Ariana Grande, ex-nickelodeon actress, now A-list pop star, songwriter and actress, is one of the most influential celebrities today, scoring the role as Glinda in the upcoming Wicked film adaptation. However, her alleged homewrecking and cheating scandal has casual listeners as well as diehard stans, or “arianators,” conflicted as to where to stand. The long awaited release of Grande’s seventh album, titled eternal sunshine solidified that she isn’t going anywhere, and that she will remain mainstream despite her scandals.
Allegations
In July 2023, an alleged homewrecking and cheating scandal involving Grande and her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater flooded the internet. Allegedly Grande and Slater cheated on their respective spouses with each other whilst in London filming Wicked. Although the timeline of the relationships ending and beginning is unclear, both Grande and Slater claimed that they were separated from their respective spouses prior to the two’s romantic relationship becoming official. Grande had been married to luxury real estate agent Dalton Gomez at the time, and Slater, also known for his role in Spongebob Squarepants: the Spongebob Musical, had just had a baby with his high school sweetheart, Lily Jay. Jay spoke out against the two’s relationship in an interview with Page Six, she exclaimed that Grande is not a “girls girl,” and that her family is just “collateral damage.” Things hit the fan when Jay also revealed that the three of them had hung out together in London multiple times prior to news of the affair, and that the alleged homewrecker even held their baby.
News of the affair spread like the plague. Those who partake in actions deemed immoral by the internet gods face a terrible fate: being canceled. But in less chronically-online terms, to say the internet was ripping Grande and her new boyfriend to shreds is an understatement. Grande’s previous relationships and cheating allegations had begun to circulate again as a result of this most recent scandal, fans pointing out that the pop star has a pattern of cheating and homewrecking, again, allegedly.
yes, and?
On January 12th, 2024, Grande released the first and only single of her seventh album. The single titled “yes, and?” seemed to be making a mockery of the allegations, as lyrics seem to brag about her new relationship. After hearing “yes, and?” I did not have high expectations for the rest of the album. I didn’t think there would be anything Grande could release that would make people forget about her actions. The rest of the internet seemed to share my sentiment as fans, casual listeners and the star herself were all quiet on twitter during the week of the albums release.
eternal sunshine
On March 8th, AG7, titled eternal sunshine was released. I only remembered about the album after seeing people talk about it on twitter. To my surprise, everyone was talking about how amazing it was, one person even tweeting that it was her best work. Intrigued, I immediately paused my world and hit play. And wow, it was a beautiful listen. Although the album is only 36 minutes long, it tells the story of vulnerability in relationships based on Grande’s life experiences. In the intro, titled “intro (end of the world),” Grande asks a question: “How can I tell if I’m in the right relationship?”
Each following song responds to this question in a different way, one of the best being the 10th song on the album “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” of which Evan Peters stars as Grande’s love interest in the music video. The song and video depicts a failed relationship as Grande, named Peaches in the video, attempts to burn her memory. The answer Grande is seeking comes at the very end in the 13th and last song “ordinary things,” where Grande’s Nonna responds and tells listeners to always kiss your significant other goodnight, and if you can’t, you’re in the wrong place.
So, am i allowed to like ariana grande?
In real life, it’s hard to forgive a cheater or homewrecker. It’s something I’d 100% call a friend out on, and I’d even question my friendship with said person. Grande, however, is not my friend. So should she be held at the same standard that I would hold my friends at? No. Artists should be enjoyed for their art, and not necessarily their personal actions or relationships. When I think of Grande I don’t automatically think of her scandals, I know her for her ponytail, Cat Valentine and her out-of-this-world vocals. Is Grande a model citizen? Absolutely not. But is she one of the greatest vocalists we’ve ever had and should we cherish that? Absolutely yes
