Kelsea Ballerini is stepping into a new kind of spotlight. The 32-year-old country star has been tapped to judge and host the Amplify Your Ambitions Contest, a brand-new singing competition backed by digital financial institution SoFi.
The contest will award an aspiring musician a $200,000 grand prize on June 4, with two runners-up each taking home $50,000. Ballerini will weigh in alongside Vivian Tu, SoFi’s chief of financial empowerment, and songwriter Shane McAnally, bringing music-world experience to a competition built around helping new talent get heard.
For Ballerini, the appeal is less about handing down verdicts than about lifting artists up. She said she plans to be more encouraging than judgmental, and wants to help give perspective and “gas people up.” She also said she loves finding artists who have written a song she has never heard before, calling that kind of discovery inspiring.
That instinct lines up with how she has handled similar situations before. Ballerini previously served as a guest coach on The Voice, and said she told contestants not to follow her advice if it did not feel right to them. Her view, she said, is that the best thing an artist can be is authentic, even while remaining open to guidance.
The setup gives the contest a familiar frame, but with a different emphasis. Where many singing competitions lean hard on critique, this one is being presented as a way to support aspiring musicians, and Ballerini’s role suggests the judges will be looking for promise as much as polish. The real test comes on June 4, when one entrant walks away with the top prize and the chance to turn ambition into something larger.