Kelsea Ballerini exclusively told E! News that she would “never say never” to marrying boyfriend of two years Chase Stokes, adding that the two have “learned a lot” from their relationship.
Kelsea Ballerini has a different perspective on love songs these days.
Especially because so much of her new album PATTERNS—out Oct. 25—is inspired by her relationship with boyfriend of almost two years Chase Stokes. And when it comes to their future together, the “Love Me Like You Mean It” singer isn’t ruling out marriage.
“I would never say never to anything,” Kelsea exclusively told E! News cohost Keltie Knight. “Anything that I’ve said a hard no to in my life, I have come back and challenged myself on.”
Kelsea—who was previously married to Morgan Evans from 2017 to 2022—is keeping her focus “on the right now.”
“I’m happy,” the 31-year-old said, “and everything is as it should.” (For more from Kelsea, tune into E! News tonight, Oct. 24, at 11 p.m.)
Still, when it came to the music video for her single “First Rodeo,” it made sense to have the Outer Banks actor make a cameo alongside her.
“That song was really the first song that I wrote,” she explained, “that was true to, ‘Hey, I feel fragile, and I feel really nervous to open up my life and my heart again, but I really want to. Will you just take it slow with me?'”
And while she and Chase, 32, are often careful about how they blend their working worlds, she knew she wanted him to appear in the video, telling him, “‘Because your presence is in the song.'”
“He’s such a pillar of this record and obviously of my life,” Kelsea gushed. “I feel like it was this beautiful ode to him and to us.”
More than anything, Kelsea is proud of the way that she and Chase have “been able to navigate our relationship for almost two years now.”
“We’ve both learned a lot from it,” she continued, “and we’ve both really challenged each other to become a better partner for each other, and also just for ourselves. We’re proper teammates now.”
Even when they’re focusing on their own projects, knowing that she has him and their dogs to go back to makes her “feel more like a superhuman.”
Kelsea Ballerini/Instagram
“I know that when I get to go home to home base, it’s right,” Kelsea shared, “and it’s safe. And it makes you feel powerful.”
And much of that power can be felt in her new album, with Kelsea telling E! that the record is a snapshot of her life as she enters her 30s.
“Whatever is gonna happen is gonna be OK,” she added. “And I can handle it. There’s peace and there’s joy in that.”
