Kelsea Ballerini's Arena Headlining Homecoming Show: Sold Out in Less Than 60 Minutes

KNOXVILLE, TENN. (September 15, 2023)--  Kelsea Ballerini proves American literary force Thomas Wolfe wrong! Not only can you go home again, you can triumph – and create such momentum that you sell out your very first major arena headlining show in less than an hour.

For Kelsea, a vocal and songwriting creative force, it has been a year of many firsts: being a face of TIME Magazine's Next 100, a major New York Times profile, an appearance on Saturday Night Live, a performance on MTV’s Video Music Awards, three incredible sold-out legs of her HEARTFIRST tour and the intimate, soul-sorting Rolling Up The Welcome Mat with its critically-acclaimed accompanying short film. But all of it pales next to returning to Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, where she went to concerts growing up, and then selling the Nov. 2nd show out less than an hour after going on sale.

Kelsea crashed Central High School’s Morning Meeting virtually earlier this week to announce the Knoxville show, sharing the monumental career news with the people sitting in the same high school where she first sang her songs onstage. Then she told them they were on the guest list for the show and, to bring someone — “your mom or your crush,” Kelsea said with a smile. As the students lost their minds, she closed with an especially meaningful, “Go Bobcats!” See the video here: http://bit.ly/KBhomecoming. 

With her sixth nomination for Female Vocalist of the Year and the prestigious Album of the Year for Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, coproduced by Alysa Vanderheim, at the 2023 CMA Awards and “IF YOU GO DOWN (I'M GOIN' DOWN TOO)” hitting Country radio’s Top 15 and climbing, Kelsea is connecting with her fans like never before. Whether it's at the three fan-only events at Los Angeles’ GRAMMY Museum, Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame, and New York City’s exclusive Whitby Theater or on stage performing her fan-favorite "Penthouse (Healed Version)," she has always kept the focus on young women looking for a voice that shares their perspective.

Still, there’s nothing like going home – and knowing those songs mean the most where you’re from. Having snagged multiple CMA and Academy of Country Music awards with “half of my hometown,” her duet with fellow East Tennessean Kenny Chesney, few artists embody the sense of boldness it takes to leave your hometown behind to chase a crazy, impossible dream the way Kelsea does.

And on Nov. 2, the emerging powerhouse will share everything wonderful that’s happened with the people who gave her the roots that allowed her to fly. In a world where most people aren’t a prophet in their hometown, Kelsea lives the dream for everybody.

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About Kelsea Ballerini

Two-time GRAMMY-nominated and multiple CMA Award-winning Kelsea Ballerini has logged five back-to-back Top 10 entries on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. With seven #1 singles, 31 gold and platinum RIAA certifications to date and over six billion all-time streams, her catalog boasts smashes such as the double-platinum “Miss Me More” and “Peter Pan.” Kelsea’s fourth album, SUBJECT TO CHANGE, arrived on September 23, 2022. The first single, “HEARTFIRST,” quickly took over the airwaves as the “most added song at country radio” the week of its release and was recently certified gold by the RIAA. Kelsea earned a GRAMMY® nomination for “Best Country Solo Performance” for “HEARTFIRST.” She surprised fans by releasing her intimate six-song Rolling Up the Welcome Mat (Black River) on February 14, 2023. The project and accompanying short film written and directed by Kelsea marks the multi-platinum star’s most intimate and honest work to date. Welcome Mat became an instant hit with fans and debuted to universal acclaim from critics including The New York Times, Variety, Rolling Stone, and more. On the heels of Welcome Mat’s success, Kelsea made her Saturday Night Live debut on March 4, 2023. She recently wrapped a stint as a special guest on Kenny Chesney’s I Go Back 2023 Tour as well as the sold-out third leg of her exclusive headlining HEARTFIRST Tour.