Kelsea Ballerini

Kelsea Ballerini responds to Morgan Evans' 'Over for You' breakup track in a new six-song EP titled 'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat' — read more.

[Ballerini and Evans had quietly split prior to their divorce](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/why-kelsea-ballerini-morgan-evans-had-no-choice-but-divorce/). “I put on a smile and sang about how it’s OK to cry, dying inside.” “Years of sitting across from me in therapy / I know the truth is hard to hear, but it wasn’t hard to find / Baby, were you blindsided or were you just blind?” “You didn’t ever wanna leave the house, I didn’t want a family,” she pens. [which Evans dropped in November 2022 after getting emotional](https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/morgan-evans-performs-new-song-inspired-by-kelsea-ballerini-split/) when he debuted the track at a concert in September 2022, he asks a series of questions about the end of the relationship including: “How long have you been breaking? “You’ll say I’m crazy for bein’ the one to leave / Scream I’m just like my parents and givin’ up easy,” she sings in the opening song.

Kelsea Ballerini dropped the surprise six-song EP 'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.' A 20-minute short film accompanied the release.

It’s the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music, which is the purest way I could’ve handled it.” The mini-movie and EP are both vulnerable displays of heartbreak and what it looks like to pick up the pieces. At midnight on February 14, the singer dropped a surprise six-song EP, titled Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.

'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat' features Kelsea Ballerini's most honest and authentic lyrics yet, and it's a close look at her divorce.

"Most of them started with me and my guitar." It's the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music, which was the purest way I could have handled it." "The only way I've been able to handle my life since I was 12 was to write about it," the singer elaborates.

In a surprise short film and EP, both titled "Rolling Up the Welcome Mat" released on Valentine's Day, the country singer-songwriter reveals details that hint ...

The final song on the EP, “Leave Me Again,” shows how much Ballerini's grown since her breakup. On next song on the track, “Interlude,” Ballerini struggles with the public discovering their breakup. "It’s the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music — which is the purest way I could’ve handled it.” Or, to put it another way: "Was there nothing ever wrong, ‘cause you were always right? It’s about the complexities of the feelings you go through during a massive shift at a young age,” she says. “I realize you loved me much more at 23 / I think that this is when it’s over for me.” She wonders how he really felt about her: "We got along real nice, but when I left town, did you hate me?" The surprise short film follows her latest album, "SUBJECT TO CHANGE," released in 2022. "So with love and respect, i’m rolling up the welcome mat. Evans and Ballerini have spoken about the divorce already. [CMAs red carpet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ek2dw2oH5NY.). Ballerini wrote and co-directed the 20 minute-long film, divided up into six parts (one for each song).

Kelsea Ballerini dropped a short film, "Rolling Up the Welcome Mat," and six new songs about a relationship breaking down on Valentine's Day.

It's the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music, which is the purest way I could've handled it." [Subject to Change](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/video/kelsea-ballerini-talks-music-90372303)," was released in September. "Most of them started with me and my guitar." "'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat' was how I processed everything. "so with love and respect, i'm rolling up the welcome mat. all rolling up at midnight, valentine's day," she shared on her social media accounts Monday, teasing the new project.

Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes appear to have confirmed rumors of a budding romantic relationship after a series of online "teases."

[told](https://people.com/tv/chase-stokes-talks-outer-banks-season-3-having-good-time-with-singer-kelsea-ballerini/) PEOPLE that “Kelsea is a lovely, lovely girl. We’re having a good time,” a new [TikTok](/en-gb/topic/tiktok/) sent fans wild. In response to a TikTok comment that said “@Hichaststokes come get your girl,” Kelsea posted a video of herself in bed drinking coffee. On January 24, the two were spotted in a bar in Nashville holding hands and looking very into each other. Fans were quick to spot the photo and speculation quickly began. Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes appear to have confirmed rumors of a budding romantic relationship after a series of online “teases” and candid shots of the pair out and about.

Kelsea Ballerini dropped a short film, "Rolling Up the Welcome Mat," and six new songs about a relationship breaking down on Valentine's Day.

It's the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music, which is the purest way I could've handled it." [Subject to Change](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/culture/video/kelsea-ballerini-talks-music-90372303)," was released in September. "Most of them started with me and my guitar." "'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat' was how I processed everything. "so with love and respect, i'm rolling up the welcome mat. all rolling up at midnight, valentine's day," she shared on her social media accounts Monday, teasing the new project.

Kelsea Ballerini shares 'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat' short film and EP on Valentine's Day, detailing her recent divorce from Morgan Evans.

[Related: Hear Kelsea Ballerini Hits and More on The Highway](https://smart.link/vndku8u9e89av?cp_3=live&contentType=live&cp_4=TheHighway&channelName=TheHighway&site_id=TheHighway&creative_id=NA_NA_DL-BL-live-TheHighway-Music-NA-BLOGTHEHIGHWAY2023LINKS-NA-Blog-20230214-NA&cp_5=TheHighway&cp_6=Music&cp_7=BLOG&cp_8=NA&cp_9=BLOGTHEHIGHWAY2023LINKS&cp_10=BL) “Ironically, I started writing music because my parents got divorced; that was my therapy.” “The only way I’ve been able to handle my life since I was 12 was to write about it,” she shared. While none of the lyrics explicitly mention Morgan, they do hint at intimate moments like the couple’s wedding date and dividing up of assets. It’s the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music — which is the purest way I could’ve handled it.” It’s about the complexities of the feelings you go through during a massive shift at a young age.

In her newly released EP and accompanying short film, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, Kelsea Ballerini is sharing an intimate look at her breakup from husband ...

[broke his silence](https://www.eonline.com/news/1343998/morgan-evans-breaks-silence-on-kelsea-ballerini-break-up) on their split, writing in a note posted to Instagram Stories, in part, "I wish it were otherwise, but sadly it is not." News App](https://eonline.onelink.me/ItsS/1b3e9f57) [linked to actor Chase Stokes](https://www.eonline.com/news/1364331/kelsea-ballerini-teases-bedroom-video-with-chase-stokes)—wrote in an Aug. "I was writing by myself for most of the project, and it was nice to trust myself again," she continued in a Feb. "The only way I've been able to handle my life since I was 12 was to write about it. Her first track, "Mountain With A View," includes lyrics that refer to the demise of a relationship after marriage.

In the 20-minute clip, the country star details the devastation of her divorce from fellow artist Morgan Evans.

“I’ve always tried to share my life with you in a real and vulnerable way, while also protecting layers of my personal life as they unfold,” she wrote in the all-text message. “I’m wearing the ring still / But I think I’m lying / Sometimes you forget yours / I think we’re done trying,” she sings. 14) called Rolling Up the Welcome Mat, and its accompanying short film.

Kelsea Ballerini shared an EP and short film, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, which details heartbreak & healing after divorce from Morgan Evans.

The couple’s divorce was finalized in mid-November of 2022, on the same day Ballerini earned a GRAMMY nomination and picked up the keys to her dream home. Ballerini closes her EP with the solo acoustic “Leave Me Again.” Appearing in a near-empty closet, she takes a place on the floor and abandons her wedding ring. 23 Ballerini will launch the UK leg of her HEARTFIRST tour, which comes in support of her fourth studio album, Subject To Change. He was the only voice I heard on ‘half of my hometown,’ and when he comes in, it’s just like hitting the Knoxville city limits. “There’s a thin line between love and hate / And it was love, but it wasn’t fate / Now my momma’s asking if I’m okay / And the internet says I’m losing weight / This wasn’t how it was supposed to play out / So which side are you gonna take now?” Ballerini sings the lyrics in a 45-second interlude, which finds her taking a dip in a rooftop pool – perhaps a moment that signifies her cleansing her way to freedom. The opening sequence of the short film begins with “Mountain With A View” – a song that finds Ballerini examining all aspects of her relationship. “I’m the only one at a table meant for two / Picture looks beautiful this morning, and I should be missing you / I should be missing you,” she sings, as she begins to realize she is ready to call it quits. The film segues into Ballerini, addressing the real–life issues she and her husband faced before their marriage led to divorce. Ballerini acknowledges that the pair are only playing house in the penthouse singing, “We played the part five nights, but we were never there on the weekends, baby / We got along real nice, but when I left town, did you hate me?” In the second series of the 20-minute video, Ballerini becomes a silhouette dressed in a beautiful silk ensemble. It’s the way I got my feelings out of my body and heart and put them to music, which is the purest way I could’ve handled it.” She wrote three of the six songs solo and collaborated with Alysa Vanderheym on three more tracks.

Singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini surprised fans with the announcement of her EP Rolling Up the Welcome Mat which dropped at midnight on Valentine's Day.

The quick "Interlude" reads as a running stream of consciousness before jumping into the well-thought-out, clever tune "Blindsided." Ballerini takes listeners on a journey to the excitement of being "Just Married" to then stating at the end of the track, "Yeah it was love, it really was, then it was just married." "Penthouse" continues the overarching theme of growing apart. "Just Married" has a hell of a hook. It opens with "Mountain With A View" which starts with stark, buzzy chords before Ballerini chimes in, "It's 7 a.m. Singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini surprised fans with the announcement of her EP Rolling Up the Welcome Mat which dropped at midnight on Valentine's Day.

Over the last few weeks, Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes have all but confirmed rumors that they're dating.

The rumors grew, and though Ballerini initially brushed them off, she later appeared to lean into the speculation: In one TikTok video responding to the gossip, she [even appeared to show a blink-and-you'll-miss-it glimpse](https://tasteofcountry.com/kelsea-ballerini-chase-stokes-dating-tattoos-video/) of the Outer Banks actor sitting in bed beside her. Ballerini's Rolling Up the Welcome Mat EP arrives five months after her latest studio album, Subject to Change. [spied the pair ](https://tasteofcountry.com/kelsea-ballerini-chase-stokes-pictures-relationship-rumors/)watching the National Championship game at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

Country music may have never had a record as singlemindedly focused on a marital split as Kelsea Ballerini's surprise EP 'Rolling Up the Welcome Mat.'

The final song on the EP, “Leave Me Again,” is played by Ballerini on an acoustic guitar, and finds her at a more magnanimous point than most of the preceding numbers — “I hope when I see you that you smile / I hope that you find somebody new / I hope that you get the house, and the good wife, and the kids” — but not so magnanimous that she doesn’t reserve the emotional punchline for herself: “And I hope I never leave me again.” Ballerini fans may recognize this as a sort of rewrite of, or sequel to, “Miss Me More,” a No. Ballerini has proceeded past the “What Would Shania Do?” questions and gone her own different way here by leaving the drawer open, even if it’s highly likely we will see her in a sparkly bodysuit, spreading good cheer again, before 2023 is out. “You didn’t ever want to leave the house, I didn’t want a family”… Her solution to that, now, is an unexpectedly savvy one: parcel all that pain into a dam-burster of a side project with no commercial expectations, no press (“divorce press” or otherwise) and no holds barred, before presumably getting back to the sunny side of the street. All of the aforementioned artists worked a decent amount of detail into their confessional accounts of splits — the red scarf; the Hollywood Bowl show where Natalie Maines contends she met her replacement — but Ballerini may have them all beat for the sheer volume of historical annotation she packs into six songs. And yet, six months later, Ballerini is back with the surprise drop of an EP that is so single-mindedly about that split, it’s nothing but a divorce record.

Kelsea Ballerini steps into the spotlight Thursday night as the first woman to headline an episode of CMT Storytellers. Darius Rucker and Brooks & Dunn have ...

“It’s the purest part of what I do, and I am grateful to join a lineup of storytellers I’ve learned from as I tell mine.” Look for performances of hits like “Peter Pan,” “homecoming queen?” and “Half of My Hometown,” as well as her latest single, “Songwriting is my therapy, my haven, my best friend, and my exhale,” Kelsea reflects.