Kelsea Ballerini and Morgan Evans are going solo. Ballerini announced, via her Instagram Story, that she and Evans are divorcing, after nearly five years of marriage.
“Friends, I’ve always tried my best to share my life with you in a real and vulnerable way, while also protecting layers of my personal life as they unfold,” Ballerini writes. “This is now public record so I wanted you to hear from me directly that I am going through a divorce. This deeply difficult decision is the result of a journey of love, growth, and effort that ultimately has come to an end. It’s hard to find the words here…but I feel extremely grateful for the years of marriage to Morgan and hopeful for the next seasons.
“With very active schedules coming up, please be mindful that we are both fragile, actively healing, and showing up the best we can,” she adds.
Evans has yet to publicly comment on the split.
Ballerin and Evans wed on December 2, 2017. They met in March of 2016, when Ballerini and Evans were tapped to co-host the CMC Awards in Evans’ native Australia. Evans proposed on Christmas Day later that year.
Evans penned a song, “Dance With Me,” for Ballerini, which also featured her on the track. The tune is from his Things That We Drink To album, released in 2018.
“That was my handsome, talented, and sweet hubby with the first song he ever wrote for me,” Ballerini said on Apple Music Country’s kelsea radio. “I remember when Morgs asked me to sing on it with him for his American debut record, it was really hard for me to sing on it and not just start sobbing. I mean, just having a song that’s sweet to be able to represent our relationship on a record that will live on forever is such a gift, and it’s so special to me.
“I’ve never told anyone this, but we wrote our own vows for our wedding,” she continued. “He ended his with the lyrics to this song, so now every time I hear it, I just think about our wedding, surrounded by our friends and our family. It’s just one of the most special memories to me.”
Ballerini previously praised the impact the pandemic had on her relationship with Evans, since they were both forced to be home together.
“Investing in my marriage!” Ballerini told Rolling Stone, when asked what good came out of 2020. “Morgan is a touring artist as well, so we had built our whole relationship without a lot of time physically together. It really has been a silver lining in my personal life. We also bought our first house, which has been really nice to decorate and nest over the holidays. Feels very normal…in a good way.”
Ballerini’s current single, “Heartfirst,” is in the Top 25. The song is from her forthcoming Subject to Change album, out on September 23. Evans’ latest record, The Country And The Coast (Side A) EP, was released last fall.
