Jelly Roll and Cody Johnson could easily view one another as competition. Instead, the two country stars have cultivated a strong friendship. “Respect is mutual, and real recognizes real,” CoJo previously said of his “Whiskey Bent” collaborator. Johnson proved as much when he was first in line to congratulate Jelly (born Jason DeFord) after the Grammy nominee took home his first-ever CMT Award. It’s a moment permanently etched into the “Need a Favor” singer’s mind.
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Cody Johnson Embraced Jelly Roll “Like We Grew Up Together”
After spending a decade in hip-hop, Jelly Roll debuted on the country music scene in January 2023’s “Son of a Sinner.” The song hit No. 1 on country radio, marking the beginning of the East Tennessee-born artist’s reign.
Some in Nashville may have looked sideways at the face-tatted rapper-turned-country singer. However, Cody Johnson chose to quite literally embrace Jelly Roll instead.
“When I won the first award, I came down the steps, and the first person I seen was Cody Johnson,” recalled the “Save Me” singer, 40, this week during an interview with CMT. “And he gave me a hug like we grew up together, and he said, ‘Man, I’m so proud of you, dude.’”
Jelly swept the 2023 CMT Awards, winning three trophies for “Son of a Sinner.” This included the Male Video of the Year trophy, for which Johnson was also nominated with “Human.”
At the time, the CMA-winning artist was still finding his footing in a brand-new genre. “First person I seen in that moment could have looked at me like, ‘Why is this dude here?’” Jelly said. “But instead it was this just genuine Texas cowboy that was just lit up like a Christmas tree for me. I never would have guessed how just impactful that moment was.”
[RELATED: Watch Lainey Wilson Give Duet Partner “Face Tats” on Stage, Sing Jelly Roll’s “Save Me”]
That Moment Is Immortalized Forever
Fortunately, someone with a camera snapped a photo of Jelly Roll and Cody Johnson in that moment. And the “I Am Not Okay” hitmaker still thinks about that picture “all the time.”
“That’s one of those I’ll have framed in my house until I die,” Jelly said.
Similarly, the “‘Dirt Cheap” crooner, 38, has had nothing but complimentary words for his “Whiskey Bent” collaborator. “Jelly’s Roll face tattoos are as authentic as this cowboy hat,” Johnson said in 2024. “That’s him unapologetic.”
Featured image by John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM
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