Music

Kelsea Ballerini Takes CMT Behind the Scenes

"Love You Like You Mean It" Is Her First Hit
by 3/16/2015

Kelsea Ballerini, one of CMT’s Next Women of Country, is giving her fans a behind-the-scenes look at the music video for her debut single “Love Me Like You Mean It.”

“I feel like I’ve been preparing for this day for a long time just because it’s my first music video, so I feel like I’ve just been thinking of ideas and stuff for a while,” said Ballerini. “The story is basically like me and my friends are hanging out in my backyard and my dog gets loose. These neighbors that happened to just be three models come over and we play games and dance and fall in love — and it’s the whole quest of finding someone who can love us like they mean it.”

The catchy single is the first from Ballerini’s self-titled EP which was released back in November. The 21-year-old singer is also revealing the motivation behind the hit song.

“We ended up writing this song about a confident girl being like, ‘Hey, if you’re gonna love me you better do it right and don’t mess around and don’t screw it up, just do it right,’” she says. “And so I feel like this video is really capturing that with these three girls, me and my two friends — kinda challenging these guys with all these little games and stuff to see if they’re up for the challenge.”

Although she is new to the music scene, Ballerini has already caught the attention of many, including that of one of the biggest stars in the world — Taylor Swift.

Ballerini’s debut full-length album, The First Time, is set to be released May 19.

For more country news, don’t miss out on CMT Hot 20 Countdown Saturday and Sundays at 9 a.m. ET/PT.