Kelsea Ballerini Plans to Keep It ‘Honest’ on Upcoming Sophomore Record

Kelsea Ballerini has her ‘First Time’ charm following her everywhere she goes, and she plans to keep it that way as she transitions into the second project of her country career.

The singer found her voice throughout her first record as an established perspective on the highs and lows of being a girl in her teens. As the time has flown by since fans first heard Ballerini blasting through their radio speakers, she wants to make sure the next step creates a path toward the top while maintaining her close relationship with her dedicated fan base.

“The whole heartbeat of the first record is young, which I think is what made it relatable to young girls, which was a really special thing,” Ballerini recently explained to GQ. “And so I’m careful to acknowledge that when I’m writing now. I still want to keep those young girls that liked that version of my music. But I have to be honest about growing up and becoming a young woman. That’s why we picked ‘Yeah Boy’ to be the last single from the first album—there’s nothing like that on this next record.”

Wanting to keep her presence in the format known, Ballerini isn’t backing down from putting her best work—lyrically and sonically—out there for her sophomore effort. She plans to keep high hopes in her sights, with the backing of her debut album’s success on her side, for what’s to come in her pop-country sound.

“They say the sophomore album is the most important album you’ll ever put out. Especially with the success of the first one we just want to make sure that we do it right. Once we get past the next year and a half of new music and a new record we’ll probably know what our path is and where it’s going to lead,” the Tennessee native shared.

While Ballerini admits she will toy the line of country versus pop, she still remains loyal to the genre that gave her the strong platform to grow.“This new record is a lot more on that country-pop line. But the heartbeat of it is still country,” she said.

The title and release date for Ballerini’s second album has yet to be announced at this time.