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Kelsea Ballerini Blasts Rumor That She Lip-Synced At The Opry

Author Nancy Brooks // Country Writer, Beasley Media Group

Kelsea Ballerini got pretty pissed off when she played the Grand Ole Opry stage a few weeks back, and fans accused her of lip-syncing her performance. Kelsea vented her frustration on her TikTok.

She said in a video sitting in her Nashville area home, “One more time for the Karens in the back, you’re telling me that you think I would stand on the stage at the Grand Ole Opry, where I’m a member, in front of peers such as but not limited to, Wynonna Judd, Blake Shelton, Toby Keith, etc… televised, singing a song I wrote by myself about the d-word (divorce) and I would lip-sync?”

She pauses and says, “After I spell it out, you do feel a little bit silly. I could never and never have, and I would like to think I never will. If I do, I’ll tell you, just like I would tell you if I did, but I didn’t because that’s asinine. Okay, bye!”

@alisonbonaguro615

Karen, Karen, Karen. Listen up and let Kelsea explain. #opry #lipsync #fyp #foryou #foryoupage #country #countrymusic #nashville #livemusic #divorce #divorcesong @Kelsea Ballerini

♬ original sound - Alison Bonaguro

RELATED: Kelsea Ballerini’ Deeply Grateful’ For GRAMMY Nod

Speaking of Karens — the good kind — Ballerini played the Grand Ole Opry stage last night (11/28) in Nashville and welcomed her friend, Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild. She also welcomed songwriter Hillary Lindsey to perform.

The Opry posted a photo of the trio on stage on Instagram, writing, “Tuesday nights in the circle just hit a little different…”

See that post here.

Fairchild co-wrote Kelsea’s “Heart First” single with Ballerini and Nashville songwriter Alysa Vanderheym. Ballerini said of “Heart First” when it was released as a single that it was the first song that she ever wrote where she did not come up with the title first; instead, the opening line, “Met him at a party/ Accidentally brushed his body/ On the way to get a drink at the bar” was the first lyric she wrote for the song. After recording the demo with Vanderheym and Fairchild, she began recording the song in early 2022.

Top Five Fun Kelsea Ballerini Songs

  • "Yeah Boy" (2016)

    A fun song found on her debut album, “The First Time.” The music video for the song is an ode to the 1990s. Ballerini is shown performing the song in a colorful bodysuit in front of a neon backdrop and a brick wall spray-painted with graffiti, with female backup dancers. When the song came out, Kelsea was touring with Rascal Flatts and headlining her own “The FirstTime Tour.”

  • "Heartfirst" (2022)

    This is a song on Ballerini’s “Subject To Change” album, which seemed to catapult her to a new level of fame. Kelsea wrote the song with Alysa Vanderheym and Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild in July 2021. According to Ballerini, it was the first song that she ever wrote where she did not come up with the title first; instead, the opening line, “Met him at a party / Accidentally brushed his body / On the way to get a drink at the bar” was the first lyric she wrote for the song.

  • "Dibs" (2015)

    The fun song she named her dog after. The official music video for “Dibs” premiered on October 22, 2015. The video consists of footage Ballerini took while on tour in York, Pennsylvania, Greenville, South Carolina, and St. Leonard, Maryland, performing in front of live crowds, celebrating her 22nd birthday, and spending time with her dog. The chorus sings, Yeah, I’m callin’ dibs / On your lips / On your kiss / On your time / Boy, I’m callin’ dibs / On your hand / On your heart / All mine.”

  • "Hole in the Bottle" (2020)

    Kelsea happily joins the country music ranks with a drinking song; a remix of the song featuring Shania Twain was released five months after the original single came out. The music video begins with a vintage black-and-white style with Ballerini dressed in flapper wardrobe reminiscent of the 1920s. Once the first chorus hits, colored scenes are introduced, and she is shown in a house painting a portrait of her dog Dibs in a field with a couple of friends who join her in lounging on a bed and performing a dance routine with the singer and playing chess with herself.

  • "If You Go Down (I'm Goin' Down Too)" (2022)

    This song is a gem and puts Kelsea in the same company of “fun” murder songs like the Chicks’ “Goodbye Earl.” Ballerini said when the song came out, it was actually to evoke thoughts of the 1991 film “Thelma & Louise” and The Chicks’ “Goodbye Earl.” She told us then, “We really wanted to lean into a very ’90s country feel, and so we brought in fiddle for the song, which I think to me makes it. That’s also why there’s a Chicks reference to it, which everyone picks up on, which was absolutely intentional. I didn’t want to make it sound like anything else on the record. I wanted it to be its own moment.”

Nancy Brooks has been working in the country music industry for almost 30 years. She has interviewed pretty much any country star you can think of. In the late 1990s, she started working with Dolly Parton. And yes, Nancy reports that Parton is as sweet as you would think. She loves her life in country music and has been backstage at every CMA Awards show since the late 1990s. Many of her stories are from her one-on-one interviews. She was there at the beginning of the incredible careers of many music superstars today, including Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, and Blake Shelton, and has interviewed them multiple times throughout the years.

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Author Nancy Brooks // Country Writer, Beasley Media Group
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