NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — What brings together a farmer's daughter from Louisiana and a tatted-up Nashvillian who once faced a 20-year prison sentence?
A mutual love for God, two personalities with grit, and a shared passion for bringing people together with music.
This week BMI artists Lainey Wilson and Jason "Jelly Roll" Deford met up at Tin Roof to celebrate tracks reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart: Jelly Roll's "Need a Favor" (written by Deford and David Ray Stevens), Wilson's "Watermelon Moonshine" (Wilson, Josh Kear and Jordan Schmidt), and the ballad they share: "Save Me" (Deford, Austin Nivarel, Joe Ragosta and Rob Ragosta).
The party felt complete with a flash tattoo bar with one of Jelly's own cousins serving as an artist.
Not only are Wilson and Jelly collaborating artists who keep adding more hardware to their trophy cases — they're also close friends.
"Lemme tell you something about Jelly's tattoos," Wilson began. "This shows you just how much I see his soul. One day my sister asked: 'What do Jelly's tattoos on his face say?' And I said -- 'he has face tattoos?' I didn't realize he had any on his face! That's how much I see him and who he is to his core."
Determined for success
Both artists are riding high after multiple nominations and wins for some of the most prestigious awards in music. But Wilson and Jelly have been working for years trying to make a name for themselves in the industry. So what keeps them going?
"I'm just a little bit crazy I guess!" Wilson said. "I think you kinda got to be a little bit nuts to stick these kind of things out, but I think that's with anything in life. I think it was grit — that grit that my momma and daddy instilled in me from the beginning but also that faith they instilled in me."
The same rings true for Jelly.
"You had to be crazy to put out as many projects as I did and them fail! You know — to blow that much time and money on something and it not work. I think I just had this deep-rooted belief that I was here to represent a group of people who wasn't represented."
Using their platform for positive change
Just a couple of months after hosting a concert and toy drive for his hometown, Jelly Roll isn't done giving back. He recently missed picking up the People's Choice Award for Male Country Artist in person because of a promise he made to visit the Davidson County Juvenile Detention Center with the program Beat of Life.
The nonprofit partners with jails to help inmates express themselves through music. The visit was especially important to Jelly because he had spent years in that same facility. After a young inmate learned what Jelly said, his expression changed.
"I watched him look at me different. I watched him interact with the program differently. I watched there be a clear moment of like, 'Oh you were here.' Not like a place like this or a version of this, I was in this facility. I think that if I could've had that I couldn't have imagined what it could have done for me."
Wilson is also using her platform for positive change. This month she testified before Congress about the dangers of misusing artificial intelligence in the music industry.
"If it's something you believe wholeheartedly in, you gotta speak about it. And at the end of the day — for me — when I was 9-years-old writing music, getting out there and being Hannah Montana and everything else, I wasn't dreaming about sitting in front of Congress and talking about A.I., but it is something that's effected my life, and my friends lives. I think when you have the opportunity — if you've got the guts — do it."
The Super Bowl, Grammy Awards and beyond
Lainey Wilson recently released her new single "Country's Cool Again," and from the reaction of other celebrities at Grammy week — Wilson couldn't be more right.
"The way that people were talking about [country music] and lifting it up and wanting to be a part of it, it made me so excited to see where this is headed," said Wilson, reflecting on an interaction she had with Melissa Etheridge.
Even with the fame and its perks, both of these superstars are down-to-earth and honest about wanting to stay that way.
"It reminded me of how meaningless that is," Jelly said, talking about his Super Bowl experience. "Because I had a moment of like — I wanna come back when the Tennessee Titans play, and I wanna rent my own suite and I wanna bring my daughter. Because life isn't about what you do, it's about who you do it with."
"Period," Wilson added.
Rhori recommends:
“Here’s another example of a small non-profit doing so much good in our community! Forrest Sanders highlights the group Friends Life Community, which provides adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities a chance to express themselves through art. In this case, original stage performances! Registered drama therapist Sarah Edwards guides the performers, including Mary Margaret, as they express themselves through written words and dance movements. The original show is touring and have a date set this September at TPAC!”
-Rhori Johnston
