Kelsea Ballerini Admits She Couldn't Afford an Award Show Dress Early in Her Career. This Star Helped Her Out (Exclusive)

• Kelsea Ballerini spoke about a time fellow woman in country Hillary Scott helped her out
• "She let me come over and raid her closet" ahead of an award show," the singer said of the Lady A star
• Ballerini covers the latest issue of PEOPLE

Kelsea Ballerini is grateful for the community of women that have rallied around her in Nashville.

"I think one of the things that made my music work early on was the fact that women that came before me didn't just hold space for me, but they were loud about it for me," the Voice coach, 31, tells PEOPLE.

Since she broke out over a decade ago, Ballerini — who is currently on the road for her first headlining arena tour — has made friends with many artists and icons she grew up listening to, including Lady A singer Hillary Scott, 39.

In fact, Scott "really became a mentor for me early on, and I couldn't afford a dress to an award show in Nashville," Ballerini recalls of the "Need You Now" singer.

"She let me come over and raid her closet, and she gave me a hand-me-down dress that she had worn. I felt so pretty because she took the time to dress me for this event, because she wanted me to feel seen, and she wanted me to feel good going into these moments. To have those people in your life that are your peers and the people that pave the way for you to be able to have those kind of touch points with — it's been one of the greatest gifts of my career."

Over the years, Ballerini also recruited some of her idols to duet with her, including Kenny Chesney ("Half of My Hometown") and Shania Twain ("Hole in the Bottle").

"I never want to act like I'm too cool to be in a room with someone that I'm actually freaking out about, even after I get to know people — Shania being one, Kenny [Chesney] being one," the "First Rodeo" singer says. "There's something about never losing touch with, 'I grew up on your music. You made me want to do this.' And then being able to switch gears also and do a song with someone like that and be able to have a texting relationship with someone like that and be able to go to advice and have wine with."

Adds Ballerini: "I'll never forget when Shania invited me to sing with her at Stagecoach. Taylor [Swift] tweeting about my first EP before 'Love Me Like You Mean It' hit Top 40 changed my career. Trisha Yearwood has been someone for me that, even in quiet moments, in moments where it wasn't a big flashy thing, checked in on me."

Little Big Town's Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman have also been sources of support for Ballerini, who is nominated for several awards, including entertainer of the year, at the 2025 ACM Awards.

According to a recent study, only about eight percent of songs played on country radio in 2024 were by women, which makes Ballerini's latest tour even more of a feat.

“Historically there’s not a lot of women in our genre that have made that jump to arenas,” she says. “I had to do it right because I couldn’t fail — not just for myself but because I want to contribute to the history of women in country music.”

Karen Fairchild — who co-wrote seven tracks with Ballerini for her latest album, Patterns — says she’s doing just that.

“We really need Kelsea in country music. Women need someone to tell their stories, now more than ever. She’s that girl that says the hard things and shows them they can come out on the other side,” Fairchild says. “She’s deeply connected to what her fans are going through. That’s a gift, and it’s the reason why she’s selling out arenas.”

For more on Kelsea Ballerini, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday.