Nashville Students Join Jelly Roll at Grand Ole Opry After School Shooting

Jelly Roll brought a moment to remember to CMA Fest when he invited students from Ruby Major Elementary School to join him on stage and perform his song “I'm Not Okay.” The kids used the song to inspire their older peers at Antioch High School with their music teacher, Mr. K., after a shooting in January of 2025 left one student dead.

“But these kids, they sang a song of mine called ‘I'm Not Okay,' and they sent it to the high schoolers 'cause they said, ‘Maybe the big kids need the little kids to inspire them right now,'” Jelly Roll told the crowd, highlighting the heartfelt message behind the performance.

Mr. K, a longtime music educator at Ruby Major Elementary in Hermitage, Tennessee, helped his students channel their emotions through music. “I went back as soon as I could to help,” Jelly Roll said. “But before I could make it, some children at Ruby Elementary School, right here in Nashville, in Hermitage, Tennessee, about sixteen minutes down the street, had a genius music teacher named Mr. K, who has been teaching these beautiful souls that music is powerful.”

The children's performance was met with a powerful response. As Jelly Roll paused to let the students shine, the crowd rose in a standing ovation. “The crowd was so into them, and they were so loud,” Mr. K recalled. “They just started bawling, and then Jelly Roll started bawling. It was awesome.”

Jelly Roll, an Antioch High School graduate, came to help support the grieving community and bring a message of hope. He delivered an experience to honor the victims of the tragedy and to give the young performers something they will never forget. The show also demonstrated how music heals, brings communities together, and even connects generations.