Jelly Roll heard from some unhappy fans after taking repeated shots at Donald Trump on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Monday night. His response? He’s hosting a late-night show—what did they expect?
Returning for his second night as Jimmy Kimmel’s guest host Tuesday, the country music star wasted little time acknowledging the reaction to his Trump-heavy first monologue.
“I did a couple jokes like that last night, because I’m hosting a damn late-night show,” he explained after opening with another joke at Trump’s expense. “That’s where you talk about the news and you make jokes.”
Jelly Roll then flashed a headline from TheWrap that read, “Jelly Roll Stuns ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ Audience With Multiple Jabs at Trump: ‘Didn’t See This Coming.’”
“As a former felon and drug dealer, who has lost 300 pounds, has tattoos all over his face—and won three Grammys—this is the weirdest thing I’ve ever done to ‘stun’ people,” he joked.
“What a turn of events,” he added. “Who would have guessed I’d get in more trouble with the president than Rosie O’Donnell?”
Jelly Roll said some viewers were upset that he hadn’t treated Trump “with reverence and dignity,” but noted that might be asking a lot from a man who calls himself Jelly Roll.
“I don’t even treat myself with reverence and dignity,” he said. “One day I looked in the mirror and said, ‘You, my friend, are a pastry.’”
As for those upset that Trump was the one taking the hits, Jelly Roll had a simple response.
“Any U.S. president should be able to handle a few jokes, right?” he said. “He should also be able to handle gas prices, health care, and the occasional international conflict. But beggars can’t be choosers.”
And to fans who have threatened to stop listening to his music over Monday night’s monologue, Jelly Roll was equally unmoved.
“Go right ahead,” he said. “‘Cause I’m gonna keep speaking my truth, or my name isn’t Post Malone.”
Watch Jelly Roll’s full Tuesday night monologue at the top of this post.
