Jelly Roll Files for Divorce from Bunnie Xo After Nearly 10 Years of Marriage

The split comes months after the country star praised his wife during an emotional Grammy Awards speech

Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo.Credit : Amy Sussman/Getty

NEED TO KNOW

Jelly Roll filed for divorce in Tennessee on May 18 after nearly a decade of marriage to Bunnie Xo
The couple, who met in 2015, renewed their vows in 2023 after secretly marrying in Las Vegas in 2016
Jelly Roll publicly credited Bunnie Xo for helping him turn his life around during his 2026 Grammy Awards speech

Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo are going their separate ways after nearly a decade of marriage.

The country star, 41, filed for divorce in Williamson County, Tennessee on May 18, according to court records viewed by PEOPLE. TMZ was the first to report the news.

The filing marks a surprising turn for a couple that has frequently shared their relationship publicly and, as recently as this year, appeared to be celebrating one another on one of music’s biggest stages.

Bunnie Xo and Jelly Roll attend the 68th GRAMMY Awards.Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

Reps for both stars did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.

At the 2026 Grammy Awards in February, Jelly (real name Jason DeFord) and Bunnie (real name Alisa DeFord) packed on the PDA throughout the evening, sharing kisses and posing together on the red carpet, as PEOPLE previously reported.

The pair also shared a celebratory moment after Jelly won Best Contemporary Country Album. While accepting the award, the singer became emotional as he thanked his wife during his speech.

“I want to thank my beautiful wife,” he said, as PEOPLE previously reported. “I would have never changed my life without you. I would have ended up dead or in jail. I would have killed myself if it wasn’t for you and Jesus. I thank you for that.”

Bunnie Xo, Jelly Roll and Bailee Ann attend the 66th GRAMMY Awards.Kevin Mazur/Getty

The couple’s relationship began more than 10 years ago after they met at one of Jelly Roll’s concerts at Las Vegas’ Country Saloon in 2015.

After dating for about a year, Jelly proposed to Bunnie, 46, while on stage in Las Vegas in 2016. Later that same evening, the pair secretly tied the knot in a courthouse ceremony without telling friends or family.

Jelly Roll and Bunnie XO at the Spotify Best New Artist Party.Gilbert Flores/Billboard via Getty

Years later, the couple returned to the same chapel to renew their wedding vows in 2023.

The two had previously navigated ups and downs in their relationship. In October, Jelly Roll admitted that his affair early in their marriage was “one of the worst moments of my adulthood.”

“I wish our story would’ve went in the way that it never had an affair, and I’m in way glad it happened, but man, I’m proud of who we are today,” he said on the Human School podcast. “I truly am.”

Bunnie covered her side of the story in her 2026 memoir Stripped Down: Unfiltered and Unapologetic, revealing that Jelly had cheated on her for 10 months in 2018.

“A lot of people… are like, ‘Why didn’t you leave?’ And I’m like, ‘I did leave.’ I did leave him and we were split for about 30 days,” she told PEOPLE in January. “But I just loved that man so much that I just really, truly believe that he deserved a second chance.”

The podcast host also clarified the couple’s stance on monogamy in her memoir, writing that their motto is “that we aren’t each other’s possessions and consider our relationship to be free, not open.”