Kelsea Ballerini

Kelsea Ballerini was born in Mascot, Tennessee, and raised in nearby Knoxville. The country artist began her songwriting career when she was still a child and signed with Black River Entertainment in 2014 at the age of 19.

Ballerini released her debut album, The First Time, in 2015. She followed it up with Unapologetically, which dropped in 2017. That same year, Ballerini was named as one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 musicians to watch. She later earned her first Grammy nomination for the record.

The “I Hate Love Songs” artist briefly joined The Voice in 2018 as the fifth coach, helping six artists prepare for the Comeback Stage. She also filled in for Kelly Clarkson during season 20 of the reality competition show. The following year, she appeared as a guest on NBC’s Songland.

In March 2019, the “Peter Pan” songstress was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry as a member, she was officially inducted into the iconic institution by Carrie Underwood one month later.

Her third studio album, Kelsea, and its accompanying acoustic record, Ballerini, came out in 2020. Two years later, she released her fourth album, titled Subject to Change. She released her EP Rolling Up the Welcome Mat in 2023.

Ballerini cohosted the 2021 CMT Awards with Kane Brown. The following year, she cohosted the awards show from home after testing positive for COVID-19.

Ballerini started dating fellow country star Morgan Evans in 2016. Ballerini and Evans tied the knot in December 2017. However, the pair called it quits in August 2022 and reached a settlement on their divorce three months later. She started dating Chase Stokes in early 2023.