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Kelsea Ballerini addressed those speaking out about her reported breakup with Chase Stokes, her boyfriend of nearly three years, on TikTok on Tuesday afternoon (September 23).
Ballerini, 32, kept her message brief. She set a 15-second clip to Ariana Grande’s “shut up,” and wrote in her caption: “cc: speculators, ‘sources’, and hidden cameras outside the hair salon. let us be. please. ❤️🩹” Many commenters began offering messages of support for the singer-songwriter within the first hour of the TikTok going live.
A representative for Ballerini confirmed the breakup to PEOPLE when unnamed sources “close to the couple” told the publication on September 14 that Ballerini and Stokes, 33, had called it quits. The sources said at that time that Ballerini and Stokes are “two adults who gave it their all and tried to do everything they could to make it work, but ultimately couldn’t. It happens.” Since then, unnamed sources have spoke to US Weekly about the couple’s relationship, and E! News reported that Ballerini was seen leaving the salon in Nashville, Tennessee.
Neither Ballerini nor Stokes have publicly opened up about the breakup.
Ballerini and Stokes started talking when she sent him a DM on Instagram in December 2022. They first sparked dating rumors when Stokes posted a photo of the two sitting closely together at the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2023 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Ballerini confirmed the new relationship in an interview on Call Her Daddy. Since then, the country star and the Outer Banks actor have shared glimpses of sweet moments in their relationship. Two days before PEOPLE reported the breakup, Stokes shared a birthday tribute to “my love,” Ballerini, and said he was “lookin forward to more of this.”