This time around, we’re toasting a very special person.
Kelsea Ballerini, the mega successful musician and songwriter, has now added coach to her ever-growing resume.
All in a week’s work, right?
c’mon enjoy!
-Hallie Gould, editor in chief
Kelsea Ballerini joins me from a sun-drenched room in Nashville.
Her environs end up offering quite the metaphorical fit for our conversation.
Dana Scruggs. Bodysuit: David Koma, Tights: Calzedonia, Shoes: Le Silla.
Lunch with a friend with two glasses of wine, coming home and watching a movie.
Then making dinner with my boyfriend andchilling.
The older I get, the more I am truly such a homebody.
Bodysuit: David Koma, Tights: Calzedonia, Shoes: Le Silla.
Theyre like, Do you want confetti on this song and pyro on that song?
Im like Absolutely, she exclaims.
Dana Scruggs. Bodysuit: David Koma, Tights: Calzedonia, Shoes: Le Silla.
Im over budget, and I dont care.
After all, these moments dont come around often (not even for platinum-selling artists).
Its the most tricks Ive ever gotten to have in a show, you know?
Dana Scruggs. Look + Necklace: Gucci, Shoes: Paris Texas.
It really flipped for me when I was 12.
I didnt know what was going to happen to me.
Songwriting became something of a port in the storm.
Dana Scruggs. Look + Necklace: Gucci.
I started writing songs, and it changed my life.
It became the safest place.
At age 15, Ballerini moved to Nashville with her mother, Carla.
Dana Scruggs. Top: Gestuz, Shorts: Lamarque, Socks: Calzedonia.
A few years later she landed a record deal and, at 21, released a self-titled EP.
That is until the hits stopped hitting quite as hard.
Honestly, I didnt understand the gravity of it until my streak ended.
I had three number ones in a row, and then my fourth single was number three.
I thought I had failed everyone.
But it turned out to be a valuable lesson.
Dana Scruggs. Top: Gestuz.
In hindsight, Im so grateful for that song.
That gave me grace.
Ballerini learned that a song doesnt have to go to number one to matter.
Having that lesson early on has proven very helpful for me.
Look + Necklace: Gucci, Shoes: Paris Texas.
Ballerini takes to her lessons wellcall her an honor student of life.
Dana Scruggs. Suit: R13.
For example: Her second EP,Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.
After a string of successful albums, Ballerini found herself at a bit of a crossroads.
Really early on, my first manager sat me down and said Theres celebrity, and theres credibility.
And you have to pick which one you want to lean into.
Either one takes work.
But as my career unfolded, it was like, Hey, Kelsea, host this.
Dana Scruggs. Top: Brandon Maxwell, Tights: Wolford, Bra: Intimissimi, Shoes: Paris Texas, Earrings: Yvonne Leon.
Hey, Kelsea, do this pop collab.
So, by opportunity, I ended up being way more front-facing.
Look + Necklace: Gucci.
Dana Scruggs. Top: Brandon Maxwell, Tights: Wolford, Bra: Intimissimi, Shoes: Paris Texas, Earrings: Yvonne Leon.
Around the same time, she was experiencing a seismic shift in her personal life.
On Valentines Day 2023 (around three months after the divorce was finalized), she releasedWelcome Mat.
There are no bells and whistles to this, no glitter.
Its just me as an artist.
If someone asked me a question about how Im feeling, I probably couldnt answer it, she says.
But I could write a song about it.
Its my way of sorting through how Im feeling, to get to how Imactuallyfeeling.
Some people go for a drive, some people call their best friend.
I just have to write about it.
While the EP helped renew her sense of purpose, she still felt immense pressure for the follow-up.
Though she had plenty of ideas, she was unsure where, and how, to start shaping them.
Top: Gestuz, Shorts: Lamarque, Socks: Calzedonia.
Ballerini went Virgo mode and brought herself back down to earth, slowly and gently writing with friends.
But the retreat turned into something incredibly fruitful.
In those three days, we wrote Sorry Mom, Baggage, and Two Things, she recounts.
Im such a gut girlit didnt just feel safe, it felt free.
The latter experience helped her realize she wanted to coach.
I have a screenshot on my phone!
Thanks to perfect, divine timing, she landed it.
And like any good coach, shes received as much wisdom as shes imparted.
Its been such a beautiful experience.
As I was filmingThe Voice, I was also finishing the album.
To answer questions, to encourage me, to give me feedback on a song, whatever.
That was huge for my confidence building in the beginning, and for just getting my footing.
I credit so much of what I’ve learned to those moments.
I have learned a lot, she reflects.
Its helping me give credibility to my career.
Theres a level of warm and fuzzy we all have for each other.
A few days beforeThe Voicepremiered, Ballerini embarked on the bucket list arena tour shed dreamed about for years.
That, to me, was the craziest, most magical thought in the world.
Fans can anticipate a healthy balance of razzle-dazzle and more intimate moments.
Ballerini has no qualms about embracing the glitz associated with chart-topping music.
Then it was clear mascara.
Like Carla, be for real!, she laughs.
If I wasnt doing music, I would be doing hair and makeup.
Its so meditative, like a beautiful art to me.
Top: Brandon Maxwell, Earrings: Yvonne Leon.
While theyll always be side stage, side carpet for one another, life is starting to look delightfullynormal.
The cozy nights spent carving up a prime cut are as meaningful as the ones spent on red carpets.
Ive always considered myself country-adjacent.
I grew up in East Tennessee, on a farm, and I write from a storytelling perspective.
And Ive dug my heels into the Nashville country music communitythats home base for me.
With that in mind, she welcomes genre fluidity.
As she sees it, Music is music.
It shouldnt matter if theres a banjo or a beat drop.
Ballerini thinks just as expansively about her own path.
Im just really open to whatever creative outlet might present itself.
