Jelly Roll may be known for his gritty lyrics and powerhouse vocals — but underneath the ink and swagger is a total softie. And nothing proved that more than the adorable moment he met his newest family member: a rescue donkey named Griz. In a video posted to social media, Jelly walks into the pasture, eyes wide, and whispers with a grin, “That’s him, huh?” As Griz approaches, shaggy and slow, Jelly drops to one knee and gently says: “We’re gonna be friends forever.” Cue the internet exploding.

Bunnie XO has uploaded an adorable video of her husband, Jelly Roll, meeting his new donkey, with the ‘Son of a Sinner’ hitmaker ecstatic at welcoming this latest addition to the family.

After achieving his first ever No. 1 on the prestigious all-genre Billboard 200 back in October with his second country album, Beautifully Broken, and completing the US leg of his Beautifully Broken tour, Jelly Roll is – deservedly – making an effort to slow down and enjoy the spoils of his success. One aspect of this has been to purchase his first ever farm with Bunnie XO in Nashville, with the couple currently in the middle of the endearing process of expanding their collection of animals.

Earlier in the week, Bunnie XO shared a clip of the family adopting three mini-cows, Crunch, Brownie and S’more, with Jelly immediately warming to Crunch, “I just feel that he is gonna be a great bull for me. He’s small, he has the same hair and he’s probably nice”.

Amusingly, Bunnie XO followed this up with a video of Jelly Roll getting hyped up to go meet his new miniature donkey, Griz, after the Nashville singer-songwriter got teasingly jealous because “everybody ended up getting a farm animal except him”.

Jelly Roll’s reaction to Griz’s arrival is priceless. The festive season may be disappearing away in the rearview mirror, but Jelly nonetheless has the demeanour of a child on Christmas morning as he leaps up from the sofa, and starts combing his hair back so as to ensure he gets off to the perfect start with Griz. Jelly anxiously quips, ”First impressions last a life time, it’s my first time seeing Donkey!”

When Bunnie XO jokingly asks Jelly Roll if he has a message to offer to Griz, the ‘Past Yesterday’ crooner heartwarmingly responds, “I’m excited, the donkey’s gonna love me. We’re gonna be friends forever…To future donkey, I loved you from Day One”.

Hilariously, when Griz arrives, Jelly Roll can’t get over how tiny he is, “There’s no way he’s standing up right now…No, no, I’m telling you, he’s laying down…” before it dawns on Jelly that Griz is indeed as little as he appears, “That donkey’s not that small! This is the best donkey ever. Oh my God, he’s standing up. What’s up, donkey! Donkey, donkey, donkey! He’s a little show donkey, look at him struttin’!”

Once Griz has started wandering around the field, a sudden look of concern appears on Jelly Roll’s face, as he realises he might take more to handle than he initially assumed, “I’m worried, he’s a wild donkey…They’re struggling to get him in the fence!”

Nonetheless, Jelly Roll underlines how much he adores the new arrival as he gazes lovingly over the fence, ”I like the donkey, look at him. I can’t believe he’s that small!”

We’re looking forward to seeing whether Bunnie XO and Jelly Roll decide to introduce any other farm animals to the DeFord family, with Jelly once again highlighting why he’s viewed as one of the most affable and warm-natured figures in country music.

Jelly Roll hits the road again in early March for the Canadian portion of his Beautifully Broken run, before joining up with Post Malone and Sierra Ferrell for The Big Ass Stadium tour.