Kelsea Ballerini paused her performance when she heard at least one concertgoer yelling profanity as they referred to her ex-husband, fellow singer-songwriter Morgan Evans.

Ballerini and Evans got married in 2017, and they finalized their divorce in late 2022, months after announcing the split publicly. The two artists wrote and released music sharing their own stories about the marriage ending. Evans released his ballad, “Over For You,” in October 2022, and included the song on a 5-track EP titled Life Upside Down in April 2023. Ballerini delivered Rolling Up The Welcome Mat as a surprise release on Valentine’s Day in 2023. The EP and accompanying short film shared her side of heartache and healing after the divorce, including “Mountain With A View,” “Penthouse” and “Blindsided” in the track list.

Months after she released her original EP, Ballerini delivered Rolling Up The Welcome Mat (For Good). The extended version included a new track and some fan-favorite lyric swaps in some of the original songs, including in a live rendition of “Penthouse (Healed Version).” Though it may be difficult to catch amid the audience’s cheers, some listeners have pointed out that a concertgoer appears to yell “f*** you, Morgan,” after Ballerini sings: “And it stings rolling up the welcome mat/ Knowing you got half.”

A fan account for Ballerini shared a concertgoer’s video from one of the shows on Ballerini’s ongoing arena tour. Again, the profanity might be difficult to hear as the rest of the crowd cheers and applauds, but some commenters pointed out that at least one fan apparently yelled “f*** you, Morgan,” after the same lyric, just as someone had yelled in the live recording. The fan account noted in the caption, “we don’t want to bring attention to the action, but we do want to bring attention to the message ❤️” Find the clip here (warning: language).

“Guys, we have to stop saying that,” Ballerini said when she paused her performance of “Penthouse.” “Seriously. We’re three years past it. Everything’s fine now. I sing this song for you now. It’s not about me anymore. Please. Please. Alright. For everyone that’s moving forward with their life, will you sing this with me?”

Ballerini, who recently celebrated her two-year anniversary with boyfriend Chase Stokes, is on her first headlining arena tour after releasing her fifth studio album, Patterns. The 15-track record includes the title track, “Sorry Mom,” “Baggage,” “First Rodeo,” “Two Things,” “We Broke Up,” “Cowboys Cry Too” with Noah Kahan, and more. Ballerini “accidentally” confirmed a deluxe edition of Patterns in a recent interview with Byrdie, though she hasn’t announced the release date as of publication time on Tuesday (February 25).

“It is a love record. It’s full of love—self-love, love for my family, my friends, my partner, whatever,” Ballerini said of Patterns in her interview with Byrdie. “But it’s the nuance of it, the growth of it, the tension within it… that is so necessary and interesting to me.”

Ballerini also hinted at new music in a recent TikTok. She spotlighted “Two Things” and “First Rodeo” as two of the “most magical” moments in her arena show, and noted that the set list would change soon. She wrote in her caption that “the set list is only changing because…hypothetically…new music needs a lil room 🥹”

On Tuesday, Ballerini teased a “surprise” at her next tour stop on Wednesday evening (February 26) in Dallas, Texas; however, it wasn’t clear as of publication time whether that “surprise” is new music, a change to the set list, or anything else. The tour includes special guests Sasha Alex Sloan, Ashe, The Japanese House and MaRynn Taylor. See the list of tour stops here.

Jessica