Music is healing.
Jelly Roll’s music is a powerful thing. His deeply personal lyrics resonate with those who have faced personal struggles, regardless of their magnitude. He has highlighted the struggles of being at your lowest point, and turning your life around, giving hope to those who might not feel hopeful right now. While Jelly Roll’s lyrics are part of the reason he connects with his fans, he takes it a notch further and shows vulnerability in his day-to-day life.
Jelly has once said that “vulnerability is my superpower,” and he means it. When Jelly Roll is on stage singing these moving songs, he’s digging deep, thinking about his own struggles, which makes the fans feel each and every word during his setlist. And he’s not getting emotional thinking about how far he’s come, he becomes emotional seeing signs from fans in the crowd sharing how his music has impacted their life.
And while plenty of country artists move people with their music, and many offer words of support, encouragement and hope for their listeners, I just don’t think there is anyone doing it quite like Jelly Roll right now. The impact is special.
One of these moving moments happened the other week at the Barefoot Country Music Festival. While Jelly Roll was performing “I Am Not Okay,” he spotted a sign being held by a little girl in the crowd that read:
“Jelly Roll, my mom died last August. She wrote your lyrics in her journal. If she could, she would be here!”
The cameraman caught the sign as well and flashed it onto the screen. The little girl had tears rolling down her face as she sang the lyrics, and it appears that her little brother is standing next to her, holding onto her arm. The camera pointed at Jelly Roll catches his eyes becoming wet as he sings the moving tune, and points to the young girl as he performs.
“… I am not okayI’m barely getting byI’m losing track of daysAnd losing sleep at nightI am not okayI’m hanging on the railsSo if I say I’m fineJust know I learned to hide it well.”
Jelly Roll and the girl share a tender moment, both acknowledging each other’s pain and realizing it’s okay not to be okay. After watching the clip, I have a lump in my throat. Losing a parent is beyond heartbreaking, and Jelly Roll showing this young fan empathy from the massive stage is beyond moving.
The video quickly went viral, with many TikTok users noting that it also made them emotional.
“2 things I can’t handle… a kid crying or a grown man. Geeze, this got me.”
“You can see the genuine empathy in his eyes and hear his voice break.. say what you want about this man but he has the biggest heart.”
“Crying for strangers on this app again.”
“Jelly had a hard time singing when he saw her cry. That man has a huge heart that is rising in everyone’s heart!”
“The little brother holding on to her is making me sob.”
“I’m not crying, you’re crying.”
“Jelly Roll has the biggest heart. When we saw him, he got emotional too. He loves his fans.”
“The tears he had, too.”
“He is the most kind-hearted person out there.”
Music has the power to heal, and Jelly Roll was doing that for this little girl.
Turn up “I Am Not Okay” before you go.
