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Post by Admin on Jan 23, 2020 22:14:13 GMT
On Wednesday (Jan. 22), Kelsea Ballerini officially announced her third studio album, Kelsea. In the months leading up to sharing the news, Ballerini has hinted quite a bit at a new record in the works. She also dropped a small handful of new songs, including the vulnerable single "Homecoming Queen?" On the afternoon of her big announcement, Ballerini broke the news to fans first in a secret pop-up show. Shortly thereafter, she revealed her plans for a new record via her social media, including the album's cover art. Read on to learn everything we know about the new record! http://instagram.com/p/B7pKAAOFYw1 The Title Ballerini's third studio album is a simple twist on a self-titled record. She's calling the new project Kelsea. The Release Date After announcing the new album in January, Ballerini isn't making fans wait too long before hearing the new batch of music. Kelsea is due out on March 20, and pre-order and pre-sales begin on Friday (Jan. 24). The Record Label Kelsea will be released via Black River Entertainment. Both of the previous full-length albums she's released to date, as well as a 2014 EP, were released via the label. http://instagram.com/p/B7lxJDSFkWr The Producer There's no word yet on who produced Ballerini's forthcoming project. Stay tuned! The Album Cover Ballerini shared the cover art for Kelsea in an Instagram post on Wednesday (Jan. 22), along with the official announcement of her new album. The album's cover shows a photograph of the singer lying in a grassy field, wearing a ruffled, strapless pale pink outfit. The album's name is spelled out in all white, lower-case letters at the bottom of the frame. The Songs Since dropping "Homecoming Queen?", Ballerini has also shared "Club," a mid-tempo anthem for all those who have more fun staying in than going out. As of the day that she announced the album (Jan. 22), Ballerini hadn't officially released any more new songs for the project, though she did tease on social media that another tune called "L.A." would be coming that Friday (Jan. 24.) Additionally, earlier on, Ballerini revealed that she'd been working with some out-of-genre A-Listers to write the songs on her new album. Among them are pop artists Ed Sheeran, Ryan Tedder and Julia Michaels. The Tour Ballerini hasn't yet announced a tour in support of her new album. The Boot will update this section when she does!
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Post by Admin on Feb 7, 2020 18:11:54 GMT
“Gucci girl next door” is how Kelsea Ballerini describes her sense of style, and though it’s not a literal naming of her favorite brand — “I just thought it sounded cute” — there’s something on the nose about it for the 26-year-old country musician.
Ballerini, who will make her NYFW debut this coming week with shows like Michael Kors, is releasing her third album, “Kelsea,” on March 20. In the nearly five years since she made her debut, and with rare prowess in the country charts for a female artist, Ballerini has emerged with potential for mega-stardom. But she still describes herself as a new artist, and still bops along to the Jonas Brothers from iPhone speakers while getting her photo taken.
“I was what, 23 when I put out my last album? And this will come out when I’m 26, and there’s just a lot of life that happens, in those stages as a young woman,” Ballerini says from a Tribeca penthouse. “I think everything will change with every album. It never gets boring.”
She grew up in Mascot, Tenn., around music: Her dad worked in sales at the country music station WIVK, and at home it alternated between his taste for Frank Sinatra or her mom’s Savage Garden — with plenty of Garth and Shania mixed in.
“I didn’t quite understand genres growing up. I think I was just always like ‘music is music, they’re just on different stations,’” Ballerini says. “I think you can hear it in the production of every album, specifically this one. Instead of letting the production be ‘this has to be a down-the-middle country album,’ I let the songs determine the production this time. So it plays with elements that are very traditionally country and elements that are very Top 40.”
Singing for her started in the church — she was leading worship by the time she was 13 — while songwriting became her outlet in high school, as her parents went through a divorce. She moved to Nashville after her sophomore year, where she stayed through two years of college before leaving to work in the industry, first as a songwriter.
“I grew up loving music, but I never knew that you could just choose to be a singer like that. I was from a small town in Knoxville so you grow up to be a vet or something that you see other people doing around you,” she says. “And until I saw a girl named Taylor move to Nashville, I didn’t know that I could do that.”
Ballerini’s entrance onto the scene as a solo artist was met with radio success, something that is far from the norm in the country world for female artists. Her debut single, “Love Me Like You Mean It,” was the first song by a female artist to debut at number one since Carrie Underwood in 2006. When her follow-up two singles topped the charts as well, she was the first female artist to do so in country since Wynonna Judd.
“I didn’t know it at the time, because I was blissfully naive and young, that when I put out my first single, there was a lack of females and it was a climate of the Carries and the Mirandas still having wild success on radio, but there was a gap between them and who was next,” Ballerini says. “And I think when you’re naive you just go in and you’re like, ‘This is what I want to do. I’m going to go do it.’ And you don’t know what you can’t do, so you just think you can and I think it’s a great thing, I think it’s a gift.”
After endless touring for the first two records, she’s ready to present something new with the third. The new album, which was written mostly on the road for a change, features songs with Halsey and Kenny Chesney, and one “love and hate,” co-written with Ed Sheeran, all of whom are first-time collaborators.
“The first two albums, I found my group that I felt safe and comfortable with, and I stayed within that because I knew it and it worked,” Ballerini says. “And this time I wanted to challenge myself. I wanted to get in rooms with people who were outside of country. I wanted to get in rooms with people that are just so much better than me and learn and push myself, because why not? A lot of the songs aren’t even on the album, but they are songs that I’m so proud of because I got in the room with Ryan Tedder or I got in the room with Jon Bellion, and I hadn’t had those opportunities before.”
Though the challenges are there, Ballerini is perhaps optimism embodied — and has an opportunities-for-all outlook for the industry.
“It’s an uphill battle. I think that everyone is very aware of it and I think when people are very aware of it, that’s when things have to start changing,” she says. “And I think for a while people were kind of like, ‘Yeah, but Carrie just had a number one.’ Just kind of writing it off instead of saying, “No, this 80 percent male, 20 percent female is unequal and not OK.” So, I think now that everyone’s very aware of it, we will start having changes.”
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Post by Admin on Feb 12, 2020 7:05:23 GMT
If not for Taylor Swift, Kelsea Ballerini might still have a regular job in east Tennessee, while dreaming about being a singer-songwriter. Instead, Swift became the beacon of light Ballerini followed to Nashville, determined that if Swift had found success in music, she could as well. "I grew up loving music, but I never knew that you could just choose to be a singer like that," Ballerini told Women's Wear Daily. "I was from a small town in Knoxville so you grow up to be a vet or something that you see other people doing around you. And until I saw a girl named Taylor move to Nashville, I didn't know that I could do that." Ballerini grew up with a love of music –– of all genres –– which is clearly evident in her upcoming album, Kelsea, due out next month. "I didn't quite understand genres growing up. I think I was just always like 'Music is music, they're just on different stations,'" Ballerini reflected. "I think you can hear it in the production of every album, specifically this one. Instead of letting the production be 'This has to be a down-the-middle country album,' I let the songs determine the production this time. So it plays with elements that are very traditionally country and elements that are very Top 40." Kelsea will mark Ballerini's first new album in three years, which she promises will show her growth, as an artist and a person. "I was, what, 23 when I put out my last album? And this will come out when I'm 26, and there's just a lot of life that happens, in those stages as a young woman," Ballerini reflected. "I think everything will change with every album. It never gets boring." Ballerini made it a point to challenge herself in both writing and recording songs on her upcoming project. "The first two albums, I found my group that I felt safe and comfortable with, and I stayed within that because I knew it and it worked," Ballerini said. "And this time I wanted to challenge myself. I wanted to get in rooms with people who were outside of country. I wanted to get in rooms with people that are just so much better than me and learn and push myself, because why not? "A lot of the songs aren't even on the album, but they are songs that I'm so proud of because I got in the room with Ryan Tedder or I got in the room with Jon Bellion, and I hadn't had those opportunities before."
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Post by Admin on Mar 4, 2020 2:45:29 GMT
Bravo to Kelsea Ballerini for being so honest! The 26-year-old recently opened up about her struggles with anxiety, during a Q&A she had with her fans on Twitter, while Ballerini was on a plane.
When one fan asked Ballerini how she deals with anxiety, Ballerini admitted it was an ongoing struggle for her, but one that she was starting to overcome, mostly by learning how to take care of herself.
"This is a new one for me," Ballerini tweeted. "Growing up talking about anxiety was really taboo. but I realized it’s very real and something I struggle with often. I go to therapy. I call people I trust. I take moments for myself to shut the door and get my head right. I really value boundaries."
Ballerini also opened up about the title of her upcoming third studio album, Kelsea, explaining why she could only name it after herself.
"While I was writing and making this album, I was also coming up for air for the first time in 6 years," Ballerini acknowledged. "I was re-getting to know myself. you hear a lot of that throughout the record. it’s the music that puts us on a first-name basis."
Ballerini later tweeted that she was finally giving herself the freedom to be herself, instead of focusing so much on commercial success.
"I can’t wait to tell you more and talk more when this album comes out," Ballerini tweeted. "I really made it for me and for you. For the first time I didn’t worry about the rest. I hope you love it. I do."
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Post by Admin on Mar 16, 2020 18:54:20 GMT
No one is likely more bummed than Kelsea Ballerini that her plans ahead of releasing her third studio album, Kelsea, have to be canceled, due to coronavirus concerns. Ballerini shared the disappointing new son social media, in a heartfelt video message to her fans. http://instagram.com/p/B9xaqYilaH4 "So friends, my album still comes out Friday, which I am so excited about, more than I can even say," Ballerini said. "However, this week is going to look a lot different than we had planned for and hoped for and dreamed up. I really wanted there to be so many moments and opportunities for me, face to face, to play these songs for you for the first time, and hug as many of you as possible. But, what I care about more than that is everyone staying safe and staying healthy, so a lot of our plans have changed. The silver lining is, I feel and really believe that music can bring a lot of peace when things feel really unsettled, and it can make you feel calm when life feels chaotic. "I love this album, and I hope that there is something on it that makes you feel those things," she continued. "I really promise that when everything that's happening right now passes and calms down, we will bring all of our plans back to life. It's just not in the timeline that we had pictured. But I love you guys, and I can't wait to hear what you think about this album. Please stay safe, and I'll be around on the social medias, so just holler. You have a friend. Album comes out Friday. Stay safe, guys." http://instagram.com/p/B9zXqkCF4FV Ballerini also wrote a post further explaining her need to not promote Kelsea this week. "Unfortunately, due to the current global situation, we aren't able to do many of the things I had up my sleeve," Ballerini said in part. "We spent so much time trying to plan the biggest release for this album as possible. I had 21 days of straight travel planned to visit my favorite TV shows and radio stations, and see you guys along the way, but what I care about most is getting this album to you and keeping everyone safe in the process."
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