Jelly Roll Honored as Deputy in Little Rock, Ark., for His ‘Meaningful Impact’ After Meeting with Inmates

Singer Jelly Roll was recently named an honorary deputy by the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office in Little Rock, Arkansas. During his visit, he took an official oath and spoke with a group of inmates involved in a reentry program, where he shared his thoughts on making positive life changes.

“Our participants had a fantastic experience creating a TikTok video for his song ‘Save Me,’ which caught his attention,” the Sheriff’s Office shared. “His talk on making better choices inspired everyone. We are thrilled to announce that he has taken the Oath of Office as an honorary deputy! Thank you for making a meaningful impact on our community!”

Jelly Roll, visibly excited, shared a photo on his Instagram account. In the image, he poses with Pulaski County Sheriff Eric S. Higgins, proudly holding his new deputy badge and smiling broadly.

Earlier in October, the country star, who has previously admitted that many of his songs were written while he was incarcerated, opened up about his troubled past on the “On Purpose” podcast with Jay Shetty.

He recalled, “I got into a fight with a kid, and back then, kids had chain wallets. While wrestling, I grabbed his chain wallet and tried to hit him with it, and that turned into a strong-arm robbery case.” This incident led to him spending over 20 months in the juvenile system at just 13 years old.

Jelly Roll expressed his regret, saying, “I’m embarrassed to even talk about that time of my life. I was a really bad person well into my 30s, but I was especially terrible as a teenager and young adult.” He went on to say that when people now tell him he’s one of the nicest people they’ve ever met, he’s grateful they never knew him two decades ago.