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Kelsea Ballerini took a moment to clear the air in a statement on her Instagram story on Monday (February 5), after some viewers apparently analyzed the singer-songwriter’s reaction when Lainey Wilson won in the Best Country Album category at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday evening (February 4).
Ballerini was also up for the award for Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, her deeply personal EP that made its debut last February, along with an accompanying short film. Rolling Up The Welcome Mat shared Ballerini’s story of heartache and healing after divorce, and resonated so strongly with her audiences that fan-favorite lyric-swaps made their way onto an extended version, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat (For Good), months after the original project’s release. Other artists nominated for the award included Brothers Osborne (Brothers Osborne), Zach Bryan (Zach Bryan) and Tyler Childers (Rustin’ in the Rain). Wilson won with her full-length sophomore album, Bell Bottom Country.
Since the Grammy Awards aired, some media reports and internet commenters have apparently attempted to analyze Ballerini’s reaction to Wilson’s win, alleging that the “What I Have” artist appeared “snubbed” or “annoyed” by the result.
Ballerini posted a written statement on her Instagram story to offer clarification.
“Ohhhh y’all,” Ballerini wrote. “You can be bummed for your loss and happy for somebody else’s win at the same time. Two things can be true and both hold valid and valuable space. The face reading and reaction analysis is unnecessary and hurtful to everyone. A woman’s win is a team win. Write about that instead? 🤍”
Ballerini — whose boyfriend, Outer Banks star Chase Stokes, supported her from afar on Sunday evening — shared with iHeartRadio’s Amy Brown during her exclusive iHeartRadio LIVE show over the summer that writing Rolling Up The Welcome Mat was “definitely therapeutic,” and “necessary for me personally and my journey for making sense of my life at that time. And now, in this season, I’m learning that it was necessary for me to open up more as an artist and as a songwriter and learn that the more zoomed in I can get, the better it is all around. It’s been a huge learning experience and necessary.”
Rolling Up The Welcome Mat quickly followed Ballerini’s latest full-length album, Subject To Change, which made its debut in September 2022. The 15-track project included “If You Go Down (I’m Goin’ Down Too),” “Love Is A Cowboy,” “Heartfirst,” “You’re Drunk, Go Home” with Kelly Clarkson and Carly Pearce, and other highlights. Most recently, Ballerini released her extended EP, Rolling UP The Welcome Mat (For Good), which includes updated versions of previously-released tracks and added “How Do I Do This,” about dating again after divorce.
Ballerini recently teased her next chapter of music. during a performance at the legendary Grand Ole Opry in November, the East Tennessee-born artist introduced surprise guests Karen Fairchild and Hillary Lindsey to deliver the first-ever live performance of a song they penned together, “To The Men That Love Women After Heartbreak.”
“…I made the very impulsive decision to just put a chorus out on Thanksgiving, and I felt like I should just probably follow through,” Ballerini said on the Opry stage in November. “The reality is, I’ve been singing about a chapter of my life that is far past me now. And I’m writing about the chapter of life that I’m in, and it looks very different, and I kind of wanted to share a bit of it now. I’m very gently and slowly starting to make the next record. I really want to take the time to handle it with care.”