“Love Me Like You Mean It”
Kelsea Ballerini
Written by Kelsea Ballerini, Lance Carpenter, Josh Kerr, and Forest Glen Whitehead
This sounds like a demo recording for a Taylor Swift album that will never be recorded.
Credit to Kelsea Ballerini for co-writing her single and for not getting vocally lost in the shuffle of a fairly busy production. I suppose there’s some promise underneath all of the proceedings here, and there’s nothing inherently awful about any of it.
But it takes a special kind of narcissistic charm to pull off a laundry list of requests for a potential beau, and she has neither the outsize personality or outsize list of demands to pull this off. It would’ve worked better if she’d gone the vulnerable angle instead of the “I mean business” one, which she simply doesn’t have the assertiveness to convincingly convey.
It’s so milquetoast that it’s more like “Take it or Leave it” than “Love Me Like You Mean It.”
Grade: C-
Can’t argue here with a C-. I like her voice she in my opinion has a pretty strong singing voice. The lyrics though are dismissal. She goes about being used by liars and users, yet she says in the opening verse “Oh Hey boy with your hat back” I wonder who she’s referring to. The production I don’t have a huge issue with really yeah it’s pop sounding but it doesn’t make me angry exactly. It’s just bland really nothing bad nothing good. She has a voice kinda similar to Taylor Swift where while it’s not country sounding sounds pretty good nonetheless.
Ultimately this to me is poor songwriting which really brings it down. On second thought I’ll be generous since the females are lagging in country music and she might be our best chance ( or Raelynn but come on that girl can’t even sing anything) of having more females she’s the one who could lead the plethora of new female solo songs like Mickey Guyton Kacey Musgraves Jana Kramer Cam and Ashley Monroe. All these songs are on the charts as we speak along with Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lamberts offerings.
For Kelseas song Grade C. A very low C but still a C nonetheless.
Chart Prediction it’s already nearing the Top 20. Ultimately I’m gonna predict her song ranging from the max peak of 7 to the lowest I see like a 13. If she gets that far I’ll be happy cause we could have a future female hit maker and to be honest given the current climate we need one NOW!!!!!!!
Good call on needing that “narcissistic charm” to pull this off. That’s something I feel like Shania had loads of (“Gonna Getcha Good”). Ballerini…close, but no cigar.
not terrible but not worth a second listen.
Actually on second listen this is just so catchy man my gosh she has such a high amount of sass and energy in her performance. I think at this time I’m willing to take any female singer just so we can have more women in there. She just comes off so cheery and happy in her performance I really am kinda excited for her debut album.
When it comes out do you think of one of you guys could review it.
On second thought this grade for me I’m gonna bump it up to a B-. Pure radio fluff but man it’s infectious and I like it.
This is passable fare – I think a C sounds about right – the voice seems to be okay, but this song is not a good test of her vocal prowess
Am I like the only one who finds it weird that she might be the female that sticks in radio her song is doing abnormally healthy and looks to enter the Top 10 sooner than later I’m really hoping she sticks because she’s just so lovable I’ve been requesting this like crazy hopefully Kelsea Ballerini Mickey Guyton Cam Jana Kramer can hopefully breakout and stick.
Go Kelsea go Kelsea you’ve got a fan out of me.