Jelly Roll reveals how love and accountability saved his marriage to Bunnie Xo

Jelly Roll has opened up about the painful chapter that nearly ended his marriage to Bunnie Xo, revealing how love, accountability and hard conversations ultimately helped them rebuild their relationship.

While speaking exclusively with People at the Star Search season one finale on Feb. 17, the 41-year-old country star said healing their marriage came down to one essential foundation: commitment.

“Love, man. Love will always do it,” said Jelly Roll. “Communication, just believing you're with the right person and believing that change can actually happen.”

Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo, who married in an impromptu Las Vegas chapel ceremony in 2016, briefly separated in 2018 after she discovered he had been involved in a months-long affair.

The betrayal detailed in Bunnie’s new memoir Stripped Down: Unfiltered and Unapologetic marked what the singer has since called “one of the worst moments” of his adult life.

In her book, Bunnie candidly recounts the night she learned of the affair, writing that the emotional devastation led her to contemplate taking her own life.

“The pain was so intense that I genuinely just wanted to end it all,” she wrote, describing holding a bottle of pills before ultimately deciding against it.

The couple separated for three months before choosing to reconcile.

Reflecting on that period, Jelly Roll admitted he had to do significant personal work to repair the damage.

“It was the first time that I was like, ‘I really can’t get this right at all. I know I’m in love with this woman,’” he previously shared on the Human School podcast. “I had to put in a lot of work to repair [it].”

Despite the pain, he says their story has become one of growth rather than defeat.

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

At the Star Search event, the Grammy winner said being transparent about their struggles was intentional, even if it invited criticism.

“We knew it would come with blowback, but our heart was to hope that somebody would hear it and believe that they could change,” he said.

Jelly also praised his wife’s courage in sharing her story so openly, admitting it was “rough” for him to read parts of her memoir.

“We went through a lot of pain and having to go through it together, but reading the whole book and seeing where it ended at is really touching,” he said. “I’m just proud of her for telling her story so unapologetically. She talks about everything fearlessly.”

The couple, who first met at one of his concerts in 2015, renewed their vows at the same Las Vegas chapel in August 2023 a symbolic full-circle moment.

Earlier this month, while accepting Best Contemporary Country Album at the 2026 Grammy Awards, Jelly Roll publicly credited his wife with transforming his life.

“I would have never changed my life without you,” he said onstage. “I would have ended up dead or in jail. I would have killed myself if it wasn't for you and Jesus.”