Kelsea Ballerini debuted a heartfelt “love letter” to her relationship with her mother, Carla Denham, and the growth of that relationship of the years.
“Sorry Mom” is the second track to release from Balleirni’s highly-anticipated fifth studio album, Patterns, due on October 25. The East Tennessee-born singer-songwriter announced the album on Thursday morning (August 8), following months of teasers as she stirred anticipation for the next chapter in her music.
Ballerini described the tribute to her mom as “a love letter to the growth of mother and daughter to woman and woman,” and said she “couldn’t be more proud to share this song with you.” “Sorry Mom” was one of the first songs Ballerini wrote for her upcoming 15-track project. She wrote the mother-daughter ballad with Rolling Up The Welcome Mat and Patterns producer and songwriter Alysa Vanderheym, Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild, and award-winning songwriters Jessie Jo Dillon and Hillary Lindsey. Ballerini previously shared that she assembled an all-female group of producers and songwriters to create her fifth studio album, including co-producing the record with Vanderheym.
Ballerini has previously talked about her close-knit relationship with her mom, who spoke highly of her daughter’s songwriting during an episode of Got It From My Momma last year. Denham’s podcast episode premiered shortly after Ballerini released a surprise EP and short film to share her story of heartache and healing after divorce. Denham said her daughter is “fiercely independent and strong-willed,” and she knew the 6-track project would resonate with women of all ages. Rolling Up The Welcome Mat quickly followed Ballerini’s fourth full-length studio album, Subject To Change, which released in September 2022. The mother-daughter duo have also made red carpet appearances together, including at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards in 2023, and at the 59th ACM Awards earlier this year in Frisco, Texas.
Denham hosted a Q&A with her daughter during Ballerini’s intimate rooftop performance in June in Downtown Nashville, Tennessee. Denham said at that time that Ballerini’s then-unannounced album was a “full-circle” project that included “some incredible love songs.” Ballerini, who reminisced on the song she wrote for her mom on Mother's Day while she was growing up, said that she’s “never handled anything with so much care in my life.”
“Sorry Mom” follows “Cowboys Cry Too,” a duet Ballerini released with Noah Kahan that appears on Patterns. Listen to the heartfelt mother-daughter song here: