My love for Ariana Grande started quite early at only nine years old. Like most people, I first discovered her through the Nickelodeon show “Victorious” that ran from 2010 to 2013. I fell in love with her quirky and bubbly character Cat, and was devastated when the show was cancelled. I didn’t have to mourn for long though, because before I knew it, Ariana Grande became the popstar of my generation. I sometimes feel as if I grew up with her, because for every era of my life, there is an Ariana album to go along with it. As a celebration of the release of her remix version of “Save Your Tears” by The Weeknd, here are my top five favourite Ariana Grande songs of all time — in no particular order.
- No Tears Left to Cry
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I can’t even lie; I think this might be one of my favourite songs of all time. I still remember the first time I heard this song. It was the tail end of high school and I came back home late at night after working overtime yet again with my yearbook class. This song made me feel so powerful and free; it was as if I could do anything as long as this song was playing in my ears. There are so many powerful positive affirmations hidden in the lyrics of the song, and it’s always a go-to whenever I need a pick-me-up.
- POV
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I can’t help but feel as if I’ve just walked through the ethereal gates of heaven when I listen to this song. This song, released in late 2020 as a part of her “Positions” album, talks about wanting to see herself through the eyes of her lover, because she’s unable to see in herself what he so admires about her. 2020 was a tough year that forced a lot of change into my life. With this song, as the year came to an end, I found myself finding hope in the search for love and peace within my life.
- R.E.M
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This is the song that finally made me cave and download Spotify Premium because I wanted to listen to it all the time. Dreamy and incessantly catchy, this song always takes me back to my first year of university. It wasn’t the happiest time in my life by any means, but I’d go back to that time just to hear this song for the first time again. This song serves as a reminder of living on my own for the first time and all of the tribulations and hilariously awkward moments that came with it. If I were to describe my first year in one song, it would be this one.
- The Way
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One of the first songs I heard from Ariana Grande after her “Victorious” and “Sam and Cat” era was this one. I remember being in seventh grade and playing this song on repeat, annoying the pants off of my entire family. This song holds that innocent nostalgic factor of just being young and experiencing puppy love for the first time. I still remember singing to this song at the top of my lungs and secretly dedicating it to my embarrassing crush on this one guy in my class. It was such an iconic time, both in the world and in my life, and this song always takes me back.
- Love Me Harder
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Imagine this: I’m in ninth grade. I’m intensely awkward, in need of a huge glow up, and simply don’t really know what to do with myself. Mine and my best friend’s idea of doing something “crazy” is sneaking into the movie theatre to watch “50 Shades of Grey.” Yeah, I know. Embarrassing. Whenever I think back to the era of early high school, “Love Me Harder” comes to mind. At age 14, I thought it was the most sensual music video of my generation and it definitely opened up the floodgates in my Wattpad-tainted mind. This song still relaxes me like no other and is often the soundtrack when I daydream.