight-year-old without using words like "addiction" or "drugs,"' the musical artist said, adding that he believes that addiction is 'a disease.'

He said the 'strangest thing happens' to people who are in the active throes of substance abuse.

'Somebody you’ve known your entire life turns into a different person,' he said. 'I’ve had it happen to baby-mothers, cousins, biological brothers. It is unbelievable what it does ... it’s a medical thing.'

In the interview, Jelly Roll confirmed that his first experience with incarceration took place in his early teens.

'I got caught with a cannabis charge in Antioch and a pack of cigarettes as a juvenile,' he said. 'They cited me, and the cop trusted me to take the citation to my family and go to court. Which, of course, I didn’t.

'So the police had to show up and haul me to jail. That was at 13. At 14 I think it was a schoolyard fight.'

Asked if he felt rehabilitated amid his time in custody, Jelly Roll noted that he got his G.E.D. 'because as soon as they said I was having a kid, I was like: "I need to figure this out. I don’t even have a G.E.D." I went to that unit and got my G.E.D., which I’m super proud of.'

He said he also got involved with a nonprofit, Christian-based program 'called Jericho for a company called the Men of Valor that helps rehabilitate men.'

Jelly Roll added, 'That was the first time I experienced something that was really cool. But it wasn’t a state-funded program.'