Ballerini recalls her first visit to the Opry, after her mom surprised her with tickets for Christmas when she was 12. \u201cShe loves Josh Turner. Our dog is named after Josh Turner,\u201d she explains with a laugh. \u201cAnd so we came, and got to see Josh in a big lineup. And I remember walking in and just feeling that it\u2019s a special place.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the video above, Ballerini meets with radio people, gathers the musicians together for an informal backstage rehearsal and just takes in the ambiance of the legendary venue. She also got to announce that her debut album will be released on May 19 from the stage of the Opry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s so cool, because there\u2019s so many firsts happening all the time now,\u201d she says. \u201cSo to be able to pair that with an album, and just kinda have that marker and that milestone, is really cool. I\u2019m so excited to announce that here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ballerini performed \u201cLove Me Like You Mean It\u201d during her spot, after being introduced by Ricky Skaggs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more it\u2019s been out, the more that people know the words, and so you can just see a couple of people singing along,\u201d she observes. \u201cThat\u2019s like the coolest feeling, as a songwriter and as an artist, to see something that you wrote in a writer\u2019s room go from that to, people know it, people are singing it to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
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