Jelly Roll Gets Emotional & Explains His Politics in Final ‘Kimmel’ Appearance

Martin HolmesFri, August 28, 2026 at 11:41 AM UTC

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Jelly Roll - Jimmy Kimmel Live! YouTube

Jelly Roll fought back tears on Thursday’s (August 27) Jimmy Kimmel Live! as he addressed the backlash to his Donald Trump jokes and set the record straight on his political stance.

“Before this week, everybody thought I was MAGA, and now they think I’m some sort of liberal snowflake,” the country singer quipped, referencing how his jokes about the president have caused quite a stir across the political aisle, including on cable news.

The “Save Me” hitmaker played a clip from a news anchor accusing him of having “full-blown Trump Derangement Syndrome” and claiming he took the Kimmel guest-hosting gig for the “big check.”

“First of all, I didn’t do this for the check. I’m rich, y’all,” Jelly Roll said. “And listen, I don’t want to throw my buddy under the bus, but Jimmy Kimmel is cheap as hell.”

After addressing criticism of his support for the White House UFC event, the multi-time Grammy winner stated, “Just because I watched a fight on TV doesn’t mean I support everything this administration does. Just like hosting Jimmy Kimmel’s show doesn’t mean I have all of Jimmy Kimmel’s politics. Sure, I lean left on some things, but like most folks, I’m pretty down the middle.”

He then asked if he could get “serious” for a moment, stating, “This year it wasn’t the hosting gig that I was looking forward to. It was the platform to get some very personal stuff off of my chest.”

“For the last six months, I’ve watched people decide who I am, what I am, what I believe, what I support and what I don’t support,” he continued. “And I felt that even more this week, just because I told a couple of jokes. And honestly, this goes back further for me, y’all. This goes back to February this year.”

Jelly Roll reflected on his viral Grammys speech, where he dodged questions about his political beliefs.

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“Looking back, I don’t necessarily regret asking for more time before I spoke,” he stated. “I wish more people took more time before they spoke. But I do wish I had found the words to express my heart just a little bit sooner. But I was afraid that anything I was going to say was going to be immediately taken as a political statement. And ironically, by trying so hard not to make a political statement, I became one.”

Jelly Roll said he’s spent his “entire career” avoiding belonging to a political party, largely because, as a former convicted felon, he wasn’t allowed to vote until March of this year. He said he now plans to vote this November.

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“It’s simple for me, y’all. I always wanted the recovering addict, the felon who is trying to change his life, the single mama working a double hard for her family, and everybody else that ever felt forgotten to know that I represent those without representation,” he added. “And speaking for those people is what I believe my calling is. I’ve always tried to be a voice for the voiceless because I know those people. Those are my people. I try to speak for the unspoken.”

Becoming teary-eyed, Jelly Roll said, “I had a microphone, and I didn’t use it the right way. But my daddy always told me it is never too late to do the right thing.” Overcome with emotion, he took a moment to compose himself.

“So, I’m going to try to do the right thing, right now, because human dignity isn’t Republican nor Democrat. Compassion isn’t left-wing and mercy isn’t right-wing. Pain and healing knows no partisanship. Hurting hearts are more important than poll numbers. And there are no boundaries or borders for broken families,” he stated.

You can watch Jelly Roll’s full monologue and heartfelt speech in the video above and let us know your thoughts below.

Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Weeknights, 11:35/10:35c, ABC

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”