Ariana Grande dropped a new song last night, right before her ex-fiance, Pete Davidson, took the stage on Saturday Night Live.
The new single, called ‘Thank U, Next’ references all of Ariana’s ex boyfriends including Mac Miller, Pete Davidson and Big Sean. Listen below.
The message of the song is clear: you live, you learn, you move on. Rather than being a diss-track about her recent love, Ariana’s only direct reference to Davidson is: “For Pete I’m so thankful”.
In a poignant line, the ‘Sweetener’ singer whose two year relationship with Mac Miller ended in May, four months before his death, sings: “Wish I could say thank you to Malcolm/ ’cause he was an angel”.
Earlier in the day, Ariana had dropped some heavy hints about her next music on social media, revealing the song’s title.
The pop star released her latest album ‘Sweetener’ in August. In a four-star review, NME said: “Ariana’s such a star that she can turn some of the album’s most left-field cuts into effortlessly charming pop gold.”
Grande answered fan questions on Twitter today (November 3), alerting fans to the fact the single would be coming soon, the next album – her fifth – will not feature any collaborations and that the track ‘Thank U, Next’ will be the last song on the album.
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
no not this one ? https://t.co/aUbQ3QTOuW
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
we jumping straight in ? https://t.co/jY9dlUYGpu
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
She also tweeted that the record will contain “no drags…. no shade….. jus love, gratitude, acceptance, honesty, forgiveness … and growth”. However, she did not give any clues as to the release date.
no drags…. no shade….. jus love, gratitude, acceptance, honesty, forgiveness … and growth ?
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
The ‘God Is A Woman’ singer also tweeted a screenshot of a track titled ‘thank u, next’.
— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) November 3, 2018
Fans were quick to note that Grande used the phrase ‘Thank U, Next’ after calling out her former fiance Pete Davidson over a Saturday Night Live sketch that poked fun at their very public breakup.
The split followed the death of Grande’s ex-boyfriend Mac Miller. She disabled comments on Instagram following an influx of angry comments in response to the news of his death.
In October, Grande announced that she was taking a break to “take care of myself for a lil while.” However, she has since told fans that she’s “ready” to head out on tour in support of ‘Sweetener’.
The singer recently spoke about feelings in a BBC Music special, opening up about her mental health and saying that her anxiety sometimes causes her to feel “guilty.”
In the interview with Davina McCall, the ‘Sweetener’ singer appeared visibly upset after watching a clip that saw the people of Manchester explaining how they have taken the singer to heart.