Jelly Roll Explains at 2023 CMA Awards How He Planned What He Hopes Is the 'Biggest Toy Drive in Nashville History' (Exclusive)

Jelly Roll tells PEOPLE on the CMAs red carpet about how his initial plan to donate $100,000 worth of toys took on "a life of its own"

Jelly Roll wanted to donate some toys — and ended up making history.

The country star spoke to PEOPLE on the 2023 CMA Awards red carpet about how his ongoing toy drive in partnership with Walmart and several other brands grew to make a massive impact on Nashville.

Last month, Jelly Roll announced he was partnering with Hasbro, Coca-Cola, iHeartRadio and the Metro Nashville Police Department for a toy drive that kicked off Nov. 1 at Walmart's Franklin, Tennessee location. Since then, the initiative has expanded to eight Walmart stores in total, and more companies have gotten involved.

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"It started with me just thinking I’d pitch in $100,000 or something toward something to get some toys going," the "Son of a Sinner" musician, 38, tells PEOPLE at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena. "Then, I talked to my friends at Walmart and they said, ‘We can make this bigger. We can amplify this.'"

Check out PEOPLE's full CMA Awards coverage to get the latest news on country music’s biggest night.

Those who've donated toys have even gotten to see Jelly Roll deliver free performances at select Walmart stores. But he didn't expect the drive to become such a large event.

"I just called them to partner, like, ‘Hey, I wanna buy $100,000 worth of toys. Can I get a deal?’" recalls Jelly Roll. "They were like, ‘Hey, well, first of all, we'll buy toys, and then we'll open up our stores to you, and then Hasbro came in, and then Coca-Cola came in, and then the Nashville Predators came in, and then this thing started taking [on] a life of its own."

He declares, "It's gonna be the biggest toy drive in Nashville history."

Charity events aside, Jelly Roll is having a massive year of his own. The performer received the most nominations of any male artist at the 2023 CMA Awards with nods in five categories, and he's "blown away" by the honor.

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"I would have never even imagined this. Somebody said, ‘Would you have ever dreamed of this?’ And I wasn't bold enough to dream this big," explains the star. "So I hope somebody sitting at home right now with a dream — you think that dream's too big, and it might be too small after all, baby. Dream bigger. Dream bigger."

For Jelly Roll, who walked the carpet with his wife Bunnie XO, the nominations are enough to feel accomplished — especially since he's also performing twice during the ceremony. "Win, lose or draw, I won tonight. If my name doesn't get called, I won. Most nominated male opening the show, closing the show. It's incredible," he says.

The 2023 CMA Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning air live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 8 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and stream exclusively on Hulu the following day.

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