Chase Stokes Gushes Over His Romance With Kelsea Ballerini

Chase Stokes gushed over his romance with Subject To Change star Kelsea Ballerini, including his role as the “golden retriever” boyfriend and his reaction to watching videos from her ongoing “HEARTFIRST Tour.”

Fans dubbed Outer Banks actor a “golden retriever” based on a few times the couple has been spotted, including Stokes dancing along to her performances on tour (including on Kenny Chesney’s headlining “I Go Back Tour”) and during the 2023 CMT Music Awards, which Ballerini also co-hosted with Kane Brown. She recently brought Stokes with her on a hometown visit to East Tennessee, and shared breathtaking photos on an island getaway.

Stokes — whose dog is a golden retriever, German shepherd mix — said during a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, “I'll take the job, I'll take it,” when asked about his “golden retriever” boyfriend status. ET notes that, per Urban Dictionary, a “golden retriever” boyfriend is defined as as “a significant other that is easygoing and makes it fairly simple to maintain a happy and fulfilling relationship.”

Stokes also gushed to ET that Ballerini “seriously is the best human being on planet Earth and she's so damn talented,” and that he watches videos of her performances when he can’t attend them in person: “Just to see her music and her shine in the ways that she is in recent times, it's been beautiful.”

Ballerini is currently on the latest leg of her “HEARTFIRST Tour,” named after one of the tracks on her latest full-length album, Subject To Change. Ballerini released the 15-track collection in September 2022, and packed it with 90s female country-inspired anthems like “The Little Things,” “Love Is A Cowboy,” “You’re Drunk, Go Home” (feat. Carly Pearce and Kelly Clarkson) and other fan-favorite highlights. She followed it with a powerful 6-track, Rolling Up The Welcome Mat, on Valentine’s Day, telling her side of the story of her high-profile divorce from fellow country artist Morgan Evans.

Ballerini confirmed earlier this year that she and Stokes were in a relationship — “just vibing” — after rumors swirled on social media. Speculation first started after Stokes posted a few photos on Instagram, including one with Ballerini, sitting closely next to one another at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, where they attended the College Football Playoff National Championship on January 9. Ballerini said in a podcast interview that she met Stokes after sliding “into his DMs,” simply saying, “hi, Chase Stokes,” a reference to his Instagram handle. They began talking in early December.