Country star Kelsea Ballerini has publicly defended rising singer Stella Lefty after a backstage video from the Grand Ole Opry drew criticism online rather than praise. The clip showed Lefty performing her viral hit "Boston" with two young St. Jude Children's Research Hospital patients following her Opry debut, but many commenters focused instead on accusations that Lefty is a "nepo baby" or "industry plant", and on her song's interpolation of Noah Kahan's "Stick Season". Ballerini, an Opry member since 2019, stepped in to argue such criticism was misplaced given the moment's charitable context, and to defend the venue's tradition of welcoming diverse styles of country music.

Lefty's song "Boston" has become a breakthrough hit despite the backlash, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, and her connection to the cause is personal, as her mother was diagnosed with cancer when she was 13. Ballerini wrote in the comments that the Opry should celebrate "all kinds of country music… new, old, traditional, current", and urged critics to focus on the fact that the video showed Lefty singing to seriously ill children rather than debating her industry credentials. The visit continued a long-running relationship between country music and St. Jude, built through the Country Cares initiative founded by Alabama's Randy Owen, which has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for the hospital.