Ariana Grande Releases New Single "thank u, next"

Ariana Grande is thankful...for her exes.

The singer-songwriter had a major surprise in store for fans on Saturday, November 3, when she announced her latest single titled “thank u, next” — as many Arianators predicted from her tweets throughout the weekend. The song, which dropped minutes before Saturday Night Live, opens with Ari mentioning several of her exes by name, including ex-fiancé Pete Davidson, who currently stars on SNL.

In the first verse, Ari sings: “Thought I’d end up with Sean / But he wasn’t a match / Wrote some songs about Ricky / Now I listen and laugh / Even almost got married / And for Pete I’m so thankful / Wish I could say thank you to Malcolm / Cause he was an angel.” In addition to Pete, the lyrics reference her exes Big Sean, Ricky Alvarez, and Mac Miller, the last of whom passed away in September.

The song goes on to talk about what Ariana has learned from each relationship — and how she’s ready for what’s ahead. “One taught me love / One taught me patience / And one taught me pain / Now I’m so amazing,” she sings, before moving onto the chorus with what’s become her iconic phrase: “Thank u, next.”

Ariana announced her newest single on both Twitter and Instagram, shortly after tweeting what turned out to be lyrics from the track.

Needless to say, fans were emotional about the song. “Ariana, this is the therapy i needed,” one person wrote on Twitter. Another praised the singer by writing: “You're the definition of turning the pain into power.” There were plenty of reaction gifs, tons of emojis, and several fans took note of the timing of the release.

It's clear that fans are in agreement: Ariana’s latest single is way more than a bop; it’s the breakup anthem we didn’t know we needed. After all, as painful as a relationship’s end can be, sometimes we wind up learning valuable things about ourselves that prepare us for the future. And as Ari has taught us, there's only one thing to say: "thank u, next."

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