Ariana Grande Reveals Some of Her Favorite Things in New Women Empowerment Anthem '7 Rings'
Ariana Grande doesn’t need a man, she’s got her friends — and bling!
On Friday just after midnight on the East Coast, the pop star released her newest single “7 Rings” from her upcoming fifth album.
The R&B track was heavily inspired by “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music and it speaks to Grande’s strong friendships and new sense of independence following a difficult year that included the death of ex-boyfriend Mac Miller and her whirlwind failed romance with Pete Davidson.
“Wearing a ring but ain’t gon’ be no missus /Bought matching diamonds for six of my bitches, I’d rather spoil all my friends with my riches/Think retail therapy my new addiction,” Grande, 25, sings in the empowerment anthem, before affirming, “I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it.”
She even makes a nod to her emotional year, singing, “Been through some bad s—/I should be a sad bitch/Who would’ve thought it’d turn me to a savage/Rather be tied up with gauze and not strings/Write my own checks like I write what I sing.”
WARNING: VIDEO BELOW INCLUDES EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
The singer previously revealed in a tweet that the “7 Rings” belonged to her best pals, Victoria Monét, Tayla Parx, Courtney Chipolone, Njozma, Alexa Luria, and Kaydence, who were all featured in the music video.
She also explained that her mother Joan Grande and her Nonna Marjorie Grande also own rings, making the total nine — “but they got theirs after song was done,” Grande said.
Prior to releasing the song on Friday, Grande gathered a majority of her seven friends together for a celebration, in which they proudly showed off the sparkling jewels on their fingers.
“Y !!! 5 out of 7 tonight,” wrote Grande on her Instagram Stories, adding that they missed their two pals who had to miss out on the gathering.
Grande first opened up about the inspiration behind “7 Rings” in her Billboard “Woman of the Year” cover story in December.
“It was a… challenging fall day in New York,” Grande told the music magazine of writing the track, likely alluding to her the aftermath of her breakup with Davidson.
“Me and my friends went to Tiffany’s together, just because we needed some retail therapy,” Grande said in the interview, revealing she gave diamond rings to her pals.
“You know how when you’re waiting at Tiffany’s they give you lots of champagne? They got us very tipsy, so we bought seven engagement rings, and when I got back to the studio I gave everybody a friendship ring,” she explained. “That’s why we have these, and that’s where the song idea came from.”
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The song will appear on the Grammy nominee’s upcoming fifth album thank u, next, and comes on the heels of the previously released title track and “imagine.”
Grande dropped “thank u, next” in November. The upbeat break-up anthem, which she referred to as an “acceptance” song after having experienced love, patience, and pain from her past relationships, became Grande’s first track to top the Hot 100 chart, where it remained No. 1 for seven weeks.
The song found Grande reviewing her past romances with dancer Ricky Alvarez, rapper Big Sean, Miller, and Davidson. In the lyrics, she praises all of them for helping fuel her personal growth.
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And she kept that theme going with “imagine,” which she dropped less than a month later in December.
The R&B pop ballad — which featured the singer showing off her impressive range — touched upon her reflection of what-ifs and if-onlys in regards to her “failed yet important beautiful relationships.”
Fans quickly picked up on the song’s references, which seemingly recalled her relationship with Miller. From his “Imagine” tattoo to lyrical allusions to their first kiss, Buzzfeed outlined the ways Grande paid tribute to her late ex.
“For those of you asking about imagine: i would say if ‘thank u, next’ = acceptance… ‘imagine’ = denial. hope that makes sense,” she explained on her Instagram Stories. “kind of like… pretending it never ended. denial. but i look forward to you hearing it and having your own experience with it. you may take away something totally different and specific to your life! love u.”
