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Jelly Roll encountered a significant emotional challenge during his concert tour.
While performing in Australia, the country musician confessed he faced one of his most difficult periods in recent years, feeling the strain of being thousands of miles away from his loved ones and usual support network.
The 40-year-old artist, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord, opened up on the “No Filter with Kate Langbroek” podcast, revealing how the extended distance became more burdensome than anticipated.
“I’m unraveling. This week has been incredibly tough. Mentally, I’m in the worst state I’ve been in for quite some time,” admitted the “I Am Not Okay” singer.
“Being so far from home is really taking a toll on me in an anxious way. I’m not enjoying myself, and all I want is to return home.”
Jelly Roll performed six shows across Australia from Oct. 25 to Nov. 4 — his debut run in the country — before a scheduled final concert in Auckland, New Zealand, Nov. 8.
He canceled the Auckland show at the last minute due to illness, marking a rare instance of him missing a performance.
On the podcast, Jelly Roll explained that his physical sickness had a domino effect on his mental state as the demanding travel schedule continued.
He said the trip abroad had “f–ked my stomach up,” adding his health issues quickly hurt his overall well-being.
“When my stomach’s not right, nothing’s right. My mind’s not right. Everything. I’m just not thinking clear,” he said.
Jelly Roll additionally said the logistics of the Australia trip — especially the lack of tour buses — intensified his sense of feeling alone.
“I’m having to be super isolated. I don’t like it,” he revealed. “I’m spending a lot of time in my hotel room by myself, just in my head. I don’t like it. I miss my family a ton.”
He shared that he was using breathing exercises to steady himself and “talking myself through” the illness but admitted that every part of him wanted to return to Tennessee.
“Everybody wants to go home when they’re sick. That’s just in us,” he said. “I just don’t feel good, so I just want to go home.”
The grueling tour also coincided with another tense moment overseas.
Jelly Roll recently claimed Louis Vuitton employees in Sydney treated him “like a criminal” during a shopping trip, sharing a video on social media describing the experience.
Earlier this month, the Grammy-nominated star said employees looked at him as if he were about to “rob” the store.
“Hey man, the Louis Vuitton in Sydney legitimately just treated us like we were (gonna) come in and rob that place,” the musician, wearing a backward ball cap, said in the clip.
“I have never been looked at more like a crim … Listen, the last time I was looked at like a criminal this bad … I was an actual criminal this bad.”
The “Save Me” singer has never shied away from discussing the darker chapters of his past, including legal troubles and previous addiction struggles.
In 2023, Jelly Roll said his first major run-in with the law happened when he was a teenager.
He was 16 when he was arrested and charged as an adult with aggravated robbery and possession with intent to sell.
Jelly Roll served more than a year behind bars, followed by seven years of probation.