MUSIC
Ariana Grande’s latest feels more like a mixtape than an album, but it’s all good, writes Pearl Boshomane Tsotetsi
Ariana Grande says: ’Thank u, next’
Last November, rumour was that Pete Davidson — Saturday Night
Live cast member and pop powerhouse Ariana Grande’s former fiancé — was going to reference his relationship with his famous ex on the show.
A few hours before the episode went live, Grande pipped him to the post by releasing Thank U, Next, a brilliant tune where she sings about her exes in the sweetest way possible, while dismissing them with a simple “thank you, next”. The song trended immediately and went on to become her most successful hit.
Now, less than six months after her previous album, the magnificent and cohesive Sweetener, Grande gives us
Thank U, Next the album. And while it has some great tunes, it lacks the continuity of Sweetener and feels more like a mixtape than an album.
That doesn’t mean it’s not worth listening to.
The 12-track record (who under the age of 55 still calls it a record?) opens with Imagine, a romantic slow jam where Grande shows off her vocal prowess, even taking it to another level by singing the bird whistle note (you know, the one Mariah Carey is famous for) four times.
She keeps the relaxed vibe with
Needy, which could be every water sign’s anthem (Grande is a Cancerian). On the snap-your-fingers-and-closeyour-eyes track, Grande owns her neediness and clinginess: “I can be needy, way too damn needy… tell me how good it feels to be needed.”
One of the highlights is Fake Smile, which masterfully samples Wendy Rene’s 1964 tune After Laughter. In the song Grande sings about pretending to be all right in public when she’s really just falling apart inside.
Ghostin’ is minimalist and dreamy, with Grande backed only by strings and harmonising voices. Bloodline is reminiscent of Grande’s Nicki Minaj 2016 collabo Side to Side, while In My
Head is about falling in love with an idealised version of someone rather than who they really are.
The mega-hit 7 Rings — which saw Grande accused of cultural appropriation and of copying rapper Princess Nokia — is one of the best bangers in Grande’s repertoire. The verses borrow the melody from Sound
of Music classic My Favourite Things and the chorus sounds a bit like Beyoncé’s Formation.
The song is an unapologetic threeminute ode to the joys of materialism and excess. “You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it,” Grande sings, before saying: “Whoever said money can’t solve your problems must not have had enough money to solve them.”
And that’s that on that.