Washington DC : Actor Dwayne Johnson has a very special bond with singer and rapper Jelly Roll, and in fact, his music helped Johnson overcome mental stress, reported People. In a post on his Instagram handle, Dwayne shared a video in which he can be seen hugging Roll and engaging in a friendly conversation.
Johnson opened up about their years-long ties through Jelly's song 'Only' and their shared Nashville connection, reported People. "A brotherly hug almost 10 years in the making @jellyroll615," wrote Johnson, adding, "Several years ago (roughly 2017) I was going through a very hard thing at the time, I was struggling. My mental wellness turned into my mental hellness. Many of you know the drill, you put on "the face", show up to work, smile and get through it."
The Rock, who was shooting for a film at the time, shared that although it wasn't the "healthiest thing to do," he was used to it. "Perhaps not the healthiest thing to do, but it's what I was used to doing at the time," he wrote.
"Then a song came on through my headphones one morning on a random shuffle playlist. "Only" from Jelly Roll. The lyrics rocked me. Hard core," added The Mummy Returns actor.
"What if the darkness inside of me has finally taken my soul?/What if the angels in heaven were sent to take me home?/Would they fight through the demons that I have in my life?/Lord, I'm believing eventually see the light," Jelly sings in the 2017 song.
These words touched the soul of the ace star and he formed a connection with the rapper as he mentioned, "The words moved me so much that I reached out to Jelly. I said you don't know me and I don't know you, but this song of yours is helping me through some stuff I'm dealing with. I just called to say thank you brother. Our bond was born."
Johnson had a gift for Jelly when they finally met, an old postcard of the Alamo Plaza motel in South Nashville, as per the outlet. "The gift I gave Jelly when we finally met, is insignificant to the world, but something I just knew would mean a lot to him and he'd appreciate. It's an old, and cheap postcard of a little motel called the Alamo Plaza in south Nashville."
"This is real old-school Nashville history," Jelly said in the Instagram video, showing off the postcard signed by the actor. "When I was 15yrs I was forced (family was evicted) to leave Hawaii and make it to Nashville to live with my dad. That didn't work out so I wound up living with a stranger in this little spot on Murfreesboro Road that has since been torn down and no longer there," Johnson wrote, explaining his connection.
The Rock also talked about Wrestling manager Downtown Bruno and said that he is also one of his most "special friends". "Downtown Bruno was that stranger's name and to this day, he's one of my best and most special friends. Just like Jelly. A very special friend. Every once in a while we all get sliced up by life, but it's amazing to see what kind of blessings and people that God and the universe will put in our lives to help us heal through our pain."
Johnson also gave Craig Morgan, whom Jelly mentioned during their conversation that The Rock was listening to on his drive over, a shout-out, reported People.
"And a big SURREAL shout out to our boy @craigmorgan who I was just listening to in my truck as I pulled up to meet Jelly. How's THAT for the universe conspiring for us!!...Love you brother and cheers to all our plaques coming down," the post concluded.
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Jelly is currently wrapping up the Big Ass Stadium Tour with Post Malone before embarking on solo dates later this summer. Meanwhile, Johnson's next big movie, 'The Smashing Machine,' is set to release in October, according to People.