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Jelly Roll invites inmates to perform with him on stage and brings people to tears

Jelly Roll knows firsthand what this kind of representation can do.

By Unknown author - C-SPAN, Public Domain/Photo credit: Canva

Jelly Roll has inmates perform at his concert, moving people to tears.

Jelly Roll is an American rapper and singer that has shot to the top of the charts in recent years with his hit songs "Save Me" and "Need A Favor." He's been vocal about his rough start in life that involved drugs and multiple trips to jail before he eventually earned his GED while incarcerated and dedicated himself to finding a different way to live life.

The singer uses his experiences to not only reach audiences through his music but through the stories he tells. Jelly Roll never shies away from all the things he's been through in life, so it shouldn't be surprising that he looks for ways to give back to people who have found themselves in similar situations, often visiting correctional facilities in tour cities.

Recently his tour took him to Chesterfield, Virginia, where he of course stopped by the county jail to speak to the inmates. But this time, instead of performing for them, some of the inmates performed for him. Jelly Roll was blown away by their talent and before his scheduled performance decided to take a chance by asking the sheriff if the inmates could join him on stage. It's probably safe to assume this isn't a regular request for the sheriff, but he decided to oblige the singer.

The inmates got to show up in street clothes, joining the singer on stage to sing his single, "Unpretty," which is a song one of the prisoner's sang for Jelly Roll earlier in the day. The artist uploaded a highlight reel to his Instagram page with the caption:

"One of the most special moments of my career happened last night. Before the show, I had the honor of stopping by a jail in Chesterfield, Virginia where they have a program called Helping Addicts Recover Progressively (HARP). I’ve had the pleasure of getting to visit and talk to the folks in this program before, but this time something surreal took place. Sheriff Leonard allowed 4 members of the program to not only come to the show, but come on stage and perform the music with me.

I don’t know what it was about me, but I only ever believed things could happen whenever I got close enough to see them happening in front of me. My hope with bringing these men out on stage with me is that they can see a larger picture of what life can become. The place they’re in now is not the end, and the future can be so much more than their wildest dreams. I can never thank and praise the HARP program enough for making this happen, the work they’re doing is truly invaluable."

Jelly Roll testifying before the U.S. Congresscommons.wikimedia.org

In another video posted to Jelly Roll's Instagram page, you can see the inmates perform from the audience viewpoint and you can tell the men are taking full advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If they were nervous, there was no indication of it because the four men sang, rapped and played the guitar. There was true talent in that group, and they got to showcase it to hundreds of screaming fans.

Under the highlight reel, a fan speaks highly of the program that allowed the inmates to experience a Jelly Roll concert from the stage, writing, "I been in that program. You leave with a different mindset. The sheriff is a good man, and really trying to make a difference. We appreciate you jelly for all you do."

The Chesterfield Virginia account also show their appreciation, "Thank you so much for coming to our jail and loving on our inmates! It meant the world."


Celebrities, congresspeople and fans can't seem to get enough of Jelly Roll's action of reaching back to show people headed down the wrong path a new direction.

Tulsi Gabbard says, "Tears streaming down my face. Thank you @jellyroll615 for your heart, and the love you have shown to these men. I felt God’s presence and love on that stage and in our hearts."

Lenny Kravitz writes, "Yes! Let Love Rule brother!"

One person shares, "THIS is what using your platform is meant to achieve! This was life changing and powerful and inspiring and motivational. It’s this type of energy & work that social media is at its best. This is reconciliation work! You are helping us to grow closer and closer to what true reconciliation can be. I think of what it truly means to have an entire audience cheering you on when you are in a position, as these men are, at this time of their lives. THANK YOU!"

Someone else chimes in, "I just got goosebumps. Wow the end singer. They are never going to forget the opportunity both you and the sheriff gave them."

This truly is something these men will never forget, but the audience will also never forget it. Jelly Roll loudly and boldly proclaimed that prisoners are worth the effort to redeem by taking a chance and putting them on stage. This moment will be forever imprinted in the minds of the inmates and others, encouraging growth and life changes.

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The Department of Justice is ending the use of private prisons.

The United States has more people living in prisons than any other country.

According to some estimates, 25% of the planet's prison population is in the USA — nearly 7 million people in 2013.

Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images.

Despite the fact that violent crime has been steadily declining in recent years, America's incarceration rate has tripled since 1980.

We've been locking people away with such regularity that we actually started to run out of space. That's why about 10 years ago, the government began working with private contractors to open up private or "for profit" prisons for housing excess of inmates — a practice that has soared into a $70 billion industry.

But that's about to change: On Aug. 18, 2016, Sally Yatesannounced the Department of Justice will phase out the federal use of private prisons.

As you might be able to imagine, when you add the words "privately owned" to a prison, the effects aren't great. What was once a correctional system has turned into a profit-engine whose fuel is prisoners.

Time and time again, the prison industrial complex has been found to be corrupt, abusive, inhumane, and unsafe.

Photo by Ian Waldie/Getty Images.

"Private prisons served an important role during a difficult period," said Deputy Attorney General Yates in her memo.

"But time has shown thatthey compare poorly to our own Bureau facilities. They simply do not provide the same level ofcorrectional services, programs, and resources; they do not save substantially on costs; and asnoted in a recent report by the Department's Office of Inspector General, they do not maintainthe same level of safety and security."

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images.

This isn't the only positive change we've seen in the prison system lately either.

In recent years, prison populations have been declining. There are many factors to this: crime reduction, policy reforms, and improved public safety, to name a few.

There's also the fact that the vast majority of people we lock up have committed drug offenses, and in 2010, more than half of the drug arrests made were for marijuana — a drug that's now legal in many states. As we decriminalize marijuana, prison population numbers are likely to drop even lower — yet another reason to close private prisons.

While these prisons won't be closing overnight, DOJ officialshave been ordered to end or "substantially reduce" their contracts with them.

Yates speaking in June 2016. Photo by Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images.

There are still many problems to fix within our justice system, including (and especially) the rulings and laws that caused these high prison population problems and necessitated the use of private prisons in the first place.

But this is a big step in the right direction.

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New York state is reforming solitary confinement.

Thousands of people spend months alone in a tiny cell. New York is doing something to fix that problem.

Approximately 78,000 people currently live in New York prisons.

Almost 4,000 of them live in tiny cells the size of a bathroom, closed off from most human contact. It’s a troubling practice, which is why New York has decided to make some key changes to its solitary confinement rules.

Image by jmiller291/Flickr.

A major lawsuit recently pointed out the horrific conditions of solitary confinement.

Based on that lawsuit, brought by the New York Civil Liberties Union, New York state will now be placing fewer prisoners in solitary cells. If they are placed in solitary, the folks will stay there for a shorter time, and they won’t have to face as many extreme conditions.

While this is an incredibly important step forward, it also demonstrates how much more work needs to be done to reform prisons in America.

The thousands of people serving time in solitary confinement on a daily basis wake up in a box that’s about 6 feet by 10 feet. They often spend their entire day without any human contact or even a book to read. And sometimes, they don’t even have access to palatable, nutritious food.

In New York, the average inmate who gets sentenced to solitary confinement will stay there for 190 days.

Let that sink in: Six whole months in the same tiny room with almost no one to talk to, nothing to do, and sometimes nothing nutritious to eat.

Screenshot from NYCLU/YouTube.

Typically, isolation is used as a disciplinary measure for prisoners who have committed infractions. But research has shown that forcing a prisoner to spend a lot of time alone in a room with no human contact and limited recreation doesn’t help to improve their behavior.

People who have served time in extreme isolation understandably have difficulty transitioning back to life outside a small cell. A report by the NYCLU also found that solitary causes "severe emotional and psychological consequences," which can lead to aggression and outbursts, both inside prison and when they’re released.

For the next five years, New York has committed to making prison isolation better.

Not perfect, but better. Here’s what’s that means, specifically:

1. Almost one-quarter of the inmates who are currently in solitary will be placed in different programs — ones that are safer, allow for human interaction, and are meant to rehabilitate the people involved. New York will operate under the premise that people who are developmentally disabled, addicted to drugs, or in need to behavioral therapy shouldn’t be denied the help they need.

2. The people who remain in solitary won’t be there indefinitely. For most disciplinary violations, there’s now a three-month cap on isolation.

3. And the actual experience of solitary confinement will be a little more humane, too. Some inmates will have more access to mental health services and therapy, and everyone will get to make occasional phone calls to family. Also, food can’t be used as punishment anymore.

People who are in prison are still people. And prisons are called "correctional institutions" for a reason: They’re supposed to help people rehabilitate.

That’s why New York’s decision to overhaul solitary confinement is so important.

Photo via iStock.

It’s also why this overhaul needs to be the first of many, many steps.

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Alicia Keys released a beautiful video to get 1 million signatures for prison reform.

"Is this who we are now? Is this who we want to be?"

Those were questions first asked by superstar artist Alicia Keys in a Capitol Hill briefing on Nov. 10, 2015, about the alarming state of mass incarceration in the United States. Knowing that the "land of the free" has more people in prison than any other nation in the world, she is now asking those same questions to her millions of fans — and asking them to do something about it.

All images via Alicia Keys/YouTube.

Her new campaign, #WeAreHere for #JusticeReformNow is a partnership between her organization, We Are Here, and Cut 50, an organization that aims to cut the U.S. prison population in half over the next 10 years. The campaign is asking 1 million people to sign a petition that calls on Congress and the White House to take action now.

Keys is latest in a string of celebrities who have recently begun to shine a light on America's mass incarceration crisis. And with good reason.

The issue of mass incarceration is one that touches on so many devastating challenges within our society.

This complex issue is tied to racism, poverty, and inequality (as those who are incarcerated are overwhelmingly black, brown, and poor and receive harsher sentences for the same crimes as their white counterparts), the economy (the prison system is big business for private companies but costs the nation between $30K-100K a year to incarcerate just one person), as well as the issue that is most important to Keys and her organization: the impact of mass incarceration on children and families.

As she says in the beautiful campaign launch video:

"Too many families — and our communities — are being destroyed by mass incarceration. ... Mothers stripped of their sons, husbands, and fathers. Entire neighborhoods torn apart by the War on Drugs. And families struggling to stay together. We need policy reforms that can keep people out of prison who don't need to be there, and ensure that our justice system helps to heal communities, families, and individuals."

(It is, of course, worth noting that not only men are incarcerated. The number of incarcerated women has also increased at an alarming rate over the past decade.)

But whether we're discussing men or women, mothers or fathers, young or old, fundamentally, the root of the problem is about how society views and treats people who have committed crimes, especially nonviolent ones.

Can we really afford the social costs of throwing away countless citizens for drug addiction, desperate responses to poverty, and youthful mistakes? Or are there better, more just, and effective ways to hold people accountable and keep our communities safe?

Criminal-justice-reform advocate Bryan Stevenson, in his famous TED talk and must-read bestselling book, "Just Mercy," certainly thinks so. He believes that the only way to heal our society and end the obviously ineffective cycle of crime and punishment is to stop abandoning broken people, which is an approach that ultimately breaks more people. Instead, we must develop a criminal justice system based on rehabilitation, mercy, and solutions to the root causes of crime. But what does that look like?

What do advocates suggest we do right now?

Well, for starters, Alicia Keys' #WeAreHere for #JusticeReformNow campaign is urging 1 million people to sign a petition demanding Congress and the White House pass meaningful criminal justice reforms before the close of the year. She joins the thousands of other Americans who are asking for laws that do three things:

1. Send fewer people into a broken system that often destroys lives and separates families.

2. Invest in education, rehabilitation, and treatment rather than incarceration and punishment.

3. Address economic, civil, and social barriers to re-entry that can make it difficult for fathers and mothers to participate fully in society once they return home.

There are several bills proposed in Congress, like the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act and the SAFE Justice Act, that address some of these concerns. But public support is necessary to encourage swift action.

Check out her powerful video below and learn more about the campaign at Cut50.org.

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