Ariana has dropped her fifth album, ‘Thank U Next’ and along with her album she’s also released a new song called ‘Break Up With Your Boyfriend, I’m Bored’ but she has managed to get herself tangled up in some drama. In the video, it appears as though Ariana is jealous of a couple she sees in a club and though it appears as though she’s interested in the guy, towards the end of the video it’s revealed that the girl is equally enamoured with Ariana and they both lean in for a kiss, though the kiss is not depicted. Many people have accused Ariana of attempting to appeal to her LGBT audience without actually putting in the effort. Many have also dubbed her a “bisexual queen” though she has never made that aspect clear.
Queer-baiting is defined as, when there is an LGBT subtext in a form of media that is never made overt (i.e Dumbledore being gay) This has often been criticised by queer women who feel that it’s mainly made for the male gaze who fetishize the sexuality of LGBT women, especially when done by straight women .
Another theory for the video is that the girl is a reflection of Ariana herself, choosing to be with herself instead of the boy and she could also be alluding to her past relationships. But this does raise the question of LGBT representation in the media and when will society going to accept queer representation as the norm. While this isn’t Ariana’s first controversy she was recently accused of cultural appropriation for a misspelt hand tattoo. This might be a wake-up call to be more sensitive to the message she chooses to put out into the world.