If not for Kelly Clarkson, Kelsea Ballerini might have never left Knoxville for Nashville. Ballerini reveals that it was a Clarkson show that inspired Ballerini to leave East Tennessee.
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"I was seeing her in Knoxville at the arena, and it was her Behind These Hazel Eyes Tour," she recalls. "And so she had these two video screens above her stage of her eyes the whole show. So depending on the song, they would close, or they'd cry, or wink, or whatever. I was just at the age where I knew I loved music, but I was like, 'Do I want to like do this? I don't know how to, but I think I really love this.' I was having this moment, as a little kiddo. And I looked up to these screen eyes of Kelly Clarkson, and they winked. And in my soul, I really believe that Kelly Clarkson told me that I was supposed to move to Nashville."
Ballerini opened up about Clarkson's influence, head of her debut season as a coach on The Voice.
"She's weirdly kind of been a consistent throughout my whole career now," she adds. "So she started it for me."
Kelsea Ballerini on 'The Voice'
Ironically, Ballerini filled in for Clarkson as a coach the first time she appeared on The Voice. Now, the "Cowboys Cry Too" singer is ready for her inaugural season as a coach. She will be joined this year by Michael Bublé, John Legend and Adam Levine.
"I'm so excited. I'm excited because it's just such a new adventure," Ballerini tells People of her new role. "I've gotten to be on set in different capacities over the years. But to really assume that role as a coach — it's really going to stretch me, and it's going to be a new opportunity."
Ballerini has a lot to juggle for the first part of 2025. In addition to being on The Voice, she is also headlining her own Live on Tour. Still, she says the timing couldn't be better.
"I've learned so much, but I'm still actively learning and I still have so many goals and stages that I want to get to," Ballerini reflects. "It's a really interesting place to be in — to be able to be a coach and be like, 'Hey, I'm still learning alongside you, so I can pour into you what I know. But I am still figuring it out too.' I really feel like I want to just be the sister moreso than the coach."
