Kelsea Ballerini Says She Had To “Differentiate” Herself From Taylor Swift To Avoid Early Comparisons

In a new interview with Variety for her Power of Women Nashville cover story, Kelsea Ballerini recalled the challenge of establishing her own identity separate from her idol, Taylor Swift, in order to make a mark in the music industry. She recalls an interaction with a record label executive who dismissed her early on by saying, “There’s already a Taylor Swift.” The country star now admits that “he was right,” while adding, “There weren’t a lot of young female singer-songwriter girls in country music to look up to. I had to grow into my own identity as an artist and a songwriter and learn to differentiate myself.” The Tennessee native released her debut EP in 2014, which earned the singer her first Billboard Hot 100 entry with “Love Me Like You Mean It,”, while even receiving recognition from her idol, with Swift tweeting in 2015, “Driving around with the @KelseaBallerini EP on repeat.. SO lovely:)” (Billboard)