Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO have broken their silence following the news that the country singer filed for divorce after nearly 10 years of marriage.
During a Thursday episode of her Dumb Blonde Podcast, Bunnie XO opened up to listeners about the argument that led to Jelly Roll ultimately filing the divorce papers.
Bunnie XO, whose real name is Alisha DeFord, said that she and the 41-year-old singer have “never really been good at having disagreements and they tended to hold things in, which she said was “a recipe for disaster.”
She said that they ended up arguing on Mother’s Day and that she decided to tell Jelly Roll to file for divorce but didn’t reveal the details that led to the argument.
“In that argument, I was so fed up and so tired, I just looked at him and I said, ‘Well, file the f—ing divorce papers,’” she shared. “And in our relationship, that is the one cardinal thing that you don’t say, even though my husband has said it numerous times because he’s the runner. But when I say it, it really holds weight, because I’m not the type of person who says what I don’t mean.”
The Stripped Down author revealed that she “packed a bag and left” and did not speak to her estranged husband for weeks after the argument.
“During that, he was so mad and we were so emotional that he ended up doing exactly what I told him to do and filing the divorce papers,” she said. “Was I blindsided? Was this divorce mutual? No. It was not mutual, even though I told him to file the divorce papers. I was speaking out of anger and just frustration. But was it necessary for us to have a wake-up call and for us to start having these real conversations? Absolutely.”
Bunnie XO said they ended their marriage “on the best possible terms that you could ever have a divorce.”

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She continued: “We’re literally settling our divorce in, like, what? We’ve done it in three weeks? Two weeks?”
According to Bunnie XO, she and Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, have already divided their shared assets, including the house they had been building together in Tennessee.
“My hat goes off to any woman, family, couple, who is going through IVF because let me tell you something, dude,” she said. “That is one of the loneliest, darkest journeys you will be on.”
“I’ve never talked about this, but J and I have lost four embryos,” she continued. “We’ve had three transfers, but we lost the two twins that we were gonna try to have, and then we lost the other two. And anybody that’s going through that and has to deal with these miscarriages, it’s gut-wrenching.”
Despite the divorce, she said that she and Jelly Roll are “still having a baby together” and plan to co-parent as “one big happy family.”
Bunnie XO shut down rumours that there was further infidelity in their relationship, saying that “nobody cheated on the other person.”
In October 2025, Jelly Roll admitted that he had an affair early on in his marriage to Bunnie XO during an appearance on the Human School podcast.
“It’s literally just we served our purpose for each other,” she said during her podcast, adding that Jelly Roll has already “started dating.”
“Daddy Roll is probably in his finest season, right? He’s feeling himself. He looks so good. He is healthier than he’s ever been,” she added.
Jelly Roll echoed Bunnie XO’s statements on Thursday night while on tour in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
“I wasn’t going to talk about this tonight, but while we’re talking about liars, the internet is a liar, too. It’s the only time, and the only city I’m gonna speak about this,” he began.
“Me and my wife are best friends. We will always be best friends. We just got off the phone earlier today. Nobody cheated on nobody. She just did a whole podcast about it. You can go watch it. Every word of it is the truth,” he told the crowd.
“That will be my best friend forever. This is the only time I will ever speak about it. Bunnie, I love you, baby. Thank you for those 10 years. They were incredible. Thank you for the next 10 years of friendship and 20 beyond that,” the singer added.
News broke earlier this week that Jelly Roll had filed for divorce from his wife, according to Tennessee court records.
The Need a Favor singer filed for divorce from Bunnie XO on May 18, according to court records viewed by Global News.
The news comes after nearly a decade of marriage for the couple, who tied the knot in August 2016.
Jelly Roll proposed to Bunnie XO on stage in 2016, and the couple exchanged vows the same night. They went on to renew their vows in 2023 in the same Vegas chapel where they first said, “I do.”
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