Exes and Pop Stardom

I’ve talked about some of my favorite music artists in this blog such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Mac Miller, however I have yet to talk about Ariana Grande, my favorite singer in the pop category. Growing up in the 2000’s, I was introduced to Ariana Grande through Nickelodeon when she played Cat on the kids shows “Victorious”  and “Sam and Cat”.

After her acting career, she began switching her focus strictly to music-making. Her early albums resembled a childish, bubbly-pop sound, but she soon discovered her own sound in later albums. Her style started shifting from bubble pop to songs with more modern, rap, and R&B elements.

In August 18, 2018, Ariana released the Sweetener album, and five months later released the album “Thank U, Next”. In the time between the two albums were released, Ariana’s ex-boyfriend Mac Miller passed away of a drug overdose and her engagement with Pete Davidson was called off. As a result of these two heartbreaks, she created the “Thank U, Next” album in a spur of emotions and artistic expression.

Specifically, in the title song of “Thank U, Next”, Ariana touches the topic of all her past relationships, reflecting on each and every one. She shockingly calls out the names of every one of her exes:

Thought I’d end up with Sean
But he wasn’t a match
Wrote some songs about Ricky
Now I listen and laugh
Even almost got married
And for Pete, I’m so thankful
Wish I could say, “Thank you” to Malcolm
‘Cause he was an angel

As you can see, Ariana references every failed relationship in a relatively chronological order. In the third line, she references Ricky Alvarez, one of her first relationships, and also Big Sean, whom she’s collaborated with on songs such as “Problem” and “Right There”. In the 5th and 6th lines, she talks about Pete Davidson, an SNL comedian. She was engaged to Pete, however their relationship was very fast-paced and many thought their relationship was rushed, leading to an eventual breakup.

In the last lines, she discusses the loss of her ex Mac Miller, whom she had a two-year relationship with previous to Pete. She also references the pain caused from his death later on:

One taught me love
One taught me patience
And one taught me pain

In the first line, she might be referencing any of her first relationships which taught her how to love, and in the second, it’s speculated that she is talking about Pete. The “patience” could be a lesson learned from the rushed nature of the relationship. In the last, she is obviously referencing Mac, as he struggled with substance abuse which led to his demise, causing great pain and loss for Ariana.

Ariana’s music has proved to be greatly diverse and enriched with meaning and life experiences. I also became interested in Mac Miller’s music around the same time I started listening to Ariana, so I find it interesting to see overlap when enjoying their music. Overall, I think that Ariana Grande is one of the best pop vocalists in this generation and I will continue to listen to her new releases!

References:

https://genius.com/Ariana-grande-thank-u-next-lyrics

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thank_U,_Next#:~:text=Thank%20U%2C%20Next%20was%20released,released%20on%20August%2017%2C%202018.