• Chase Stokes publicly posted a sweet birthday tribute to Kelsea Ballerini on Instagram just two days before their reported breakup.
  • The couple had been together for nearly three years, after Kelsea slid into Chase’s DMs in 2023.
  • Sources close to the couple say the split was mutual, as they both decided to part ways.

In case you haven’t made a hefty scroll on your social timelines yet, Chase Stokes and Kelsea Ballerini have reportedly called it quits. But, just two days before the news broke, the Outer Banks actor was fully out here thirsting over Kelsea in an Instagram post celebrating her birthday.

“Although you keep saying you’re not excited for 32, id say I’m lookin forward to more of this. happy birthday my love ❤️,” he wrote alongside snaps of him and Kelsea throughout the years.

Naturally, confused fans took to the comments section of his post in search of answers behind their seemingly sudden split. “Guys I need answers. Who else is here looking for ANSWERS!?” one fan wrote, while another added, “Say sike right now because I can’t take more bad news.”

The couple was together for nearly three years before their breakup, as Chase soft-launched the country cutie in an Instagram photo dump in January 2023.

Later that year, Kelsea got candid about how they met: by sliding into his Instagram DMs. “I’ve never seen his show, but I just knew of him, and I just swan dove right on in... His handle is ‘@hichasestokes’ and I said, ‘Hi, Chase Stokes,’” she told Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper during the podcast’s episode, which aired on November 29, 2023.

The “Penthouse” singer-songwriter even gushed about Chase, saying, “He’s the most emotionally intelligent man I’ve ever met in my life. I keep telling him he’s a man written by a woman.”


As for the reason behind their recent breakup? “They’re two adults who gave it their all and tried to do everything they could to make it work, but ultimately couldn’t. It happens,” a source close to the couple told People on Sunday, September 14.

The exact timeline of their split is unclear, but we’ll be keeping an eye out for statements from Chase and Kelsea.