Parade.com spoke to Ballerini last week before her positive COVID-19 test, and she talked about how she and Mackie met briefly last year when Ballerini was hosting the CMTs with Brown and Mackie attended to present the Video of the Year Award, but this year’s Grammy Awards, at which the duo presented Best Country Album to Chris Stapleton, was the first opportunity for them to really spend time together. “At the Grammys, we were trying to figure out what our rapport is going to be, what’s going to be our hosting vibe going into the show,” Ballerini tells Parade.com. “To be honest with you, I think we are just going to be cracking up. He’s so funny and just naturally has such a gift of humor that I’m just going to try to keep up.” Ballerini is back to emcee for the second year because she loves hosting. It not only allows her to honor the year in country music, but she also gets to be a fan and enjoy the performances as her fellow nominees make music. “Not only do I get to wear the artist hat and perform and be nominated, but I get to watch side stage as my friends perform, I get to give them awards, I get to be around it,” she continues. “That feeling of being just around it is what got me to Nashville. I love being able to wear both hats.” Ballerini is nominated in three categories: Video of the Year and Collaborative Video of the Year for “half of my hometown,” which features Kenny Chesney, and CMT Performance of the Year for “I Quit Drinking (from 2021 CMT Music Awards),” which features Paul Klein of LANY. In addition, she will also be performing “Heartfirst,” the new single off of her next album, live for the first time. “I really like to zig-zag with my singles, so ‘half of my hometown’ is a very storytelling, songwriter ballad, and then I wanted to go to the other side of what I do, which is a breezy bop on ‘Heartfirst,’” she says. “It just feels like it’s very ‘90s inspired, everything is played live. It just feels warm. I wanted to just put something out that when it comes on the radio you put your windows down and you just feel good. It’s happy.” Keep reading to find out who Mackie wants Ballerini to introduce him to at the CMTs, what she will be wearing, and why she’s been practicing saying, “Easy, breezy” since she was 12 years old!
There are so many shows honoring country music. What makes the CMTs stand out?
They’re the only fan-voted country show, and, to me, country music is about the storytelling and about the fans. That’s what separates it from every other genre of music. It’s a full show – and now on a major network, too – that is celebrating what fans have loved over the last year. It’s not just the songs that you’ve heard on the radio, it’s album cuts, it’s brand-new music, it’s collaborations that are way outside of country music but we’re putting our arms around them and it’s a safe stage to play that. It’s highlighting all kinds of country and I think that’s important because that’s what the fans want.
You’re nominated for three awards, two of which are for “half of my hometown.” Did that song come from the pandemic experience where we were all trapped in our homes, and it made you think back to when you were a young girl and where you lived?
Actually, it’s funny, “half of my hometown” came out on my record that was released March 20, 2020, which was the week the world shutdown. I had such a relationship with each of the songs before that: what I thought they were going to be and how I thought that they were going to connect with people. Then the pandemic happened, and every song became different. Like “Hole in the Bottle.” I was, “I’m putting this on the album because it’s going to be great for a live show.” Then we were in a worldwide pandemic, and everyone was drinking a lot of wine and that became that song. So “half of my hometown” … having all this extra time to reflect, I think, has been really helpful and healthy for me. I definitely appreciate my roots and my hometown and the things that have made me who I am more than I ever have, and that song is just honoring that place. It’s always been a special song ever since we wrote it, but I definitely feel a bigger connection to it now.
Does Anthony Mackie know anything about country music?
Oh, yeah, he said, “Listen, Kelsea, you’re cool. Can you introduce me to Kenny Chesney?” I was like, “Yes.” Finally, I get to feel cool. He has a laundry list of people that he’s excited to meet.
How many changes will you be making and what look are you going for?
There are five looks. To me the CMTs are always very bright and colorful and happy. And so, I’m going to try to mesh that with fashion, too. It’s another way to express yourself, fashion, hair, makeup, glam, all of it. And so, I will definitely be trying to be a ball of sunshine via the outfits: carpet, performance, three hosting is the goal.
You’re the new face of CoverGirl. Talk about your love of makeup, and what do you hope your line for CoverGirl’s going to be?
I’m so excited about that partnership. I remember being in middle school and I wasn’t allowed to wear makeup yet, but I would go home and play in my mom’s makeup. Then she said, “Okay, now you can wear clear mascara,’ and I would go to the drugstore and I would get my clear mascara and that was special. Then she’d be like, “You can wear tinted Chapstick.” She just would add something in every year. Like I said, it’s another creative outlet, it’s a way to express yourself just like songwriting, just like fashion. I’ve always just really gravitated towards that. I do my own hair and makeup on tour. It’s meditative to me. With CoverGirl specifically, they’re a brand for everyone. They’re affordable, they’re approachable and for me that aligns with my music. I want everyone to hear themselves in my music; it’s for everyone. It just felt like a perfect partnership. I’ve been practicing, “Easy, breezy, beautiful CoverGirl,” since I was like 12, so I was ready. The 2022 CMT Music Awards will air live on Monday, April 11 on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT. The show will also be available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+. Next, Everything We Know About the 2022 CMTs, Including the Latest Performers and Video of the Year Finalists!
