CMT
Pop Meets Country! Halsey and Kelsea Ballerini Bring Down the House During CMT’s ‘Crossroads’
Name a more iconic duo … we’ll wait! On Wednesday, March 25, Halsey and Kelsea Ballerini teamed up for CMT Crossroads and y’all, we were not prepared for how incredible their performance was.
Despite the pouring rain, the pop star, 25, and country singer, 26, managed to perfectly meld their go-to genres. Halsey and Kelsea started by performing “Bad at Love” off the New Jersey native’s Hopeless Fountain Kingdom album.
Though it’s been three years since Halsey released the song, it’s every bit as powerful today — especially with Kelsea’s added flair. Next up? The pair belted out Kelsea’s 2015 single “Peter Pan.” Of course, the ladies chose that song because they both have experience dating “man-children,” as Halsey so boldly stated.
It’s no surprise then that “Peter Pan” transitioned into Halsey’s popular breakup ballad “Without Me.” The single, which has some pretty biting lyrics, is rumored to be about her ex-boyfriend G-Eazy.
In the past, Halsey has admitted that her romantic relationships have a large influence on her music. However, her latest studio record, Manic, is so much more than that. “This whole album isn’t about Gerald,” she assured Zane Lowe during an interview on Apple Music’s “Beats 1.”
“A lot of it is a reconnaissance of things I never got to work through because I was 19 and I was Halsey,” the Billboard Music Award winner continued. “I didn’t have time for self-care because I had to be composed. And I got too composed — that was part of the problem.”
In Halsey’s song “Graveyard,” which she and Kelsea also performed effortlessly, the lyrics are honest, vulnerable and relatable to anyone who has been in a relationship that’s not good for them.
“It’s crazy when/ The thing you love the most is the detriment/ Let that sink in/ You can think again/When the hand you wanna hold is a weapon and/You’re nothin’ but skin,” Halsey penned.
As much as we love the original version, we’re definitely going to be listening to Halsey and Kelsea’s rendition, as well. Here’s hoping these two powerhouses link up together for some more musical magic! Ahem, perhaps a whole album together? Think about it.
