Why Jelly Roll Once Got Into Legal Trouble With Waffle House

A decade before the Jonas Brothers released their song "Waffle House" in 2023, now-country singer, then-rapper Jelly Roll released a mixtape called "Whiskey, Weed & Waffle House" in 2013 — and it didn't go over well with the American restaurant chain. He took to Facebook to discuss his legal trouble, telling his followers he had been hit with a cease-and-desist order. Waffle House wanted him to stop using their name and remove any content using it, and he had ten days to do so. "WOW ... i never thought in a million years that I would ever get popular enough to actually get in trouble with Waffle House especially only 20 days after releasing the mix tape!!!!!" Jelly Roll said, seemingly more excited than disappointed.

Jelly Roll added that he was meeting with his team and a lawyer to figure out the next steps. He also thanked his listeners, saying that "in 20 days because of yall [sic] we have managed to piss off one of the biggest chain restaurants in America."

Jelly Roll's mixtape eventually got renamed "Whiskey, Weed & Women" and got new cover art to go along with it. The Genius page for the album shows both versions. The original art incorporated the actual Waffle House logo beside a whiskey bottle and cannabis leaf, and according to Gawker, the back looked like the Waffle House menu. The new art with the new name had a large red "CEASE & DESIST" logo where the Waffle House logo had been.

While speaking to Gawker, Jelly Roll said he ironically met one of the mixtape's collaborators, Grizz, at a Waffle House while Grizz was working there. Jelly Roll was initially excited about the attention of the legal trouble until his lawyer got him to understand the reality of the situation. Jelly Roll then joked that he should've sued the restaurant chain first for how many times he's eaten there.

The cease-and-desist order for trademark infringement from Waffle House also caused Jelly Roll to temporarily lose access to his Facebook and YouTube accounts. It also meant Jelly Roll couldn't release a music video that he filmed at Waffle House. Comparing the "Need A Favor" singer's trademark infringement to other Waffle House parodies or homages in music, a spokesperson for Waffle House told Gawker, "Jelly Roll's use of those trademarks was one of the more flagrant violations we have seen, and actions were taken to protect owner's rights."

 Since Jelly Roll's music career actually started while he was in prison, his time in prison meant he didn't have many other job opportunities where he could be there for his daughter, Bailee Ann DeFord. Jelly Roll admitted to Gawker that he still ate at Waffle House even after the cease-and-desist order. It ended up being a costly settlement, and Jelly Roll settled with Waffle House for $10,000. That hasn't been Jelly Roll's only legal trouble — the "Save Me" singer also once wound up in a lawsuit over his stage name.