Meghan Markle is super excited about Prince Harry’s new friendship with Jelly Roll and wants it to be a springboard for way more friendships and business ops with high powered country stars in America’s Deep South.
“Meghan’s looking beyond Hollywood and realizes there’s an untapped gold mine in Nashville and the country music world in general and this connection with Jelly Roll is the perfect way to get her foot in the door,” an insider exclusively tells Life & Style. “She’s always had a fascination with Dolly Parton and would still love to get close to her, but it’s no secret that Dolly is already quite aligned with Kate Middleton so Meghan’s not holding out a lot of hope on that front. But there are loads of other celebrities in the South and plenty of star power.”
The source says that Meghan, 43, would “love to get some endorsement going for her brand,” and the country music market is one that she and Harry, 40, “have never tapped.”
“She’s now had her eyes opened to what they could be missing out on. She’s not going to hitch her wagon to just anyone, she’s going to be choosy, but the fact is the country music world has changed a lot. There’s a lot more diversity and a whole lot of money and power and opportunity to do some social climbing in Nashville and in the south, so why not take a swing at it?” the insider explains.
Earlier this year, Jelly Roll, 40, appeared in a promo for Harry’s upcoming Invictus Games. In the clip, shared on Instagram on November 19, 2024, Harry sat in a tattoo artist’s chair while waiting for the “I Am Not Okay” singer.
“This is where people get tattoos, right?” Harry asked in the skit.
The artist replied, “It is. This is the tattoo chair and the tattoo station,” before giving up his seat to Jelly Roll as he came in, snapping on rubber gloves.
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“Did you know I could not believe it when they called and told me Prince Harry wanted to get a tattoo today and he wanted me to give him his first tattoo?” Jelly Roll said while grasping Harry’s hand.
While Jelly Roll said he thought that he was giving the royal a tattoo about the Invictus Games, Harry nervously corrected him and explained that he was there to ask the CMA winner to do the Invictus Games. The two came to a deal that if Harry allowed Jelly Roll to give him his first tattoo, then the country singer would participate in the games. Harry was hoping for a tattoo on his “lower back” or “ass,” but Jelly Roll had a different place in mind – the prince’s neck.
“Have you done this before?” Harry asked with trepidation, to which Jelly Roll answered, “Practically. Pretty much.”
By the time Jelly Roll was finished, Harry had a tattoo of the words, “I Am,” with Jelly Roll’s name underneath them on the side of his neck. Of course, it was all just a promotion for the Invictus Games where Jelly Roll will be performing live on February 16.