'I could feel myself dying': Jelly Roll reveals how close he was to death before losing weight

American musician Jelly Roll has revealed the exact moment he knew he had to make a change to save his own life – and just how close he was to dying.

The I Am Not Okay hitmaker, 41, recalled on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast this week that at one point, aged 39, he could "feel himself dying" before his significant weight loss.

Jelly Roll, whose real name is Jason Bradley DeFord and who is married to model and podcast Bunnie XO, feared his heart could just stop.

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Now, he's proud of everything he's acheived after once weighing around 500 pounds (226kg).

"I thought about [overhauling his life] around my birthday, 'cause I knew my next one was 40. You know what I mean? I was like, 'I don't think I've ever met a 500-pound 40-year-old'," he said.

"It felt like I'd already cheated the game. I'd had multiple heart issues... I could feel myself dying, Joe."

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Jelly Roll said before his weight loss his mental health wasn't in the best place, and he even recalled previously chatting to Rogan and thinking he could die after that.

"I never would have thought I could have this kind of life," he said.

"When I sat here and talked to you before, in my mind, I was thinking, 'I'll probably never see Joe again. I think, you know, it'll probably go any day for me ... my heart could quit any day. I could relapse and overdose. I'm not thinking right most of the time'."

"To sit here and look at you now ... I'm going to be a 70-year-old man with you, Bubba. You know what I'm saying?" he added with a laugh.

Three weeks ago, Jelly Roll showed off his dramatic weight loss transformation after shaving his beard for the first time in years, revealing his slimmed-down face.

He has reportedly lost around 200 pounds, or 90kg, on his health journey.

The singer, who has spoken about his past drug use, previously told People he was a food addict and had to adjust his eating habits for the weight loss.

"The battle was with the food addiction, changing the way I've looked at food for the last 39 years," he said.

"I've never had a healthy relationship with food, so that was the hard part."

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