Photo: Getty Images
Kelsea Ballerini opened up about the “pulse check” she’s been taking on this chapter of her life.
Ballerini’s candid reflection arrives after she marked an “epic” season that followed with “burnout” and a period of introspection. The powerhouse singer-songwriter shared her thoughts in the hours before her new EP, Mount Pleasant, makes its debut. The 6-track project will include “People Pleaser,” “Emerald City,” “587,” “The Revisionist” and “Check On Your Friends,” in addition to “I Sit In Parks.” Ballerini released the vulnerable song on Friday, November 7, opening up about wanting a family. Ballerini shared in an Instagram caption on Thursday (November 13) that “to me, an EP is the safekeeping of big thoughts and important chapters. mount pleasant is a pulse check on myself at 32, and it’s yours tonight. no matter who you may find yourself to be in the park, i hope you find yourself somewhere in mine. everyone’s welcome. ❤️”
“I feel like EPs seem like they come out of nowhere, but they’re, I think the most inspired, always, because it’s like this really condensed period of time that’s being documented, and then you get to put it out really close to while you’re feeling it. And I think for me, I’ve always had a bit of a dopamine dump after something big in life, whether it be a career moment or whatever. But I think after having this epic spring of doing the first arena tour and doing The Voice and doing all these bucket list things, I had burnout and then I had a dopamine dump, and I was just like, ‘woah, now I have all this time to figure out what this chapter of my life looks like now.’ And what’s a pulse check on myself at 32 if I have nothing to busy myself out of feeling it? And I think also just coming to the terms of acknowledging that what I want in my life now is different than what I wanted at 25, and also acknowledging that I’m not 25 anymore. And having all these feelings come up to the surface and having all this time and space to not run from it. And so, I think for me, the safest place to capture those feelings and escort them on their way is to write. And so, I think I felt so satisfied with the story of Patterns, but that, again, it wasn’t up to date with what I was experiencing and what I am. And so, I just started writing and I started with ‘I Sit In Parks.’”
Mount Pleasant is Ballerini’s first release since she delivered her 20-track deluxe edition of Patterns in March. She also released a collection of stripped versions of several Patterns tracks last month. Some social media commenters also pointed out that Mount Pleasant is a town in South Carolina, which serves as a filming location for Outer Banks. Ballerini is reportedly back together with Outer Banks actor Chase Stokes after a brief breakup. The pair initially started dating in January 2023, about a month after Ballerini sparked conversation by sliding into his DMs. She confirmed the new relationship in an interview on Call Her Daddy. News broke of the couple’s split in September, though they’ve recently prompted reconciliation rumors. An unnamed “insider” told US Weekly that “Kelsea and Chase are giving their relationship another try. There’s still a lot of love there, so they fell back into it very naturally.”
“I have always made records – whether songs, EPs or albums – to capture a moment in time,” the 2026 Grammy nominee and 59th CMA Awards performer/nominee said in a statement. She wrote the EP throughout the summer to mark “a chapter of heavy self-examination, longing, and stepping further into who I am as a 32-year old woman.”
Mount Pleasant will release on Friday (November 14).