All About Jelly Roll's 2 Kids, Daughter Bailee and Son Noah
All About Jelly Roll's 2 Kids, Daughter Bailee and Son Noah
Emily Weaver, Nicole PomaricoTue, June 16, 2026 at 4:12 PM UTC
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Jelly Roll and daughter Bailee Ann on May 30, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee; Jelly Roll and his son Noah Buddy DeFord on February 6, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.Credit: Jason Kempin/Getty; Michael Tran / AFP via Getty -
Jelly Roll is a dad of two, with his older child, daughter Bailee Ann, arriving on May 22, 2008
His son, Noah Buddy, was born on Aug. 23, 2016
Jelly Roll and his estranged wife, Bunnie Xo, have primary custody of Bailee
Jelly Roll is a dedicated father of two.
His daughter, Bailee Ann, was born on May 22, 2008, while his son, Noah Buddy, was born on Aug. 23, 2016. Jelly and his wife, Bunnie Xo, shared primary custody of Bailee — although in May 2026, the singer filed for divorce from Bunnie after nearly 10 years of marriage.
Over the years, Jelly Roll has shared how the birth of his daughter in 2008 forever changed his life for the better. On the day Bailee was born, Jelly Roll was in prison for drug dealing. "I could no longer be selfish. There was something that was solely relying on me," Jelly Roll told 105.7 The Point in September 2022. "I knew that that was an important task. So I wanted to take it seriously. And I did. I take it very seriously to this day."
Jelly Roll and Bunnie were granted primary custody of Bailee when she was 8 years old, the country singer previously shared during an appearance on The Pivot podcast.
Here's everything to know about Jelly Roll's kids, daughter Bailee Ann and son Noah Buddy.
Bailee Ann, 18
Jelly Roll and his daughter, Bailee Ann in 2022Credit: Jelly Roll Instagram
Bailee Ann was born on May 22, 2008. A 23-year-old at the time, Jelly Roll was incarcerated when he learned of his daughter's birth — a moment he refers to as his "road to Damascus."
"A guard knocks on my cell door midafternoon during lockdown. He goes, 'You had a kid today,' " Jelly Roll recalled during a June 2023 interview with Billboard. "I've never had nothing in life that urged me in the moment to know that I had to do something different. I have to figure this out right now."
Despite being "irritated" by the news at first, Jelly Roll said his daughter's birth "inspired him to change." He was released from prison just in time for Bailee's second birthday, where he "grilled hamburgers and hot dogs."
Jelly and Bunnie were granted primary custody of Bailee when she was 8 years old. On an episode of Bunnie's Dumb Blonde podcast, Bailee opened up about her upbringing and shared that she and her mom, Felicia, are working to mend their relationship amidst her recovery journey.
"I had an extra, interesting, traumatic childhood. Bunnie did, my dad did. They're important reasons for why my mom is in my life now and is sober," Bailee said during an appearance on her dad's Hulu documentary, Jelly Roll: Save Me. "As a teenager, I've moved on. I've worked through my childhood. But that doesn't make it go away. It made me who I am today."
Jelly Roll, Bailee Ann and Bunnie XOCredit: Jelly Roll Instagram
Much like her father, Bailee has turned to songwriting as a means of therapy. She wrote "Tears Could Talk" when she was 10 years old and the song was featured on Jelly Roll's 2010 album A Beautiful Disaster. Bailee also appears alongside her dad in the song's music video and joined him onstage during his Backroad Baptism Tour to perform the duet.
During a stop in Georgia, Jelly Roll introduced his daughter to the crowd by thanking his fans for their support. "Not only have y'all changed my life, you've changed her life in ways that we can't even describe," he shared, per Music Mayhem magazine.
Jelly Roll once again brought Bailee on stage during his performance at Stagecoach in April 2024 to celebrate her birthday since she was set to turn 16 "in, like, 10 days."
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"I figured it would be a really cool dad way to embarrass her if I can do the old 'Happy birthday to you,' " he said, later adding that he was hoping it would get him "cool dad points."
During a November 2024 appearance on the Dumb Blonde podcast, Bailee said she's planning to go to college to study law — in particular, Columbia Law School — and focus on criminal defense.
"It's wild, to be honest. And I think that's part of the reason I'm so invested in it," she said. "Because if I was going into medicine, I would have done medicine, and I hate the medical field. I hate Western medicine. I hate the way that we handle health and health insurance and everything, and I couldn't — there was no getting into that for me."
In April 2025, Jelly Roll got emotional as he sent Bailee off to her first prom. Bunnie shared the moment in a TikTok video. "We did it. We did it guys. We made prom happen," she said after Bailee left in a yellow prom dress with her date. The next year, she was crowned prom queen.
In May 2026, Bailee graduated high school, a milestone her dad celebrated with an emotional post. "Today you turned 18 years old and graduate high school," he wrote. "Today you accomplish something very very very few people in this family have ever accomplished, including myself … you are not only a high school graduate. You are soon to be a college student."
He continued, writing, "When we talk about generational curses and breaking them, you literally are the epitome of that. You are kind, smart, caring, loving, adventurous, funny, sassy, honest. To put it plainly you were everything I have never been."
Noah Buddy, 9
Jelly Roll with daughter Bailee Ann, and son, Noah in 2016Credit: Jelly Roll Facebook
Jelly Roll's son, Noah Buddy DeFord, was born on Aug. 23, 2016.
Apart from a birth announcement on Facebook, Jelly Roll has refrained from publicly speaking about his son in interviews. Fans got their first major introduction to Noah when he and Bunnie made a TikTok video ahead of his 7th birthday in 2023.
"My name is Noah and my favorite color is red," he says to the camera with a shy, big smile.
Bunny XO and Noah Buddy DeFordCredit: Bunny XO TikTok
Elsewhere in the video, Noah shared that his favorite hobbies are Pokémon and soccer, and that he wants both a dog and cat for a pet. He also teased that he thinks his big sister is cooler than his famous dad. While fans were surprised to see Noah appear in the TikTok, Bunnie clarified in the comments that she received Noah's mom's approval before posting the video.
Speaking with Taste of Country in August 2023, Jelly Roll shared that Noah is very much part of the family and often goes on vacation with them. In those instances, he added, they traditionally "always try to shoot [social media content] around him" out of respect for Noah and his mom's privacy.
"With Bailee, I'm the full-time parent, I'm the judge, the jury and the executioner, when it comes to decisions with her," Jelly Roll explained. "I try not to get in the way of what [Noah's mom] is building over there, and I never want to step on her toes, with what she's doing with him, that I want to just respect that boundary."
In recent years, Noah has been spotted out with his dad several times. In December 2025, the two sat courtside at a Tennessee Volunteers vs. Illinois Fighting Illini's basketball game. A few months later in February 2026, Noah walked the red carpet alongside his dad at the premiere of GOAT.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
