Carly Pearce Discusses 'Sisterhood' With Kelsea Ballerini, Other Female Artists

Carly Pearce and Kelsea Ballerini might be vying for the the same chart positions on the radio, but that's where the competition between the two stars ends. Pearce and Ballerini originally met in a support group for female artists, and quickly became close friends.

"We were all going around introducing ourselves and in those moments as a female, you kind of wanna, especially as a female artist, you kind of wanna puff your chest out and say something good about yourself so you feel confident in that moment," Pearce recalls (quote via Sounds Like Nashville). "[Kelsea] had just signed her record deal and put out 'Love Me Like You Mean It.'

"It got to me. I just lost my record deal, and I was like 'I'm Carly Pearce,' and I just started sobbing," she continues. "'I have no idea what I'm going to do.' And after that group, she gave me her phone number and we stayed in touch and that lead just to this sisterhood."

The support group also included rising star Jillian Jacqueline and others, who are still making a name for themselves.

"There was a bunch of other amazing women, too, that I know are still writing and recording," says Pearce. "But just to go from that room, where there were tears sometimes, and we didn't know what we were doing yet. And then to see it now.

"It feels like you know each other's journey, and you have each other's backs," adds Pearce. "And, you have to have that. There's no room for anything else."

Pearce won the CMT Music Award for Breakthrough Video of the Year, for her debut hit, "Every Little Thing," earning praise from her sisters in country music.

"If you would've seen my phone immediately it was Kelsea, and RaeLynn, and Cassadee Pope, and Maren [Morris]," Pearce reveals. "All the girls were genuinely happy and I think that we all want to see each other succeed because when one of us succeeds, it's all of us succeeding."

The 28-year-old is proud to be one of the females who has managed to get her music played on radio, and hopes to be an inspiration for others who feel discouraged by the current country music landscape.

"I think we have to show women and young girls that they have a voice, that they are strong, that they can have big dreams, and that no man should be able to tell them that they can do something," Pearce tells PopCulture.com. "I think with my story in particular; I had a lot of people tell me that I couldn't do it and, I persevered. I think that for anybody who has a dream, look at my story and understand, you can do it girl. Do it girls! You have a lot of grit."

Photo Credit: Instagram/kelseaballerini