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What To Know
- Kelsea Ballerini released her six-song EP Mount Pleasant on Friday, November 14.
- Fans think the song “Emerald City” is about her jealousy over Chase Stokes’ ex Madelyn Cline.
- Stokes and Ballerini briefly split earlier this year, and he’s been working with Cline on Season 5 of Outer Banks for several months.
Kelsea Ballerini is pouring her heart out about the most personal topics on her new six-song EP Mount Pleasant, which was released on Friday, November 14. Among the songs are two tracks, “Emerald City” and “587,” that appear to be about issues she was facing in her relationship with Chase Stokes over the summer.
While Us Weekly recently reported that the two had gotten back together, reports that they split after more than two years together surfaced in September. On “587,” Ballerini references fights about “missed calls from exes, past life connections, and who’s more impressive” as the reason for “a little more space between us.”
But it’s lyrics from “Emerald City” that really have fans buzzing. On that track, Ballerini sings about feeling “green” with envy about a lover’s ex, and fans think it was inspired by Stokes and Madelyn Cline, who spent the summer filming the final season of Outer Banks together. Scroll down for everything we know.
Is ‘Emerald City’ about Madelyn Cline?
While Ballerini does not outright name the inspiration for the track, there are lyrics that fans have pulled out to back up the speculation. Right off the bat, Ballerini sings, “Always like the color of my eyes ’til I knew she had brown, I’m green.” Indeed, Cline’s eyes are brown. She then goes into the lyric, “Always liked my naïve innocence ’til I learned she got around,” which fans have attributed to the various public relationships Cline’s been rumored to be in following her split from Stokes (she’s been linked to Pete Davidson, Zack Bia, Jackson Guthy, and Prince Constantine-Alexios.)
Later, in the bridge, Ballerini says, “I’m good as gold, but when she’s around, my true color comes out,” which would line up with the fact that Stokes and Cline have been spending time together professionally this year.
Overall, the lyrics are inspired by feelings of jealousy, with Ballerini singing, “If I got you, why does she still get me? I hate to say it, but damn it she’s pretty,” and, “I’m just a girl, kinda jealous, kinda insecure, and I hate how it takes me down an old road where she used to be yours.”
Are Kelsea Ballerini and Madelyn Cline friends?
The feelings of jealousy and insecurity referenced in the song don’t completely line up with what Ballerini has said in the past about Cline, though. In fact, she was in a relationship with Stokes while Season 4 of Outer Banks was filming in 2023 and 2024, and had nothing but positive things to say about Cline at the time.
“I met her and I talked to her and she’s lovely. And I think she’s wildly talented,” the “Peter Pan” singer said on the Call Her Daddy podcast in 2023. “And I think the internet did its best to make it really weird, and it just didn’t work for them. I’m stoked to be on set and vibe with everyone. At the end of the day, I’m a girl’s girl. I don’t buy into the bulls**t, and I don’t buy into, especially, the loud, echo chamber of pop culture trying to make a thing out of nothing. I think they have a beautiful working relationship and I’m excited to hang with her.”
She also clarified, “It’s not weird. Everyone’s good.”
When Season 4 of Outer Banks dropped, Ballerini filmed a TikTok about the show’s characters, and when she got to Cline’s Sarah Cameron, she said, “So hot. So hot. We stan Sarah Cameron and Madelyn Cline in this house.” The ladies also gushed over each other on social media after their first meeting at the VMAs in 2023. “You looked a ridiculous level of stunning and i’m glad i finally got to hug your neck,” commented on Cline’s photo, with the actress replying, “So happy I got to squeeze you gorgeous gorgeous girl.”
Why did Chase Stokes and Madelyn Cline split?
Stokes and Cline met while filming Season 1 of Outer Banks in 2019. After the show came out in April 2020, fans began speculating that they had an offscreen romance based on flirty social media comments. They confirmed the relationship that June.
However, in November 2021, news broke that the two had split after more than a year together. While the two have never confirmed the reason for the breakup themselves, a source told Us Weekly, “They both have busy schedules, which made it hard for them to spend a lot of time together.”
Jackson Lee Davis / Netflix
Despite the breakup, the two continued working together for four more years, even with their characters being love interests on the show. They’ve both publicly spoken about how they’ve maintained a friendship since the split and vowed to remain professional on set.
“Maddie and I have really always made it a point that this show and these characters are components of our life that changed everything for us,” Stokes told InStyle. “If we were not to honor that, we would be dishonoring ourselves and a lot of people who have invested into this show and these characters.” He also added, “One thing that’s always stood true for her and I is that the show is our first love.”
Meanwhile, Cline told People, “We’ve said from day one, our job is always to leave the show and the season better than when we left it last. And everybody is still very much a family. Outer Banks has always been a family. And I’m just happy that we are able to remain professional.”
