Kelsea Ballerini

Kelsea Ballerini
Ballerini performing at Red Rocks Amphitheater in September 2021
Ballerini performing at Red Rocks Amphitheater in September 2021
Background information
Birth nameKelsea Nicole Ballerini[1]
Born (1993-09-12) September 12, 1993 (age 31)[2]
Mascot, Tennessee, U.S.
OriginKnoxville, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active2014–present
LabelsBlack River
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2017; div. 2022)​
PartnerChase Stokes (2023–present)
Websitekelseaballerini.com

Kelsea Nicole Ballerini (born September 12, 1993) is an American country pop singer and songwriter. A four-time Grammy Award nominee, she began having success in the 2010s, being honored with the Gene Weed Milestone Award at the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Rising Star Award at the Billboard Women in Music.

She began songwriting as a child and signed a contract with Black River Entertainment in 2014,[4] releasing her debut studio album, The First Time, and her second one Unapologetically, followed in 2017.[5] The two albums account for seven songs on the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts. She has five No. 1 singles on the latter, starting with her debut single "Love Me Like You Mean It", which made her the first female artist to send a debut single to the top of that chart since Carrie Underwood in 2006. It was followed by "Dibs" and "Peter Pan", whose peaks also made her the first female country artist to send her first three singles to the top of that chart since Wynonna Judd.

Her third studio album, Kelsea, and a counterpart acoustic album, Ballerini, were both released in 2020. The collaboration "Half of My Hometown" with Kenny Chesney garnered two Country Music Association Awards. Her fourth studio album, Subject to Change was released in 2022. She followed that release with her second EP, Rolling Up the Welcome Mat, in 2023. She released her fifth album, Patterns, in late 2024.

  1. ^ Sellers, Morgan. "Artist Interview: Kelsea Ballerini". Thetennesseelife.com. Archived from the original on December 30, 2014. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference allmusic was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Kelsea Ballerini New Album Review". Lyricmagazine.co.uk. March 20, 2020. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
  4. ^ "About | Black River Entertainment". Blackriverent.com. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
  5. ^ Abbey, Alison (October 13, 2017). "Kelsea Ballerini Unapologetically Talks New Music, Love and Growing Up". Parade: Entertainment, Recipes, Health, Life, Holidays. Retrieved June 9, 2021.