Kelsea Ballerini is getting ready to “jump right in,” and the cryptic hint spurred anticipation among the country artist’s social media followers. Ballerini posted a photo that appears to show the “half of my hometown” singer donning a flowing gown on a sky-high diving board. She shared the same image on TikTok, set to her latest single, “HEARTFIRST.”
Luckily, fans didn't have to wait too long for some answers.
“HEARTFIRST” is the first song Ballerini has unveiled from her forthcoming new era of music. She wrote the ‘90s country-inspired “bop” with Alysa Vanderheym and Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild (produced by Julian Bunetta and Shane McAnally), serving as an anthem that’s “all about just following your heart (and) trusting your gut. I really believe that nothing great happens in life unless you take the risk and you take a leap of faith, and that’s what this whole song is about.”
Ballerini’s mysterious social media posts prompted eager fans to guess that the “HEARTFIRST” music video could be on the horizon. Ballerini confirmed with a brief clip on Wednesday (July 6) that her “HEARTFIRST” video would premiere at noon CT on Thursday (July 7).
“I chose ‘HEARTFIRST’ as the first single off the new project because I feel like it just sets the tone for everything I’m working on right now,” Ballerini previously explained. “It’s very warm, very breezy-feeling, very settled. That’s kind of the tone of the whole project that I’m working on, and I feel like ‘HEARTFIRST’ was the first step into that new world.”
Get a sneak peek of the upcoming music video here: