Kelsea Ballerini might have a hard time writing new music, thanks to her longtime boyfriend, Chase Stokes. After the success of Rolling Up the Welcome Mat, about the end of her marriage to Morgan Evans, Ballerini has since fallen in love again. She admits that it isn't necessarily the best for her songwriting.
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"When I'm happiest, it's hardest for me to write," Ballerini tells People. "I really have always been drawn to songs, writing them. And just as a fan and listener, that dig into the complexities of life, whether that be relational heartbreak or family dynamics, or the nuance of growing up, and the ickiness of that. That to me is what I relate to the most."
Ballerini credits one of her musical idols, namely Adele, for being able to be the soundtrack for so many emotions.
"This is why I think Adele is the greatest ever," Ballerini says. "When you're happy, you're probably going to spend your Saturday night getting dressed up and going out with your partner or going out with your girlfriends, and dancing and having a beautiful meal. When you're heartbroken, you're probably going to spend your Saturday night singing in your comfy pants, crying, listening to Adele."
Kelsea Ballerini's Sweet Romance With Chase Stokes
Ballerini might have to get used to writing while happy, since she and Stokes seem to have found true love, together.
"I really always romanticized what a relationship, a healthy one, a steady one, looks like," Ballerini admits to People. "There's a really interesting thing when you get into a certain season of your relationship where some of the glitter wears off. You're starting to get really comfortable, and you're having more of the harder conversations. You become a mirror for each other. [Chase] helps me see the best things about myself and vice versa. We also show each other the things that we want to get better at."
Fortunately, Stokes is also okay with Ballerini's truth-telling in her music, even if it's about him.
"[Chase] has been nothing but supportive of that level of honesty," Ballerini shares. "Being with another creative, we both understand each other's process. I would never ask him to not take a role that he feels inspired by, and he would never ask me to round the edges of my songwriting. That's one of the things I appreciate the most about him."
