Kelsea Ballerini, Chase Stokes Reportedly Break Up Again

Kelsea Ballerini and Chase Stokes have reportedly split up again.

TMZ reported on Friday afternoon (February 6) that the country superstar and the Outer Banks actor have parted ways again, citing “sources with direct knowledge.” Other news outlets have also reported the breakup; however, representatives for Ballerini and Stokes could not be reached for comment, and neither of them have commented directly as of publication time on Saturday morning (February 7).

Ballerini, 32, and Stokes, 33, started talking when she slid into his DMs in December 2022. They first sparked rumors of a new relationship when Stokes posted a photo sitting closely with Ballerini at the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2023 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Ballerini confirmed the new relationship in an interview on Call Her Daddy. She and Stokes made their red carpet debut as a couple in April 2023, when he joined her at the 2023 CMT Music Awards at Moody Center in Austin, Texas. They’ve since shared other sweet moments throughout their relationship on social media and in interviews; however, news broke of their split in September 2025. Ballerini and Stokes had been dating more than two years. They confirmed on New Year’s Eve that they’d rekindled their relationship, following months of rumors about whether they’d reconciled.

Ballerini attended the 2026 Grammy Awards solo on February 1 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. She told Entertainment Tonight’s Nischelle Turner on the red carpet that the breakup “looked a lot more dramatic than it was. And that was quite the learning lesson for us. But he’s — I love him so much. We’ve been together for quite a while now, and done a lot of life together. And I love love, and I believe in it. And I also, I believe so much in finding the things that make you happy, and finding the things that you want to work on and figuring out when the rubber meets the road, how to make that work.”

Shortly after the Grammys, Ballerini revealed the sweet surprise tribute hidden in her dress for her beloved late dog, Dibs, who “went to doggy heaven” on January 7 after a battle with cancer that spanned more than a year. Ballerini spent about a decade with her “soul dog.” The country superstar also appeared in a selfie shared on Madelyn Cline’s Instagram story the day after the Grammys, seemingly showing a supportive, amicable friendship between them, despite rumors of drama. Ballerini said in another appearance on Call Her Daddy, “I met her [Cline], and I talked to her and she’s lovely, and I think she’s wildly talented. And I think the internet did its best to make it really weird, and it just didn’t work for them.”

In December, Ballerini invited Instagram users to ask her anything. One of them asked: “How are YOU?!? You heal a lot of us, what do YOU need?”

“Thank you for saying this and asking,” Ballerini replied on her Instagram story, without directly addressing rumors about her relationship status with Stokes. “I’m in a steady and happy place right now. Truly excited for this Australia tour and the holidays.

“If I had one favor, it would be honoring that I’m trying to make my personal life personal for now. Unless it comes from me, it’s not from me,” she added at the time. “And that is really important in protecting my peace right now.”