Kelsea Ballerini has nothing but praise for Chappell Roan’s recent foray into country music with her new single, “The Giver.”
“The world needed it,” Ballerini, 31, told People in an interview published Tuesday, April 1. “I am just such a fan of her artistry, and I love that music is in a space where we are hopefully encouraging artists to make music that inspires them. And if she wants to make a pop song, it inspires a million people. If she wants to make a country song, it inspires a million people.”
The “Cowboys Cry Too” singer went on to say that she’s doing her part by calling radio stations to request Roan’s new tune.
“That’s the testament of a true artist is being able to just go with what inspires you,” she added. “Actually, when that song came out, I texted my manager and I was like, ‘If she plays a country award show, can I please intro this performance?’”
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Roan, 27, released “The Giver” on March 13 after weeks of teasing the track on social media. Fans initially got a taste of the track in November 2024 when Roan performed it as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live.
“I think I have a special relationship to where I’m from because of country music,” Roan told Apple Music last month, referring to her Missouri hometown. “And so to kind of honor that part of myself by making a country song, where it’s like, ‘You know what? Yes, I’m gay. And yes, I am ultra pop. Yes, I am a drag queen.’ That can also be who can also perform a country song.”
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The Grammy winner also acknowledged the long history of drag performers singing (and lip-synching) to country classics.
“There are a lot of drag queens who do country music all over the world,” she said. “Name a girl who hasn’t done [Carrie Underwood’s] ‘Before He Cheats.’ Name a girl that hasn’t done [Shania Twain’s] ‘Man! I Feel Like a Woman!’”
Chely Wright, who was the first mainstream country artist to publicly come out as a lesbian in 2010, praised Roan’s song in a recent interview.
“I think it’s super bold. I will admit, I blushed a little bit when I heard it, but I’m 54, right?” she told People last month, adding that she thinks the track definitely belongs in the country genre. “It’s 100 percent a country record to me. It ticks every box that one would expect it to tick to be a great country song and a great record and a great performance.”
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