Getty Kelsea Ballerini
Fans of The Voice may have noticed that Kelsea Ballerini has been stepping in for Kelly Clarkson during the Season 20 Battle Rounds. Why is this? Is it a permanent change? Is Ballerini the newest coach on The Voice?
The short answer is: no.
.@KellyClarkson brings in her secret weapon… @KelseaBallerini! 😱 The #VoiceBattles begin March 29 on @NBC. t.co/TzoczUkhq5
When Clarkson was filming Battle Rounds, she fell sick and asked Ballerini to step in for her.
When Ballerini agreed, she joked, “Just pretend I’m Kelly. Hey Blake, have I ever told you that you look like my dad?”
Here’s what you need to know:
Ballerini Is Back on ‘The Voice’
As ET pointed out, this is not Ballerini’s first experience on The Voice.
During the Season 15 “Comeback Stage”, she was a fifth coach. In addition, she was Team Kelly Clarkson’s celebrity mentor during Season 16 of the show.
How exactly did she land the gig this go around?
Ballerini shared with ET, “I was home in Nashville and got a text from Kelly at like 9 p.m., like, ‘Hey, girl… I’m not feeling well. I don’t have COVID, but with the protocols, don’t feel safe going to set, could you cover the Battle Rounds for me?'”
Ballerini added, “So I got on the plane, studied everything and watched everything. Landed, hair and makeup, set, said hi to Nick Jonas and John Legend and Blake Shelton, got in Kelly’s seat and said, Fake it til you make it!'”
She concluded, “I really enjoyed it. I didn’t have the time to get nervous, ’cause it was so quick, and that’s good for me. If I know something’s coming up, I mull over it and I get so nervous and anxious, so it was actually a real blessing. But yeah, I really liked sitting in the seat, I’m not gonna lie.”
Ballerin Is ‘More Confident’ Than Ever
When the 27-year-old recently sat down with People to discuss her music, she shared that she is feeling “more confident” than she ever has about her songs.
The singer released her album, simply titled Kelsea, about a year ago. She says that since then, this has made her feel more confident in staying true to herself when it comes to music.
“I really wanted it to be the bare bones of the songs. Especially ones, like ‘Half of My Hometown,’ that are more emotional. This version of it allows you to feel it a little more.”
She continued, “It ended up being my way of saying that I can be all these things, and I don’t have to exclusively put myself in one box. I’m more confident in my art than I have been in a long time.”
Ballerini is 27 but got her start songwriting when she was just a child. She signed with Black River Entertainment in 2014 and released her debut album the following her.
Since then, Ballerini has had seven songs reach the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts. She has also had four songs hit No. 1.
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UPDATE: Is Kelsea Ballerini Taking Kelly Clarkson’s Place on ‘The Voice’?