Just over a month ago, Ariana Grande dropped her latest hit single “thank u, next.” This is a song all about loving yourself, learning lessons and moving on. After listening to the song constantly on repeat, we’ve been dreaming of the day when the music video is released. For the past two weeks, Grande has been dropping hints on her Instagram that the “thank u, next” music video was going to be big, as she was decked out in some iconic costumes from Bring It On, Legally Blonde, 13 going on 30, and Mean Girls.
Then the trailer dropped and the anticipation became higher as the opening of the music video resembled an exact scene from Mean Girls with several (famous) people talking about a rumor they heard about Grande.
We all knew a teaser this good would only have us wanting more. And that, Grande delivered.
Concept
The movies Mean Girls, Legally Blonde, Bring It On, and 13 Going on 30 perfectly described the lyrics in “thank u, next.” It’s amazing to see Big Sean, Ricky Alverez, and Pete Davidson featured in the iconic burn book during the lyrics, “One taught me love, one taught me patience, one taught me pain.”
The video has us follow Grande as she hops around between iconic movie scenes as each part corresponds to the lyrics. You see her growing in confidence and happiness throughout. She even breaks it down with Paulette from Legally Blonde. Rom-Coms were a great choice to represent the lyrics, showing that these characters have to grow in some sort of manner and realize that they don’t need a man in their life to be happy. Thank you, next.
Visuals
The music video was overall stunning. Grande looked great as every character, especially as Elle Woods (my own personal belief).
The music video made me feel like I was watching the actual movies. The lighting, the costumes, the props, the “Jingle Bell Rock” dance, etc. She made sure to include everything iconic about these movies.
Hype-Factor
The music video lived up the hype. We had cameos for days, featuring some of Grande’s castmates from Victorious: Liz Gillies, Matt Bennett and Daniella Monet.
The video also featured Jennifer Coolidge (Elle Wood’s lovable friend, Paulette) and Kris Jenner as the iconic role of Mrs. George, originally played by Amy Poehler.
What more could we ask for in a music video?
For the first time I was actually hyped for the release of the music video. It’s worth the view and won’t let you down. You will be left feeling cheery, your heart will be happy and you’ll be ready to tell the next boy that looks at you, “thank u, next.” The music video will rank “thank u, next” as an iconic song of 2018. Imagine in 2028 when we will be celebrating the song’s 10th anniversary. Hopefully this popstar will do even bigger things to blow this song and video out of the water.