Jelly Roll Left Wedding Ring Off During CMA Fest Before Divorce News Broke

Jelly Roll didn’t wear his wedding ring when he took the stage at CMA Fest in Nashville, Tennessee. The performance happened weeks after he filed to divorce wife Bunnie Xo.

The Grammy-winning artist, 41, delivered a surprise performance at Nissan Stadium on the first night of the Country Music Association’s festival, hailed the longest-running country festival in the world. Now, many have noticed that the singer-songwriter was not wearing his wedding band during the show (PEOPLE noted in a report, however, that Jelly Roll has omitted his ring before, including during public appearances with Bunnie Xo, and it’s possible the ring didn’t fit anymore after his recent weight loss transformation). 

Jelly Roll filed to divorce Bunnie Xo, 46, on May 18 in Williamson County, Tennessee, citing “irreconcilable differences,” and listed the couple’s separation date as May 9. Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason DeFord, filed for divorce from Bunnie Xo, whose name is Alisa DeFord, under a “Divorce - NO Children” filing type, apparently indicating there will be no need to address custody of Jelly Roll’s two children, one of whom is a minor. He and the Dumb Blonde podcast host do not share biological children. Jelly Roll is a father to Bailee Ann, 18, and Noah Buddy, 9. Earlier this year, Bunnie Xo opened up about her hope to welcome twins via surrogate in her memoir, Stripped Down: Unfiltered and Unapologetic.

Jelly Roll and Bunnie Xo met in 2015. They got married in a spontaneous courthouse wedding the following year, in August 2016. Neither Jelly Roll nor Bunnie Xo have directly, publicly addressed the divorce as of publication time. Bunnie Xo shared a NSFW photo on her Instagram story with the message, “she’s getting her sparkle back.”

CMA Fest ran from Thursday, June 4, through Sunday, June 7. Artists who took the main stage at Nissan Stadium included Bailey Zimmerman, Blake Shelton, The Band Perry, Brothers Osborne, Carly Pearce, Cody Johnson, Deana Carter, Ella Langley, Fetty Wap, Florida Georgia Line, Gretchen Wilson, HARDY, Jason Aldean, Jelly Roll, Jordan Davis, Keith Urban, Lainey Wilson, Luke Bryan, Michael McDonald, Molly Tuttle, The Red Clay Strays, Ricky Skaggs, Riley Green, Russell Dickerson, Shaboozey, Shay Morgan, Stephen Wilson Jr., Tim McGraw, Tucker Wetmore and Zach Top. Riley Green and Lara Spencer will host the televised special, which will air on ABC at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT on Thursday, June 25. The show will be available to stream the following day on Hulu.