Jelly Roll couldn't be more proud of the man he has become, though it was certainly hard work.
It has been a transformative last few years for the "I Am Not Okay" singer, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord, and who before becoming the beloved country artist that he is today, spent years in and out of prison, and struggling both with addiction and his mental health.
Today, not only has he overcome that, but he is also open about his past and what it took for him to grow past it, as he believes vulnerability has been crucial to his growth.
During an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show on Wednesday, October 16, Jelly Roll opened up about how he grew out of his previous "angry" persona.
"Vulnerability is kind of my super power," he said, before explaining: "I was a typical angry, aggressive, alpha kind of guy for a long time, and I always had almost kind of a mean spirit about me and it didn't serve me no good."
He continued: "I didn't have any emotions, I was very flat with everybody and life," but noted: "Then my heart changed, man."
The rapper has some key figures to thank for that: God, his wife, Alyssa "Bunnie XO" DeFord, who he married in 2016, and his daughter Bailee Ann, born out of a previous relationship.
"I got a relationship with God, I had a child, I got married to a woman who is just the greatest woman on Earth and just immediately softened my heart and vulnerability," Jelly Roll gushed.
He also candidly said: "Everybody is like, 'You're the sweetest guy ever,' and I'm like, I'm glad you didn't know me in the early 2000s."
Host Kelly Clarkson was quick to commend him, noting: "I think that's an important message, because I think a lot of people don't believe in change, and I think it is very real. If somebody wants it I think that's a very real thing that can happen," to which he maintained: "I think it also signals to people that you can do it at any age."
Further reflecting on how he overcame his addiction and mental health struggles, he shared: "It takes a lot of work. I think one of the biggest things was I started being honest and I started being more vulnerable, and the first step was, I know it's going to sound like a promotion for a song, but it was actually [when I] sang, maybe it's okay that I'm not okay," referring to his song "I Am Not Okay."
He also shared that lots of therapy and losing weight definitely contributed to it. "I realized that it wasn't just what I was putting in my body food wise that was killing me, it was what I was listening to and what I was watching, where I wasn't allowing my thoughts to sit and live."