Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes’ relationship: From romance rumors to going steady
Kelsea Ballerini knows her public relationship with actor Chase Stokes isn’t considered “normal.”
The couple first went public with their relationship in February 2023 and have been together for close to two years. Over the past year, the two have frequently gushed about their relationship on social media and in interviews.
They have also made multiple red carpet appearances together, like at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, where they were seen sharing a kiss.
From initial romance rumors to going steady, here is a look at Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes’ relationship.
Romance rumors spark after a teasy photo
On Jan. 13, 2023, Stokes posted a photo dump, with one in particular sparking romance rumors between him and Ballerini.
In one of those photos, two people are seen from behind sitting in seats while at the College Football National Championship game. No faces are seen. However, Stokes tagged Ballerini in the photo.
The “Miss Me More” singer further added fuel to the fire by commenting, “Go vols.”
Stokes later told “Entertainment Tonight” that Ballerini was “the best” after she was announced as a “Saturday Night Live” musical guest.
“I mean she’s the best,” Stokes said on Feb. 16 at the Season 3 premiere of “Outer Banks.” “I’m so excited for her and everything happening in her career right now.”
Kelsea Ballerini confirms she’s hanging out with Chase Stokes
The country singer was asked if she was single during a February 2023 chat on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast. She laughed and said “no” before further sharing how she and Stokes connected.
After her divorce from country singer Morgan Evans, Ballerini said she was “ready to open back up.”
“Why not? I’ve never really dated. I don’t know how it works. I’m like, what? Let’s just put ourselves out there,” she said, revealing that she slid into Stokes’ DMs in December 2022.
“I’ve never seen the show and but I just knew of him,” she said. “So I followed him and he followed me and I just swung through right on it.”
“His handle is ‘@hichasestokes,’ and I said, ‘Hi, Chase Stokes,’” she said of how she reached out to him.
In a TikTok she shared in August 2023, Ballerini revealed that for their first date, they went to a sushi restaurant. In the clip, she shared a behind-the-scenes look at how she prepared for her first official date with Stokes.
“here’s a video I sent to my best friend before my first date with Chase,” Ballerini captioned the post.
In the video, Ballerini poses in front of a mirror showing off her outfit, a mini-dress and boots.
“I can do this,” she tells herself in front of the mirror. “I can do this. It’s just a date, you just go and you just eat food and you talk about things that you do.”
During the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, she also touched on the photo Stokes shared of the two of them at the football game.
“We had been hanging out and people got a photo of us at the game, at the championship. And so that was kind of just going,” she recalled. “And he was like, ‘I mean, it’s gonna keep going. So should I just like poke the bear?’ and I was like, ‘Sure.’ And the poking the bear was like a photo of me just like, leaning on him.”
Kelsea Ballerini shows support for Chase Stokes as Season 3 of “Outer Banks” dropped.
When Season 3 of “Outer Banks” premiered on Feb. 23, 2023, the “If You Go Down” singer promoted the show on her Instagram story. She shared a poster of Stokes and added a smiley face.
That same day, Stokes shared a photo of Ballerini giving him a kiss on the cheek. On the side of the Instagram story snap, he wrote, “my ❤️.”
Chase Stokes confirms he’s dating Kelsea Ballerini on TODAY
During an appearance on TODAY on March 3, 2023, Stokes confirmed that he and Ballerini were dating while chatting with Sheinelle Jones.
“Right across the street, on ‘SNL,’ we have a pretty good show planned for tomorrow night,” Jones said. “Kelsea Ballerini, she’ll be taking the stage. Going out on a limb here — are you a fan?”
“Absolutely I’m a fan,” he replied. “Yeah, who isn’t a fan?”
Sheinelle then said, “For those of you who don’t know, they’re… dating?” to which Stokes nodded.
Chase Stokes and Kelsea Ballerini make their red carpet debut
Ballerini co-hosted the CMT Music Awards on April 2, 2023, and took the actor as her date. The event marked their first red carpet appearance together after publicly confirming their romance.
The two showed PDA by hugging and holding each other while posing for photos ahead of the awards ceremony.
From then on, Ballerini and Stokes would continue to share little snippets from their adventures on social media. They also continued to attend public events, like the Broadway premiere of “Shucked” on April 4, 2023 in New York City.
Kelsea Ballerini shares why they decided to go public with their relationship
In a July interview with Stylecaster, Ballerini explained why she and her beau decided to share their love with the world.
“The thing that we’ve decided, and to each their own, is when you’re with someone that you feel secure with and that you’re proud to be with, why not share it?” she said. “He’s also a Virgo; we’re both Labrador retrievers in human form. It doesn’t take much conversation to be on the same page. It’s been half a year and it’s been great.”
After performing on TODAY Aug. 11, Ballerini gave a glowing relationship update to Sheinelle.
“I’m so happy,” she said. “It’s nice to feel so supported and seen. He’s such a wonderful, wonderful human being.”
Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes celebrate her 30th birthday at the VMAs
The 2023 MTV Video Music Awards doubled as a birthday party for the country star, who was joined by boyfriend Stokes on the red carpet. The two donned matching red color schemes as they shared a PDA-filled moment, with a kiss for the cameras.
Kelsea Ballerini shares her first exchange with Chase Stokes
Last September, in honor of Stokes’ birthday, Ballerini shared a glimpse at how their adorable relationship began.
In a Sept. 16 Instagram carousel post, Ballerini uploaded a screenshot of the first messages between her and her beau.
The “Blindsided” singer first reached out to Stokes in an Instagram direct message on Dec. 1, 2022, at 1 a.m. and said, “hiii chase stokes.”
The actor replied two hours later with, “Hey there how u doin.”
“I’m kels, nice to meet you,” Ballerini wrote back with a smiley face emoji. The “Outer Banks” star then “loved” the message.
Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes pose for photos on the CMA Awards red carpet
Their love was on full display at the 2023 CMA Awards.
The couple cozied up for the cameras as they attended the 57th annual awards held at Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 8 in Nashville. The country singer looked pretty in pink in a one-shoulder silk gown with a thigh-high slit.
While posing on the red carpet, she nuzzled up against the “Outer Banks” star and at one point, struck a kissing pose.
Stokes, on his end, wore a dark suit with black trimmings. He was all smiles as he held onto his girlfriend.
The couple celebrated their first anniversary in January 2024
Both Stokes and Ballerini posted cute slideshows on Instagram to mark one year of dating.
The “Outer Banks” star shared a sweet Instagram tribute to the country music singer on Jan. 7, 2024. “One year of lovin you,” he wrote in the caption, adding a red heart emoji.
The actor’s post featured a slideshow of adorable moments he and Ballerini had shared over the past year. In the first snap, the country music singer planted a kiss on Stokes’ forehead as he smiled wide.
He also uploaded a video of him giving her a kiss on the head as they listened to her song “Heartfirst” in a car. They sang the lyrics to each other and danced while stopped at a traffic light.
Stokes further showed off his singing skills when they sang a duet of Coldplay’s “A Sky Full of Stars” in the next clip. The two played the piano together and harmonized while sitting next to a fireplace.
Ballerini also shared a carousel of photos on Jan. 7, 2024, to commemorate their anniversary. Her post showed multiple instances of her boyfriend supporting her at her concerts and a glimpse into some of their vacations together.
“A whole trip around the sun with my bestie. @hichasestokes thanks for making me write love songs,” she said in the caption.
Her slideshow included a photo of her sitting on her boyfriend’s lap, a video of him watching her perform at a concert and a snap of them playfully sticking their tongues out at each other.
In one clip, the two laughed at the kiss imprint she left on his neck. She recorded him snoring in another funny video.
The final picture in her post showed the two cuddling on a bench together as they stared out into the sea.
Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes attend the 2024 CMT Music Awards
Ballerini and Stokes packed on the PDA at the 2024 CMT Music Awards.
On April 7, 2024, the couple shared a kiss on the red carpet while posing for pictures before the show, which Ballerini hosted.
Egged on slightly by a photographer who asked for them to lock lips, Stokes gently held her chin while they leaned in for a smooch before they chuckled.
The couple also walked the red carpet while fans cheered them on. Stokes, sporting a white shirt and jacket and black pants, held hands with Ballerini, who wore a red dress.
Chase Stokes says he adores Kelsea Ballerini
Stokes talked about his feelings for Ballerini during a Oct. 3 interview with Hoda Kotb on TODAY.
“I truthfully think that when you find someone who you love and adore but is also your best friend, you’ve kind of got the best of both worlds,” he said. “And she’s not just a great person but everything that you see whether it be on social or when she’s on stage is exactly the person she is when she’s not doing those things. I just adore the girl. I really do.”
Stokes said he and Ballerini support one another in their careers.
“It’s been humbling on both sides, just championing each other,” he said of their professional successes. “It’s been a year of a lot of wins so it’s just nice to have somebody by your side who kind of helps you sustain the wave.”
Kelsea Ballerina says being with Chris Stokes is a ‘beautiful thing’
In a preview clip for the Sunday, Oct. 27 episode of Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist, the country singer was candid about the reality of being in a very public relationship.
“I’m not used to the interest in me as a person as much as I have been warming up to (it) the last couple of years,” she said.
Ballerini explained that the “floodgates” that opened up on her life since dating Stokes are “different now” than they were when she was mostly known for her music.
“So, I’m still getting my footing on how I share things and what I share and my relationship and all that. It’s not normal,” she said. “So, I think it’s fair enough that it’s an ebb and a flow.”
Ballerini went on to rave about Stokes’ support of her music, specifically her 2023 EP “Rolling Up the Welcome Mat,” and called him a “truth teller” in her life.
“I think the beautiful thing about being with an artist … just in a different field, but an artist, is that (it) also equates to being with a truth teller,” she said. “And when I got into this relationship I hadn’t put out “Welcome Mat” yet. And I remember I sent that EP to him and I just said, ‘Hey, you’re gonna ask eventually so I’m just gonna go ahead and give this to you.'”
Ballerini said that when Stokes checked it out, he was extremely supportive.
“He lifted that record up and supported it and stood side stage the whole time,” she said. “And … that takes someone who really celebrates truth telling and believes in the person that is doing it. And so when it was time to make this record I couldn’t shy away from that idea of okay, like, new relationship, two-year relationship now.”