Long before she was a Grammy-winning country artist, Kelsea Balleriniwas just a girl with a guitar — who looked up to another, very famous, girl with a guitar: Taylor Swift.
In a recent interview with Variety, the “Cowboys Cry Too” songstress opened up about how studying her “idols” — including Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson and Shania Twain in addition to Swift — helped to inspire her own musical journey.
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“The school of becoming an artist was the school of being a fan,” Ballerini, 31, explained.
Ballerini, who was born in Mascot, Tennessee, convinced her mother to move to Nashville when she was 15 (her parents divorced a few years earlier). The aspiring musician spent most of her time watching music videos on Country Music Television and the Great American Country…and taking notes all the while.
“I had this fight in me,” she continued. “I had just left my hometown, my dad, my school and my friends, and my mom had uprooted her life for me to have this opportunity. I felt like I had a clear shot, and all I had to do was make it.”
Ballerini’s path to success wasn’t without its pitfalls. Early in her career, one industry exec slammed her for being too much like her favorite singer-songwriter.
“He looked at me and said, ‘Well, there’s already a Taylor Swift,’” she said. “And he was right. There weren’t a lot of young female singer-songwriter girls in country music to look up to — Taylor was the North Star for me, and still is in a lot of ways. I had to grow into my own identity as an artist and a songwriter and learn to differentiate myself.”
The multi-platinum artist didn’t let the criticism get her down — instead, she used the feedback as motivation.
“Everything that I loved seeing other artists do is what I wanted to do, and I’ve always had the audacity to do it,” she said. “I don’t think I’m the most talented person in the world — I know very well that I’m not — but I trust myself enough to know that I will always find a way to make it work.”
Related: Kelsea Ballerini Fans Say ‘It’s Time for Her Awards’ After ‘Mesmerizing’ Performance
