The Grand Ole Opry aired their 100th anniversary special on Wednesday, and the event was a who’s who of the country music scene. (If you missed it, you can stream the show on Peacock.) Lainey Wilson, Blake Shelton, Reba McEntire, Randy Travis, and more stars were in attendance, but one singer was noticeably absent: Jelly Roll.
The “Liar” singer’s absence wouldn’t be particularly notable. While he’s made appearances at the Opry in the past (he performed there just last month), he isn’t a member, and he’s in the middle of the Canadian leg of his Beautifully Broken tour. But he was featured in the promotional videos for the event and was scheduled to perform with Ashley McBryde.
Instead, McBryde took the stage to perform a duet with Post Malone, who seemed to be a last-minute replacement for Jelly Roll. The duo teamed up for an ode to June Carter and Johnny Cash, singing their song “Jackson.” Earlier in the show, Malone performed “T-R-O-U-B-L-E” with Travis Tritt.
While the performance was well-received by many fans (one said, “Y’ALL DID JOHNNY & JUNE PROUD 🔥🔥🔥” and another wrote, “You two were spectacular together! 🔥🔥”), it’s reasonable to wonder why Jelly Roll wasn’t in attendance as planned. While he hasn’t spoken out about the event, The Tennessean reports that he had to “bow out due to illness.”
According to Jelly Roll’s website, he is scheduled to perform in Ottawa, Ontario, on Friday night. We hope he’s feeling better for his next show!
Katie Bowlby is Digital Director at Country Living, where she covers pop culture news including country music, Yellowstone, and all things HGTV, plus gift guides and product reviews. She has been with Country Living for more than 11 years. Before that, she worked for Southern Living. The Indiana University grad also stitches up the cross-stitch pattern for every issue of the magazine.
