Long gone are the donut-licking days of 2015 for Ariana Grande as she has proven with her latest single that she can do no wrong. Just 20 days after splitting from her ex-fiancé Pete Davidson, she’s done a Taylor Swift and written a break-up anthem about her past relationships. Titled thank u, next, the singe is not just catchy (a truth we can't deny) but also a mature response to our the toxic break-up culture.
‘Thought I'd end up with Sean, but he wasn't a match. Wrote some songs about Ricky, now I listen and laugh,’ the lyrics read, before she namechecks her two most recent exes, Pete and Mac Miller, ‘Even almost got married, and for Pete I'm so thankful. Wish I could say, "Thank you" to Malcolm, 'cause he was an angel’
The song is all about learning from your relationships, the good and the bad, and growing from it to ultimately have a better relationship with yourself above everyone else. In fact, fans jumped quickly to conclusions about a new person in Ariana’s romantic life when she sang ‘Plus, I met someone else, we havin' better discussions. I know they say I move on too fast, but this one gon' last’, before ultimately realising she was talking about herself after she added ‘Cause her name is Ari’. There was a quick moment there where everyone thought she said Aubrey and the earth stood still thinking she meant Drake, but thankfully she did not (Ari really doesn’t need the Drake curse right now).
It’s not just that the song is an absolute banger though, which it is, it’s the fact that she’s managed to take on Pete milking their breakup dry on SNL, the torrents of abuse she got after Mac Miller died accusing her of worsening his pain by moving on so quickly and the endless unsolicited advice she gets from fans about her life choices (all in the last month, we might add) and turn it into something positive. Rather than be upset, angry or bitter - which most of us are guilty of feeling after a break-up, let alone everything else she’s dealing with - she’s chosen to focus on what she’s learnt and move on with love.
The true queen of turning pain into positivity, which she proved last year after hosting the One Love Benefit Concert two weeks after the Manchester Arena bombing, her new song is all about being grateful for life’s tragedies for how they make you a better person. In fact, her first song after the Manchester Bombing No Tears Left To Cry, was of a similarly positive note, receiving tons of praise from fans for her ability to uplift her fans despite the internal torment she must be going through.
Having been played over 8 million times on Spotify within the first day of its release, the song is set to be a smash hit, which she predicted in the lyrics singing ‘God forbid something happens, Least this song is a smash.’ It's also spurned about 800 different Twitter moments, from new fans wondering who the hell Ricky is (he was her back-up dancer on The Honeymoon Tour, whom she dated for over a year after breaking up with Big Sean) to the seemingly (and amazingly) petty timing of the single release, just 30 minutes before SNL aired- for which the teaser trailer showed Pete making yet another joke about proposing too soon (which she tweeted about earlier this week).
Honestly, after giving us so much amazing music, iconic style and the lessons in love and positivity that we all need, Ariana really deserves a Damehood. In fact, Ariana for President, we’re endorsing her right now.