The road to parenthood has not been easy for country superstar Jelly Roll, 40, and his wife, podcaster Bunnie Xo, 45. Although the “American Idol” artist-in-residence has two kids from previous relationships — Bailee Ann, 16, and Noah Buddy, 8 — he and Bunnie, whom he’s been married to since 2016, would also love to have a child together.
On June 16, 2025, fans rallied around Bunnie — whose real name is Alyssa DeFord — after she posted an emotional Instagram video of herself receiving a momentous call about the status of in vitro fertilization treatments she’s been undergoing since early in the year.
Over the video of her holding her face in her hands as she reacted to what she was hearing, Bunnie wrote, “When you just got the call you’ve been waiting on for 5 months since this ivf journey started. All the tears, the hopelessness & the struggle, God finally said, ‘Here.’ 😭.”
Bunnie Xo Clarifies She & Jelly Roll Are Not Expecting a Baby Yet
Fans flooded the comment section of Bunnie’s post, with many assuming her video meant that she was pregnant. According to People, she clarified in the comment section, “This is not a pregnancy announcement – we won’t announce that. This is just a huge win for us 🙏🏻🤍💫✨.”
Nevertheless, rumors quickly spread that they were pregnant and her comment section was filled with people congratulating the couple on expecting. On June 17, she posted a fake, AI-generated image in her Stories of Jelly Roll and her, cradling a baby bump, and wrote over it, “I give up 🤣🤣🤣”
In June 2024, Jelly Roll, revealed on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast that he and his wife were discussing having a baby together. She later posted a clip from the interview on Instagram and captioned it, “God Willing- Baby DeFord 2026 💫”
Over the video, she wrote, “We had planned on doing this privately, but decided our ivf journey needed to be shared because we’ve always been so open. And w/all odds stacked against us, it’s always been hard & we have only just begun.”
In March, Bunnie updated fans in a TikTok video, “I’m literally going through IVF treatments right now — the hormones, the shots, all that. I’m going through all of the emotions, the rollercoaster, (and) the worry, just so that I can have a little piece of my husband and me — just a little piece wrapped in skin— to just add to the other two beautiful children that we have together.”
On May 8, Jelly Roll told Access Hollywood, “We’re right in the middle of the journey. For all of our friends out there who have been supporting and praying for us that know the journey we are on, y’all know how hard it is, thanks for praying for us. We’re still trying.”
Jelly Roll Has Said His Life Changed With the Birth of His Daughter
Jelly Roll has repeatedly said that everything shifted for him when his daughter was born in 2008. At the time, he was in jail on drug dealing charges, according to People.
“A guard knocks on my cell door midafternoon during lockdown,” he told Billboard in 2023. “He goes, ‘You had a kid today.’ I’ve never had nothing in life that urged me in the moment to know that I had to do something different. I have to figure this out right now.”
The “Liar” singer was released from prison before Bailee’s second birthday, per People. Jelly Roll and BunnieXo were granted full custody of Bailee in 2017 due to Bailee’s mom’s ongoing drug addiction issues, the outlet reported.
In the Hulu documentary “Jelly Roll: Save Me,” Bailee vulnerably shared, “I had an extra interesting, traumatic childhood. Bunnie did, my dad did … As a teenager, I’ve moved on. I’ve worked through my childhood. But that doesn’t make it go away. It made me who I am today.”
Noah, meanwhile, was born in August 2016 — the same month Jelly Roll married Bunnie, who happily stepped in as both kids’ stepmom. In July 2023, she shared a social media post introducing their fans to Noah’s birth mom, Melisa.
“Meet Noah’s beautiful mommy, Melisa,” Bunnie wrote. “I wanted y’all to get to see who Babymama #2 is because we have been so public about Bailee’s mama, it’s only fair y’all get to see & love her as well.
She’s one stand up chick & we couldn’t imagine our lives without her- she holds it down for baby Noah & us especially because we are on the road so much. It takes a village to raise these babies & luckily we have her as apart of the family. Love you girl!”
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Is Jelly Roll’s Wife Pregnant? Fans Celebrate Bunnie Xo’s Emotional Update