Hey Kelsea Ballerini, what's your status? And tell us are you tryna keep it?
Because even though a rep for the musician confirmed to E! News in September that she and Chase Stokes had ended their nearly three-year relationship, it still seemed as if the 32-year-old was calling dibs on his heart.
When the "I Sit in Parks" singer joined Chase in Dubrovnik, Croatia, where he was filming the fifth and final season of Outer Banks, she appeared to be having the time of her life as they danced to ABBA’s "Dancing Queen" in a video that circulated on social media earlier this month.
And with the singer spotted FaceTiming the actor, 33, while at Kentucky's Keeneland race track in October and double tapping on of his Instagram posts that same month, it doesn't seem as though just anybody could be that guy.
But according to Chase, his ex has definitively rolled up the welcome mat.
"I'm blocked, I did nothing wrong," the actor wrote in a post shared to Instagram Stories Nov. 20. "I tried."
Chase then added in a second slide, "I'm sorry for those who believed in us. It is what it is. Onwards and upwards."
And it wasn't his first commentary on the matter.
Days earlier, Chase chimed in on Kelsea's Nov. 16 TikTok promoting "People Pleaser" off her latest EP Mount Pleasant.
As fans speculated that another track "Emerald City" had Kelsea signing about feeling she had to compete with Chase's Outer Banks costar and IRL ex-girlfriend Madelyn Cline, he offered his own take, writing, "These comments are f--king weird. Grow up." (E! News has reached out to reps for both Chase and Kelsea but hasn't yet heard back.)
Because there's no doubt he loved Kelsea like he meant it for the entirety of their three-year romance.
They say to get out with the old you get in with the new, and thanks to her five-year marriage to fellow singer Morgan Evans—which ended in 2022—Kelsea hadn't been on a date since she was 22 when she decided to shoot her shot with the actor.
"hiii chase stokes," she wrote in that first DM, sent shortly after 1 a.m. on Dec. 1, 2022.
Two hours later he responded and just like that, as she sang in 2023's "How Do I Do This", she was back at the beginning with her fellow Virgo.
And even if everything she knew about love was ruined, she found herself writing a whole new chapter.
"Honestly, he shoots in Charleston, and my manager lives there and he put the bug in my ear," the six-time Grammy-nominated musician explained on her February 2023 episode of Call Her Daddy. "He was like, 'You know who's really cute—when you're ready? Chase.' And I was like, 'You're so right.' And I've never seen the show, but I just knew of him. And yeah, so I followed him and he followed me and I just swan dove right on in."
Because their cinematic first kiss had her falling hard.
"He hopped out of his Bronco," she detailed during a return visit to Call Her Daddy in November 2023, "and he did not say a word to me, and he grabbed my face and he kissed me and he pulled my face away and he said, 'Thank God you're real.'"
And soon they were logging enough outings together—the College Football National Championship game in January 2023, their red carpet debut at the 2023 CMT Music Awards in April and a trip to her hometown of Knoxville, Tenn., the following month—to craft an entire album's worth of love songs.
"He's the most emotionally intelligent man I've ever met in my life," she stressed on Call Her Daddy. "I keep telling him he's a man written by a woman."
And soon that woman putting pen to paper was her.
"'First Rodeo' is the first love song I wrote for Chase," she shared on an October 2024 episode of Today, promoting her fifth studio album PATTERNS. "Really, it’s essentially the first song where it’s kind of like, 'Okay, I feel a little fragile, I feel a little scared to open myself up to the capacity that I want to, but I love love, and I really love you.'"
In fact, she admitted at her listening party that same month, "I would argue that this is the most love-filled record I've ever made. I think the presence of love in every song is at the forefront."
And should anyone have a problem with them peeling back the most, uh, outer banks of their relationship...
"Sometimes it feels like maybe it's an oversharing situation, or maybe there's a lot of details," he acknowledged in an exclusive interview with E! News in 2024, "but I truthfully believe that my personal life is really, really private."
Their feeds certainly display the highlights. "We've been really fortunate in this recent chapter," he said of having Kelsea join him on set or making the trip to Nashville when she's deep in music-making mode, "that our busy seasons have not overlapped."
But there have been plenty of private moments to treasure.
"We've done FaceTime date nights," Chase revealed, "where we'll pick a cuisine and then figure out, 'Do we want to do red wine tonight? Do we want to do a white wine or are we just drinking water?' So, we have found beautiful ways to make distance at times work."
As for whether they saw themselves in it for the long haul, "I would never say never to anything," Kelsea told E! News' Keltie Knight in October 2024. "Anything that I've said a hard no to in my life, I have come back and challenged myself on."
And Chase is "such a pillar of this record and obviously of my life," she continued. "I feel like it was this beautiful ode to him and to us."
Though they've since fallen out of harmony, it seems likely that Kelsea's fans will be treated to more ballads (or possibly a few breakup anthems) in the future.
Until then, relive all the times Kelsea and Chase truly loved each other like they meant it.
December 2022: Shooting Her Shot
Kelsea Ballerini slid into Chase Stokes' DMs on Dec. 1, 2022 at 1:30 a.m. while she was out drunk with friends at a bar.
They eventually met up in person for the first time on Jan. 7, 2023, which she considers their anniversary.
"He hopped out of his Bronco, and he did not say a word to me," Kelsea later recalled on Call Her Daddy in November 2023, "and he grabbed my face and he kissed me and he pulled my face away and he said, 'Thank God you're real.'"
December 2022: Shooting Her Shot
Their romance blossomed after that first DM, which Kelsea shared in September 2023.
January 2023: Romance Rumors
The two huddled up to watch the University of Georgia dominate Texas Christian University at the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship in California.
January 2023: First Date Nerves
In August 2023, Kelsea posted footage of the beginning of their relationship, sharing a throwback clip on TikTok of herself preparing for their first official date on Jan. 7, 2023.
"Happy weekend," she captioned the post, "heres a video i sent to my best friend before my first date with chase."
Set to her song "How Do I Do This," which is about going on a first date after many years, Kelsea modeled her outfit in the video.
"Here's the look, with the boots" Kelsea said while checking herself out in a full-length mirror.
Turning around to showcase her half-up, half-down hairstyle, she added, "We've got the hair clip, because we're trying to be a cool girl."
She continued speaking to an unnamed friend, explaining, "He's picking me up and we're going to a sushi place and I'll call you tomorrow and for a full update."
Taking a deep breath and raising one arm and finger in the air, she finally said, "I can do this. I can do this."
And, after doing a little dance, she proclaimed, "It's just a date. You just go and you just eat food and you talk about things that you do, OK?"
February 2023: Instagram Cuteness
Chase shared a pic of himself and Kelsea showing some PDA.
April 2023: Red Carpet Debut
The pair officially hard launched their pairing, stepping out as a couple at the CMT Music Awards in Texas.
April 2023: Broadway Baby
Days later, the duo attended the premiere party for the Broadway musical Shucked at New York City's Capitale.
May 2023: Hometown Visit
Chase joined Kelsea on a trip to her hometown of Knoxville, Tenn.
July 2023: PDA Alert
The two attended Armani Beauty's ACQUA DI GIO and Gen A celebration in Malibu, Calif.
July 2023: The Sweetest Surprise
Chase shocked Kelsea when he unexpectedly greeted her at the airport, with both stars posting video and photos from their adorable reunion.
August 2023: Ciao Bella
The couple only had eyes for one another at a Venice Film Festival event.
August 2023: NYC Date Night
While in NYC to perform on TODAY, the singer scheduled in a date night with her No. 1 fan.
"It's just nice to feel so supported and seen," Kelsea said on the show of Chase, "and, yeah, he's such a wonderful, wonderful human being."
September 2023: Birthday Love
To commemorate Kelsea's 30th birthday on Sept. 12, 2023 Chase posted a carousel of photos and videos of the three-time Grammy nominee.
"Dirty 30 looks pretty damn good on you ballerini," he captioned the series. "i love you."
September 2023: Red Hot
Making it a red-letter day, the pair celebrated Kelsea's birthday by coordinating on the carpet at the 2023 MTV VMAs.
September 2023: VMAs PDA
And, yes, they shared a birthday kiss.
September 2023: Couple's Selfie
Kelsea unveiled this pic on Chase's 31st birthday days later.
September 2023: A Black Tie Affair
Kelsea and Chase were dressed to the nines when they attended designer Giorgio Armani's One Night Only event in Venice, Italy.
The singer-songwriter and the Outer Banks star shared images of their getaway on Instagram, including snaps from a cooking class and lounging at the beach.
September 2023: All Smiles
Kelsea shared this behind-the-scenes look from the event.
November 2023: Loving Like They Mean It
Kelsea planted a smooch on Chase's cheek at the CMA Awards in November 2023.
November 2023: Sex Confession
Kelsea revealed details of their sex life in November 2023, telling Alex Cooper on Call Her Daddy, "I'm having a nice time."
In the past, "my experience with it was very performative and for the other person," she noted. "And it don't be like that anymore."
The musician didn't understand how sex could be "a real connector in a relationship" before dating Chase.
"I always thought that it was just something that you did because that's who you do it with," the Grammy nominee shared. "Now I realize it's a connector for people."
January 2024: Chase's Anniversary Post
"One year of lovin you," the actor wrote. "P.s. told ya I wouldn’t embarrass you."
January 2024: Naughty Selfie
"A whole trip around the sun with my bestie," Kelsea wrote in her anniversary post. "@hichasestokes thanks for making me write love songs."
January 2024: Happy Anniversary
A year after calling dibs on each other's hearts, they celebrated their love.
January 2024: Watching the Sunset
Kelsea shared this romantic pic from their anniversary celebration.
May 2024: In Full Bloom
Kelsea and Chase didn't sleep on their chance to make a strong Met Gala debut, arriving to the famed Metropolitan Museum of Art steps for the opening of the "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion" exhibition in coordinated Michael Kors looks.
September 2024: Red Carpet Date Night
Kelsea joined her boyfriend at the premiere of his Netflix movie Uglies.
February 2025: Hitting the Right Notes
She may have walked away from the 2025 Grammys a three-time loser, her and "Cowboys Cry Too" collaborator Noah Kahan joking about being bested by Beyoncé and Miley Cyrus’ “II Most Wanted." But Kelsea brought her own prize to the awards show.
September 2025: Break Up
After nearly three years together, the duo officially called it quits on their relationship.