REVIEW: Ballerini’s ‘Patterns’ Highlights Vulnerability, Introspection

By ABIGAIL SMITH/Staff Writer

Kelsea Ballerini’s album “Rolling Up the Welcome Mat” became a TikTok sensation. Its raw account of the end of her five-year marriage captured listeners. The stripped-down vocals and deeply personal lyrics struck a chord, earning Ballerini a wave of new fans drawn to her authenticity and vulnerability.

Soon after, fans noticed “Outer Banks” star Chase Stokes attending her concerts. It sparked speculation about a new romance as he appeared to be a comforting presence during her healing journey.

In October, Ballerini released her new album, “Patterns,” which builds on the emotional groundwork of “Rolling up the Welcome Mat” while offering a fresh perspective.

The album explores the layers of healing and falling in love again, delving into how past patterns of distrust influence her new relationship.

The release came with a lingering question: would her new fans embrace this shift as passionately as they did the raw truths of heartbreak in “Rolling Up the Welcome Mat?”

Ballerini answers this question by digging deep, highlighting vulnerability and introspection into “Patterns” in an authentic and relatable way.

She pays homage to her previous album with lyrics such as, “If you want that welcome mat, then roll it out with me,” a tribute to the development of her new relationship.

However, this album is much more than a love letter to Stokes. It is layered with an apology to her mother, devotion to her friends who stuck by her side and even a duet with upcoming folk star Noah Kahan in a song about the societal pressure men face to suppress their emotions.

The duet, “Cowboys Cry Too,” scored a Grammy nomination for Best Country Duo Performance. The nomination is chance for both artists to receive their first Grammy.

Ballerini also holds herself accountable, addressing personal missteps like missing her mother’s birthday and publicly feuding with her ex-husband.

The album’s cover art visually illustrates these themes, showing her sitting on a pile of luggage against the backdrop of a beach sunset — a symbolic farewell to old baggage and a nod to newfound peace.

By the album’s end, it’s clear that Ballerini has solidified her crown. Her fans have embraced the shift in perspective by selling out her stadium tour.

With “Patterns,” Ballerini has officially dropped off the welcome mat and baggage from her old life and stepped into the sunset of a brighter, healed future.