Ariana worked really hard on her August release, which was a sort of artistic decompression of the terror attack at her 2017 Manchester concert that killed 23 people.

It’s been six months since she dropped that LP, Sweetener.

Now we hear her brutal truth; a spontaneous, guttural reaction to the sudden death of her ex, Mac Miller, followed by the end of a tumultuous whirlwind romance with Pete Davidson.

The lead single and namesake definitely puts Ariana ABOVE the drama.

 

We’ve got Max Martin, Tommy Brown and Happy Perez on production; sampling N’Sync, playing on words with ‘NASA’ – flexing those vocal chords like Mariah – critics say this album perfectly captures and proudly displays Grande’s spontaneous burst of pure creativity – and she is here to serve.

From VARIETY:

At a critical stance, “Thank U, Next” is a lip-smacking dish… It doesn’t feel rushed, especially given the six-month gap from “Sweetener,” each track idealized and given a chef’s fingertip kiss. She’s as vocally demure as she was on “Sweetener,” to great effect: her voice sounds vibrant and prominent, without the flash, nothing to prove but with all the flair. The choices made are divergent but satiating, from the calming pull of strings on “Bad Idea” to the deficiency of percussion on the woozy hug “Ghostin.” – Steven J. Horowitz, Variety.

From the Guardian:

“this feels like the work of a pop star previously happy to act as conduit for other people, finally working out who they are and what they want to say. Here, Grande finds her voice.”

CLICK HERE to see the tracklist as well as Fader’s review.

 ‘Thank U, Next’ is being called her ‘defiant, brilliant best’ – this album was not made to please anyone but herself.

 

 

Ari and her family celebrated the album last night – but she’s been giving fans mad love online all day today – another act she’s celebrated for – this album came to life in the public eye. The heart ache the love, the pain the hurt – she wears it on her sleeve and pulls it off.

We’ve come to our final track, a single she blessed us with this morning accompanied by a very juicy video…. “Break up with your girlfriend, I’m bored.”

 

Filed under: 7 rings, album, Ariana Grande, listening party, New Music, reacting live, thank u next