Ariana Grande's 'Thank U, Next' Album: Everything We Know So Far
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We’re not even two weeks into the new year, and Ariana Grande is already breaking the Internet. The pop star did that quite a bit last year, whether it was with her song “Thank U, Next,” her relationship with Pete Davidson, or just, ya know, breathing. And 2019 is shaping up to be just as big. Not only is she headlining Coachella in April—she’ll be the fourth female and youngest person ever to do it—but new music is on the way. First up is the new song “7 Rings,” which Grande dropped on Friday (January 18).
The backstory of the song is interesting: Grande explained on Twitter that she and her six friends Vic, Courtney, Alexa, Tayla, Njomza, and Kaydence were having a “rough day” in New York City when they decided to hit Tiffany & Co. for a pick-me-up. (You know, as all rich people do.) “We had too much champagne. I bought us all rings,” Grande tweeted. “It was very insane and funny. And on the way back to the [studio], Njomza was like, ‘Bitch, this gotta be a song.’ So we wrote it that afternoon.”
As for the actual song, it’s a riff on “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music and celebrates friendship and money. Have a listen, and watch the pink-tastic video, for yourself, below:
Meanwhile, Grande’s Thank U, Next album is still shrouded in secrecy. Here’s everything we know so far:
1. The title. Grande confirmed it on November 3, when she revealed the phrase “Thank U, Next”—which she’d been tweeting a lot at that time—was both a song and album name.
2. The vibe. Billboard described the new sound as “deep, bass-driven bangers with trap beats alternating with airy, sad ballads.”
3. The track list. Three songs have been confirmed thus far: “Thank U, Next,” “7 Rings,” and “Imagine,” which was released as a promotional single.
4. It’s sad. But that doesn’t mean it’s slow. “A lot of it sounds really upbeat, but it’s actually a super-sad chapter,” she tells Billboard. “This [album’s] not particularly uplifting.”
5. Champagne helped make the record. Grande says Thank U, Next was the product of a lot of “feminine energy and champagne and music and laughter and crying,” according to Billboard.
6. There are no collaborations on the album. This will be Grande’s first album to feature just her.
7. The album is finished. Though Grande said she keeps “writing things she wants to add.” She teased the release would be at the end of 2018, so fans should definitely expect to hear it this year. Hopefully on the sooner side.
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