Kelsea Ballerini Shares Emotional Reaction To Finding Out She Earned A GRAMMY Nomination
Kelsea Ballerini just found out she has earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Solo Performance for her song, “Heartfirst,”…
Kelsea Ballerini; Photos via Instagram
Kelsea Ballerini just found out she has earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best Country Solo Performance for her song, “Heartfirst,” and her reaction is priceless.
The country star took to social media immediately to share the news with her fanbase. Ballerini’s nomination was originally announced during a special livestream event on Tuesday (Nov. 15), which unveiled all the nominees for the 65th annual Grammy Awards.
Ballerini found out she would be attending the GRAMMYs while sitting in a restaurant. She broke out in song, singing the lyrics that earned her this prized feat as tears of joy filled her eyes and she and those around her screamed in excitement.
“the song about following your heart no matter where it leads just for nominated for a GRAMMY. couldn’t be more cosmic. here’s to always jumping right in baby with your heartfirst. 🥹🤍😭” Ballerini wrote in her caption.
The East Tennessee native’s heartfelt reaction was captured as she saw her name come up among the other country artists vying for the same title, which includes Zach Bryan (“Something in the Orange”), Miranda Lambert (“In His Arms”), Maren Morris (“Circles Around This Town”), and Willie Nelson (“Live Forever”).
Fans quickly flooded the comments of her post with congratulatory messages. One wrote, “IM SO PROUD OF YOU,” while another said, “i’m crying SO DESERVED.”
This marks the “Love Is A Cowboy” singer’s third GRAMMY nomination. For the 59th GRAMMY Awards, she was included in the list of nominees for Best New Artist, and a couple years later, for the 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards, she was nominated for Best Country Album with her Unapologetically project.
Ballerini’s now GRAMMY-nominated song, “Heartfirst” is featured as the lead single off her latest album, SUBJECT TO CHANGE, which was released on September 23. This 15-track collection serves as her first full-length project since 2020 when she dropped kelsea and its companion album, ballerini.
The album title reflects how uncontrollable things are in life and Ballerini’s empowering decision to “take the power away from it.” She is encouraging herself and her listeners to not be so afraid of the change that may come.
“I loved the idea of [change] being such a relatable universal topic. But for me, I’ve always been really scared of change, because it’s been something that has influenced my life in ways that I don’t always love or that I’m not always ready for. And I liked the idea of making a record, and especially starting a record, with a song that says like, ‘But what if we take the power away from change? And what if we go, ‘it’s inevitable. It’s going to happen?’ And whether it’s bad change or good change, it’s meant to happen for me in my life and where I’m supposed to get to,’” she explained during an interview on Today’s Country Radio with Kelleigh Bannen on Apple Music before adding, “And when you take the power away from it and the fear of change away from it and you just open your arms up to it, you start living.”
Since its release, “Heartfirst” has raked in over 50 million streams and continues to climb the charts at country radio.
In celebration of her new project, Ballerini also embarked on a 10-night headlining HEARTFIRST TOUR, which launched on September 24. She performed at the iconic Radio City Music Hall in New York, NY before visiting Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and other major markets on the tour.
The 2023 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 65th GRAMMY Awards, returns to Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, and will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8-11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT.
The full list of nominees for the 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards can be viewed HERE.
Madeleine O’Connell graduated from North Central College with a bachelors degree in Journalism and Broadcast Communications before deciding to pursue her studies further at DePaul University. There, she earned her masters degree in Digital Communication & Media Arts. O’Connell served as a freelance writer for over two years while also interning with the Academy of Country Music, SiriusXM and Circle Media and assisting with Amazon Music’s Country Heat Weekly podcast. In addition to Country Now, she has been published in American Songwriter, Music Mayhem, and Holler.Country. Madeleine O’Connell is a member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.
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