Jelly Roll Surprise-Releases ‘Hands Up,’ His First Song Since Filing for Divorce from Bunnie Xo
Jelly Roll is going through some changes in his personal life, but that isn’t stopping him from putting out new music.
First thing Wednesday (June 24), the country star released a new song titled “Hands Up,” a worship anthem that encourages listeners to lift their hands while thinking about heaven as the ultimate destination. “Surprise! New music here,” Jelly shared on Instagram Stories with a link to the song.
The artist, who recently filed for divorce from his wife Bunnie Xo, took to social media on Tuesday to tease the track’s release. The teaser featured a compilation of footage documenting his physical transformation, including his weight-loss journey from the earliest days to where he is today. Jelly Roll promoted the upcoming release of the song by also including the chorus in part of the video.
The reel incorporated a portion of the song’s chorus, as well as a clip from his interview on Joe Rogan’s podcast, where he’s talking about how he kept himself motivated through the challenges. As footage shows the singer walking through the rain in soaked clothing, text on the screen reads: “On day 1, I walked in the rain.”
The video then cuts to him explaining the moment he got tired of making excuses. “Every time I said that I was gonna lose the weight, Joe, I said, I lied to myself. I would tell myself, ‘I’m gonna do this. I’m gonna go do that.’ And then I’d go tell my family that. There’s a big person listening to this right now or a drug addict or somebody who wants to change some part of their life that right now is going, ‘I’m gonna start next Monday,'” he said.
“That first Monday comes, Joe, it is pissing rain, cats and dogs, dude. And I wake up and I’m like sh–. My daughter was just like, ‘Just wait till the rain quits or go on the treadmill.’ But in my mind, I was like, ‘I’m going outside. I’m done lying to y’all, and I’m done lying to me. I told y’all I was gonna do this walk, and I’m gonna go do this walk.'”
The clip then shows footage of the singer running in the rain. “Today, I’m sprinting in the rain. Because one day, not that long ago, I stopped lying to myself,” reads the text, as the song’s chorus plays in the background.
“I barely made it up my driveway that day. I’m alive today because I didn’t lose faith. F— Monday. Start today,” reads another message displayed in the video, before the final frame reveals that the single would arrive at midnight.
The release comes while major changes are taking place in the artist’s personal life.
Jelly recently filed for divorce after 10 years of marriage to Bunnie, 46. On June 15, Billboard obtained online court records stating that the filing was made on May 18, in Williamson County, Tennessee. According to documents obtained by People, the reason for the split was stated as “irreconcilable differences.”
On June 18, the singer spoke about the split for the first time, saying onstage, “I wasn’t going to talk about this tonight, but while we’re talking about liars, the Internet is a liar too,” he said. “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.”
