Is Singer Jessie Murph Related To Jelly Roll? The Truth About Their Relationship
Anywhere you look in the entertainment industry, nepo-babies are rampant. Siblings and children of established celebrities seem to have a leg up when they decide to try and step into the spotlight. However, not all strong connections between celebs are familial. Singers Jessie Murph and Jelly Roll are great friends and have described each other as family, but they aren't actually related.
The formerly incarcerated Jelly Roll (the stage name for Jason DeFord) turned his life around and now has a successful music career, even being nominated for Best New Artist and Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 2024 Grammys. He's a country artist who actually began his career as a rapper and has had quite the transformation. Murph, like so many other rising stars, shared covers of popular songs online and built a fanbase that way. Both Jelly Roll and Murph have experience performing in multiple music genres and the duo collaborated on Murph's song "Wild Ones."
During an interview on the "Full Send Podcast" in January 2024, Jelly Roll discussed his close friendship with Murph and spoke highly of her: "She's special, man. She's like my little sister." He briefly mentioned the performances they've done together and said Murph joins him to sing "Wild Ones" when available. Although Jelly Roll and Murph aren't actually related, one of his family members introduced him to her music.
Jelly Roll's daughter introduced him to Murph's music
On the "Full Send Podcast" Jelly Roll said his daughter Bailee Ann DeFord helped make him into a Jessie Murph fan. He overheard Murph's music and asked Bailee if she liked it: "And she was like, 'Yeah, she's young. She's my age.' And then Bailee showed me her TikTok and I think that's kinda how it all launched out. ... She is a different kind of talented." Jelly Roll then asked Murph to sing with him at a concert. They performed the Shinedown version of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man." Jelly Roll admitted that he wanted to hear what Murph sounded like in person versus in videos online. He was thoroughly impressed. "Man, pitch perfect," he said. "That girl is phenomenal." He felt she had the potential to be an Amy-Winehouse-level talent.
In an MTV interview excerpt shared to TikTok, Murph explained her side of how the "Wild Ones" collaboration came about. Fans on social media often said Jelly Roll and Murph should work together. "And then he randomly reached out and was like, 'Come out to my show,'" Murph said. She had a great time performing "Simple Man."
"And then I guess he heard 'Wild Ones' and was like, 'I have an idea,'" Murph said. "And he invited me out to his show in Texas 'cause I had a show also that night and then I went to his show and he did it live. It was crazy."
Jessie Murph's brother got her into Jelly Roll's music
Music recommendations are a family affair. In an interview with Billboard about "Wild Ones," Jessie Murph said she became a fan of Jelly Roll thanks to her older brother, and she was thrilled that he wanted to feature on "Wild Ones" with her. Jessie didn't name her brother in the Billboard article, but according to the Vanderbilt Hustler, she has a brother named Garrett Murph who has played guitar in her band before. He's even opened for her, according to a video she shared on TikTok.
Jessie also spoke highly of Jelly Roll in her Billboard interview, commending his gratefulness and adding, "Jelly Roll has just been so positive and every time I'm around him I leave feeling so happy."
Although Jelly Roll and Jessie aren't actually siblings or related, they have a great stage presence and have performed together a few times. The singers performed the extended version of "Wild Ones" together on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in November 2023. A month later at "Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest," "Wild Ones" was one of the songs Jelly Roll sang. Murph joined him for that portion of the performance. Fans love seeing them perform together, with one fan on YouTube commenting, "MAN I LOVE JELLY ROLL AND APPRECIATE HIM [SO MUCH] FOR BRINGING MY GIRL JESSIE WITH HIM."