Lainey Wilson Responds to Jelly Roll’s Praise Regarding Her Work Ethic

Lainey Wilson and Jelly Roll, who earned a multi-week No. 1 Country Airplay hit with their collaboration “Save Me,” have a friendship that extends beyond simply being collaborators and labelmates: They are also solid supporters of each other.

Jelly Roll previously told the Taste of Country Nights podcast bout seeing Wilson after she won the Country Music Association’s most coveted honor, entertainer of the year, back in November. “When I seen her, I could tell she was a little frazzled. I said, ‘You OK?’ She’d just pulled up, she was running late. She was like, ‘Man, I had to wake up at 5 o’clock this morning to catch a flight, and had a layover at such and such for five hours. I leave here and I got a 4 a.m. flight tomorrow to do a corporate show at 3 in the afternoon, then I gotta fly to another city to do Luke Combs.’ These were commercial flights. This girl was running on fumes. Her work ethic is next level.”

Jelly Roll, of course, picked up the new artist of the year win at November’s CMA Awards. In February, Wilson won a Grammy for best country album (Bell Bottom Country), while Jelly Roll was nominated for best new artist and they were both nominated for best country duo/group performance for “Save Me.”

Speaking more recently with Taste of Country Nights, Wilson accepted her labelmate’s praise, but also commended Jelly Roll’s work ethic as well.

“I’ll take it. But I will say, you know, if Jelly Roll don’t beat me with the whole work ethic thing, I think he comes in a close second,” Wilson said. “Cause, he’s always somewhere. I’m like, ‘Man, I thought I was the only one running around,’ and he’s like, ‘I been running around, too.’”

Wilson has two upcoming shows in Norway and Sweden before she is set to perform during the Academy of Country Music Awards on May 16, where she has five nominations heading into this year’s show. Wilson will headline two show in Nashville May 31-June 1 as part of her current Country’s Cool Again headlining tour, before joining CMA Fest in Nashville on June 8.

The “Wildflowers and Wild Horses” singer noted that she is happy with the pace. “It’s fun, this is what we asked for, and I feel so blessed and lucky to be a part of what’s happening right now.”

Wilson also gave a shout-out to some other artists she says are like brothers to her, including collaborators Hardy (“Wait in the Truck”) and Cole Swindell (“Never Say Never”).

“Hardy, I mean Hardy is more like my twin brother, ya know? I have so many friends in the industry and a lot of them treat me like I’m their little sister. Even Cole Swindell, they all kind of treat me that way. Which I love because they fight for me, and I fight for them.”