Do you remember where you were when you heard that U.S. troops had withdrawn from Afghanistan in 2021? I recall that moment in my high school civics class, arguing against my male peers that we simply could not expect to invade a country, prop up its government for twenty years, and then leave without expecting that system to stand without our aid.

In the midst of controlled chaos, cooks peel mountains of vegetables, maids repolish tables and mantels, and the housekeeper, Mrs. Wilson, calls orders and organizes the humongous household, creating a serene environment by the time Lady Bridgerton arrived in her high-waisted silk dress and perfectly coiled curls. No thanks were offered to Mrs. Wilson nor any of the servants.

In her 2025 EP Mount Pleasant, Ballerini rewrites her narrative, devoid of patriarchal expectations and full of unbridled sincerity.