Jelly Roll’s New Hulu Documentary Gets Raw

A teaser came out today (5/23) for Jelly Roll's upcoming ABC documentary, which will air on Hulu starting May 30. Jelly partly says in the teaser, "I feel I owe it to my people to give them hope."

Jelly also talked about going to jail as a teenager and addiction and mental health problems in the new documentary. He noted in the trailer, "I came out of jail with a plan; I was going to put every ounce of energy into music."

According to an ABC statement, "The film includes never-before-seen tour footage and interviews with the musician and those closest to him, revealing a raw and unflinching artist, incarcerated as a teen and adult, now using the power of his platform to raise awareness and funds for at-risk youth across the country."

Jelly posted the new trailer on his Instagram, writing, "Jelly Roll: Save Me, an unvarnished and inspiring documentary by @abcnewsstudios about @JellyRoll615's life, comes out May 30, only on @Hulu #JellyRollDoc."

Many fans reacted to the trailer and the post, with one fan commenting, "You are an inspiration & thank you for sharing your music with us!" Another fan said, "I'm not crying. You're crying watching this! I'm going to make my clients watch this documentary. Faith in God, Resilience, strength, and hope! Love you, Jelly Roll! Respect." One more fan wrote, "So sick, what an incredible story."

See that post and the trailer here.

Jelly recently revealed his new album's name, date, and album cover. The album is called Whitsitt Chapel and will be released on June 2.

The album is titled after the church Jelly attended in his native Antioch, Tennessee ( a suburb of Nashville). Dubbed his debut full-length country project, the new work features 13 tracks, including his current single, "Need A Favor."

Recently, Jelly Roll teased the announcement with images of Whitsitt Chapel's outdoor sign featuring song lyrics from the album.

Jelly Roll said in a statement, "This album is about growth and gratitude happening in my life. I wanted to create a project that felt hopeful. I believe the worst feeling a person can have is feeling hopeless or worthless. This is therapeutic music. Real music for real people with real problems."

Jelly Roll won three awards at this year's (4/2) CMT Music Awards. The one-time rapper recently scored his first country music chart-topper "Son of A Sinner." Born and raised in Antoich (right outside of Nashville), Jelly Roll has won the hearts of his fellow country stars and the heart of country music fans worldwide.

He made his first on the CMT Music Awards performance, joined by a full gospel choir, with his song "Need A Favor." That was followed by an enthusiastic standing ovation by the whole house.

Jelly Roll's awards came before his new album, Whitsitt Chapel, was released on June 2. Titled after the church the Antioch native grew up attending, the debut full-length Country project on BMG/Stoney Creek Records features 13 tracks.

Before his current time in country music, Jelly was known as a Southern Hip Hop artist. Beginning in 2010, he collaborated with Lil Wyte, Struggle Jennings, Yelawolf, Tech N9ne, and Ryan Upchurch. His 2010 collaboration "Pop Another Pill" with Memphis rapper Lil Wyte reached over 6.3 million YouTube views and started his career.

A record label executive in Nashville told me they were looking for the Post Malone of country music and found that in Jelly. His real name is Jason DeFord, and his Jelly Roll nickname comes from his mother, who called him Jelly Roll when he was a young, as he said, a "chubby" kid.

As Jelly's star continues to rise, we take a look at his last few years in the national spotlight.