We’re obsessed!
Ariana Grande is not only one of the BIGGEST pop superstars to grace the planet, but she’s also an actress set to appear in TWO Wicked films! Having released six incredible albums, a seventh album doesn’t look likely while she takes part in Wicked… Although, Ari has been spending time with producer Max Martin, so maybe we can expect new music after all!.
Here we take a look at Ariana’s career, answer all of your burning questions about her transformation from teenage TV star to worldwide pop sensation. With songs like ‘Side to Side’, ‘One Last Time’ and a whole host of epic collaborations, there’s plenty more to know about the singer – like her beauty brand and other exciting projects…
Where is Ariana Grande from?
Ariana was born in Boca Raton, Florida, and when asked about her nationality in 2011, she described herself as an Italian American.
How old is she?
Ariana Grande was born on 26th June 1993, making her currently 30-years-old and her star sign is Cancer.
Giving us all a total cuteness-overload, Ari shared a now-deleted, sweet throwback pic in 2023. Thankfully she has a habit of doing that, and in 2022, Ariana delighted fans as she shared a truly adorable throwback video to her Instagram page, showing her younger self saying to the camera: “What do you think, I’m Peter Pan or something?”
Raking in millions of views within just a couple of days, it’s fair to say that the clip had fans swooning!
Deluxe digital edition of ‘Yours Truly’
Ariana has released a deluxe digital edition of her debut album ‘Yours Truly’ to celebrate its 10-year anniversary. The album was released on 30th August 2013 and includes some of her amazing songs such as ‘Honeymoon Avenue’, ‘Tattooed Heart’ and ‘The Way’, which features the late Mac Miller.
Is Ari vegan?
In 2013, Ariana, who had always eaten meat sparingly, announced to her followers on Twitter that she had decided to become 100% vegan.
What are her fans called?
Arianators! They started out as Ariana Army and then Tiny Elephants before settling on their current name.
Check out some of the best fandom names right here, including Justin Bieber and Beyoncé fans.
How did Ariana Grande become famous?
Read up on Ariana Grande’s career right here.
Ariana was born in Florida in 1993 to CEO Joan Grande and company owner Edward Butera, who had recently moved the family from New York to the sunshine state. As a child growing up in Florida, she enjoyed taking part in school plays. Ariana then moved to New York as a young teenager, and in 2008 she starred in the Broadway musical 13.
After that she moved onto a Nickleodeon TV series called Victorious, where she played the role of Cat Valentine. Following four seasons on Victorious she then starred in two seasons of the spin-off series Sam & Cat before taking roles other TV and theatre roles.
Her move towards music started in 2011 when she featured on the ‘Music from Victorious’ album singing ‘Give It Up’ with her co-star Elizabeth Gillies.
In 2013, the singer released her debut album, ‘Yours Truly’, which she described as a “throwback” to the R&B music of the 1990s. The first single released from her album was ‘The Way’ and featured her former boyfriend Mac Miller.
It wasn’t until 2014 and the single ‘Problem’ that Ariana Grande saw chart success in the UK. The music video for the song, featuring Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, won Best Pop Video at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards and has now been viewed more than 1 billion times on YouTube.
Following ‘Problem’ Ariana had a number of top 10 hits in the UK, including ‘Bang Bang’ with Jessie J and Nicki Minaj in 2014, working with Nicki once again on ‘Side to Side’. She also saw huge success with ‘One Last Time’, which appeared on her second album ‘My Everything’, released in August 2014.
Ariana also embarked on her biggest tour to date – the ‘Dangerous Woman Tour’ supporting her third album ‘Dangerous Woman’. Devastatingly, her show at Manchester Arena on 22nd May 2017 ended with a horrific tragedy when a bomb killed 22 people and injured many others.Following the terrible events of that night, messages of support for those affected poured in from around the world, including many from pop stars and celebrities.
Ariana, along with her team, worked quickly to put on a show that would bring everyone together at such a difficult time. Less than two weeks after the attack, the One Love Manchester benefit concert took place, with a line-up that included Katy Perry, Little Mix, Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber and many more artists – as well as Ariana herself.
Ariana understandably took some time off during 2017, but returned in August 2018 with her ‘Sweetener’ album which peaked at Number 1 in the UK and US, as well as many other countries around the world. It catalogued her dealing with everything she’d been through, as well as her relationship with Pete Davidson, which ended in October 2018.
Ariana suffered yet more loss in 2018 when her ex-boyfriend and close friend Mac Miller passed away. She paid tribute to him in beautiful Instagram posts, and even referenced him as an “angel” in her song ‘thank u, next’ – which practically broke the Internet with its incredible music video, taking inspiration from many iconic 90s and 00s teen films like Mean Girls.
…But Ari wasn’t done there! Releasing her second album in less than six months, the album ‘thank u, next’ came out in February 2019, again topping the charts all over the world.
Ariana’s waxwork at Madame Tussaud’s was unveiled on Tuesday 21st May for an exclusive five-week residency starting on Friday 24th May. The final design of Ariana was chosen by fans, and Steve Davies, General Manager at Madame Tussauds London, said, “There is no doubt about it – Ariana Grande is one of the biggest female pop-superstars in the world right now and rightfully deserves this residency at Madame Tussauds London.”Fans have been asking that Ariana’s figure join our A List line up for some time and we loved working with them to decide the star’s outfit. Much like the lady herself, Ariana’s figure will be making her London appearance for a limited time only so Arianators should be quick to grab a chance to ‘meet’ their idol!”
Ariana co-executive produced the soundtrack to the 2019 reboot of Charlie’s Angels, singing the title track ‘Don’t Call Me Angel’ with Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey.
Ari took part in the Disney Family Singalong during lockdown in April 2020, singing ‘I Won’t Say I’m In Love’ from Hercules – sparking calls for her to play the role of Meg in the upcoming Disney live-action remake of the 1997 animated original.
Ariana announced in October 2020 that her sixth album would be released that month! At the time, she released no other information about the record, keep her fans in total suspense.
Ari then released her sixth album ‘positions’ just two weeks later on Friday 30th October 2020 – and fans were over the moon!
In 2021, Ariana released a remix of her track ’34+35′ that featured on her album ‘positions’. The track, ’34+35 Remix’, features huge names Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion and was a massive hit with fans. Later that year, Ariana returned the favour to Doja Cat, featuring on ‘I Don’t Do Drugs’ from Doja’s third album ‘Planet Her’.
In March 2021, Ariana was announced to be joining the judging panel for The Voice US! She’ll be replacing Nick Jonas on the panel and sit alongside Kelly Clarkson, John Legend and Blake Shelton when the show returns in September 2021.
Ariana Grande was announced as Glinda in the upcoming film adaptation of Wicked, which is also star Cynthia Erivo. Ariana has been a fan of Wicked for many years, even taking part in an NBC special called A Very Wicked Halloween, to celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of the musical.
In September 2021, Ariana Grande announced that she is launching her own beauty brand called R.E.M. Beauty. The make-up range was then launched in November 2021 and is described on the website as: ‘r.e.m. beauty was created to empower you with the tools you need to bring your most vivid, limitless, and creative dreams to life.’Our products blend otherworldly ideas with real world innovation to inspire you to explore what creativity means to you.’
Ariana starred in the Netflix comedy drama Don’t Look Up, written and directed by Academy Award winner Adam McKay. Ariana plays world-famous musician Riley Bina, who performs a song. According to Adam, the singer improvised some of the song which he immediately thought: “Oh, that’s going in the movie”.Don’t Look Up also stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence as astronomers try to convince the world that there is a comet threatening to wipe out life on Earth.
In March 2022, Ariana released Chapter 2 of her R.E.M. Beauty make-up range. The singer shared a number of photos on her social media along with a promotional video.In May, Ari shared a video on r.e.m. beauty’s official YouTube, where she lead a makeup tutorial using products from both Chapters.
On 14th December 2022, the exciting news was announced that Ariana Grande would be returning to the RuPaul’s Drag Race judging panel! Both the show’s official socials, and Ariana herself, confirmed the exciting news, revealing that she would be making her Ru-turn as a guest judge for season 15, which would air in January 2023.
In September 2023, Ariana’s make-up brand R.E.M. Beauty was awarded the Cosmopolitan Reader’s Choice Award for the Best Celebrity Beauty Brand! Just two years after the brand’s official launch, and shortly after it launching its first Sweetener foundation – a 60-shade skin care-infused range – Ari celebrated the win on Instagram, writing: ‘thank you @cosmopolitan readers for voting for @r.e.m.beauty ! we are so grateful (and we feel like we’re just getting started) 🥲♡’. (sic)
Who is her brother?
Ariana has a half-brother called Frankie Grande, a dancer, actor, entertainer, producer and YouTube star, and the pair are incredibly close friends. After he appeared on the 16th series of Big Brother in the US in 2014, Frankie appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in the UK in 2016, finishing in 6th place.
WATCH: Ariana Grande performs ‘I Won’t Say I’m In Love’ from Hercules
How many times has she been on RuPaul?
Ariana featured on RuPaul’s Drag Race back in 2015, when she joined as a guest judge in season seven. Ari appeared alongside show regulars RuPaul, Michelle Visage and Ross Mathews.
In December 2022, the exciting news was revealed that Ari would be making her grand Ru-turn to the show, heading back to the judging panel on 15th season in 2023.
Sharing the news on socials, RuPaul bosses wrote: ‘@arianagrande slays her Ru-turn to the #DragRace judges panel ☁️💫 Don’t miss it Friday January 6 at 8/7c’ (sic).
Sharing the news on her own Instagram, Ariana wrote: ‘i’m not sure who this brown haired/eyebrowed/cone tittied woman is but she is verrrrrrrry excited to be a guest judging the season 15 premier of @rupaulsdragrace 🤎’. (sic)
Ariana Grande’s version of ‘Beauty and the Beast’
In March 2017, Ariana teamed up with John Legend to record their version of the classic Disney song, ‘Beauty and the Beast’, to accompany the new live-action film of the same name, starring Emma Watson and Dan Stevens.
Ariana’s relationships
Ariana Grande and Mac Miller
At the One Love Manchester concert, Ariana Grande was joined on stage by her boyfriend at the time, Mac Miller. The couple sang the song they recorded back in 2013, ‘The Way’.
The first time Ariana went public with their relationship was in September 2016 when she posted a now-deleted photo on Instagram simply saying, ‘baabyyy’.
However, in May 2018 it was reported that Ariana and Mac had separated, but remained on good terms.
In what was an incredibly emotional couple of years for the singer, her ex-boyfriend, Mac Miller, passed away in September 2018. A statement released by his family read: ‘He was a bright light in this world for his family, friends and fans. Thank you for your prayers. Please respect our privacy. There are no further details as to the cause of his death at this time.’
Soon after Mac’s death, Ariana broke her silence on social media with a touching photo, which has now been deleted. She also shared a video of him with the caption, ‘i adored you from the day i met you when i was nineteen and i always will. i can’t believe you aren’t here anymore. i really can’t wrap my head around it.’ (sic)
Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson
Just a few weeks after her split from Mac, Ariana was linked to Saturday Night Live cast member, Pete Davidson. The couple then went Instagram official and a week later Pete had not one, but TWO tattoos dedicated to his new girlfriend. Pete’s tattoo artist London Reese shared a picture on Instagram of Pete’s new tattoo, a black bunny ear mask behind his ear.
Then, just a few weeks into their relationship, Ariana appeared with a large ‘engagement’ ring on her ring finger. Many fans thought she was engaged, and many publications also quoted sources close to the singer, including one who told US magazine: “They are a perfect fit. They are not rushing to get married. Their friends are really excited and supportive.”
Sadly, the pair split shortly after Mac’s death following four months of dating, and a source told TMZ: “that it simply was not the right time for their relationship to take off.” Ariana then referenced both her exes in her incredible song ‘thank u, next’, which was released in November 2018.
WATCH: Ariana Grande – ‘thank u, next’ (Official Video)
Ariana and Dalton Gomez
Ariana confirmed that she was dating Dalton Gomez in the music video for her collaboration with Justin Bieber, ‘Stuck With U’. The video starred many of the stars’ famous friends, as well as the pair with their respective partners.
Dalton is a luxury real estate broker, and has worked for his company, the Aaron Kirman Group, for many years. The pair were thought to have started dating back in February 2020, and have a good friend in common – Miley Cyrus.
A source told People in March 2020 that they’d “been hanging out for a couple of months… Ariana doesn’t want to do another public relationship so she is trying to keep this one quiet, but she seems very happy with Dalton.”
Ariana confirmed her engagement to Dalton in December 2020, sharing the news to her socials! Ari posted a number of loved-up snaps (now deleted) alongside Dalton, before showing off a massive diamond ring, with the caption, ‘forever n then some’. (sic)
Is she married to Dalton?
Ariana tied the knot with Dalton on 15th May 2021, in a small, private and ‘intimate’ ceremony in the backyard of her Montecito home in California.
She took to her Instagram on 26th May 2021 to confirm the news that her and Dalton are now husband and wife, sharing a series of stunning photos (also now deleted) of their special day. The singer wrote the simple caption: ‘5.15.21 🤍’.
Prior to Ariana confirming the news, a source told E!: “They always wanted an intimate ceremony. They decided to have the wedding this past weekend because their schedules are picking up and neither wanted to wait”, adding that the ceremony was “always in the cards for summertime.”
In July 2023, rumours emerged that Ariana and Dalton had ‘split’, with many reporting that the singer was now ‘dating’ her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater. In September 2023, People Magazine reported that Ariana and Dalton had both filed for divorce.
Ariana Grande’s albums
Ari has released six studio albums through her career so far – famously dropping two in the space of just six months! Four out of five have hit Number 1 in the US, and she’s scored three Number 1s in the UK. Her most recent sixth album ‘positions’ was released on 30th October 2020.
Ariana Grande’s debut album ‘Yours Truly’ was released in September 2013, peaking at Number 1 in the US and Number 7 in the UK. The track listing of the album is: ‘Honeymoon Avenue’, ‘Baby I’, ‘Right There’ (featuring Big Sean), ‘Tattooed Heart’, ‘Lovin’ It’, ‘Piano’, ‘Daydreamin”, ‘The Way’ (featuring Mac Miller), ‘You’ll Never Know’, ‘Almost Is Never Enough’ (with Nathan Sykes), ‘Popular Song’ (with Mika) and ‘Better Left Unsaid’.Of the album, Ariana told SheKnows: “They can expect a lot of honesty. It’s like a direct… you know, it’s like it used to be pages from my diary, instead of keeping diary, I would write songs about what was happening in my life. So it’s really personal. It’s a Motown throwback and pop at the same time, so it’s ’50s and ’60s inspiration mixed with today.”
Her follow-up ‘My Everything’ was released in August 2014, again peaking at Number 1 in the US and this time going to Number 3 in the UK. The track listing of the albums is: ‘Intro’, ‘Problem’ (featuring Iggy Azalea), ‘One Last Time’, ‘Why Try’, ‘Break Free’ (featuring Zedd), ‘Best Mistake’ (featuring Big Sean), ‘Be My Baby’ (featuring Cashmere Cat), ‘Break Your Heart Right Back’ (featuring Childish Gambino), ‘Love Me Harder’ (with The Weeknd), ‘Just a Little Bit of Your Heart’ (written by Harry Styles), ‘Hands on Me’ (featuring A$AP Ferg) and ‘My Everything’. The deluxe version also included ‘Bang Bang’ featuring Jessie J and Nicki Minaj.She told Rolling Stone of the record: “It’s an album that I want to do a little bit different. I don’t want it to sound like an extension of Yours Truly. I want it to sound like an evolution. I want to explore more sounds and experiment a little bit. I have a bunch of ideas I’m very excited about and a lot of stuff cooking.”
Ari’s third album ‘Dangerous Woman’ was released in May 2016, once again going to Number 1 in the US, and this time, also scoring the top spot in the UK. The track listing is: ‘Moonlight’, ‘Dangerous Woman’, ‘Be Alright’, ‘Into You’, ‘Side to Side’ (featuring Nicki Minaj), ‘Let Me Love You’ (featuring Lil Wayne), ‘Greedy’, ‘Leave Me Lonely’ (featuring Macy Gray), ‘Everyday’ (featuring Future), ‘Bad Decisions’ and ‘Thinking Bout You’.The album was nearly titled ‘Moonlight’, and Ariana explained the decision to change it: “‘Moonlight’ is a lovely song, and it’s a lovely title. It’s really romantic, and it definitely ties together the old music and the new music, but ‘Dangerous Woman’ is a lot stronger. To me, a dangerous woman is someone who’s not afraid to take a stand, be herself and to be honest.”
Ariana’s fourth album ‘Sweetener’ was released in August 2018, topping the charts in 27 countries including the UK and US. The track listing is: ‘Raindrops (An Angel Cried)’, ‘Blazed’ (featuring Pharrell Williams), ‘The Light Is Coming’ (featuring Nicki Minaj), ‘R.E.M.’, ‘God Is a Woman’, ‘Sweetener’, ‘Successful’, ‘Everytime’, ‘Breathin’, ‘No Tears Left to Cry’, ‘Borderline’ (featuring Missy Elliott), ‘Better Off’, ‘Goodnight n Go’, ‘Pete Davidson’ and ‘Get Well Soon’.’Sweetener’ was Ariana’s first record since the devastating attack in Manchester. Many fans and non-fans around the world praised her for her approach to the album – ensuring that what happened was in the bones of the record, but that it wasn’t defining her.
Less than six months after the release of ‘Sweetener’, Ari released ‘thank u, next’. It went to Number 1 in both the UK and the US, and the track list is: ‘Imagine’, ‘Needy’, ‘NASA’, ‘Bloodline’, ‘Fake Smile’, ‘Bad Idea’, ‘Make Up’, ‘Ghostin’, ‘In My Head’, ‘7 Rings’, ‘Thank U, Next’, ‘Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored’.The title track was hugely popular, partly thanks to the incredible music video in which Ari paid homage to many Noughties chick flicks. It also dealt with the death of her ex-boyfriend, Mac Miller, and her split from ex-fiancé Pete Davidson. Ariana promoted both ‘Sweetener’ and ‘thank u, next’ on her ‘Sweetener World Tour’ in 2019.She said of the album to Billboard: “I feel like there are certain standards that pop women are held to that men aren’t. We have to do the teaser before the single, then do the single, and wait to do the pre-order, and radio has to impact before the video, and we have to do the discount on this day, and all this, and it’s just like, ‘Bruh, I just want to talk to my fans and sing and write music and drop it the way these boys do. Why do they get to make records like that and I don’t?’ So I do and I did and I am, and I will continue to.”
After bagging a Grammy Award alongside Lady Gaga, the singer released her sixth album ‘positions’. Ariana announced in mid-October that her sixth album would dropping that month, casually writing on Twitter: ‘i can’t wait to give u my album this month.’ She then released ‘positions’ on Friday 30th October 2020, made up of the tracklist: ‘shut up’, ’34+35′, ‘motive’ feat. Doja Cat, ‘just like magic’, ‘off the table’ feat. The Weeknd, ‘six thirty’, ‘safety net’ feat. Ty Dolla $ign, ‘my hair’, ‘nasty’, ‘west side’, ‘love language’, ‘positions’, ‘obvious’, ‘pov’.The record hit the top spot in both the UK and US album charts, and was in the Top 3 positions in 17 other countries. So far, it’s been certified Gold in the UK by the BPI and Platinum in the US by the RIAA.
Ari re-released her debut album ‘Yours Truly’ in 2023 to mark its 10th birthday, made up of the original tracklist plus six tracks that were re-recorded in 2023 live in London studios: ‘Honeymoon Avenue’, ‘Daydreamin”, ‘Baby I’, ‘Tattooed Heart’, ‘Right There’ and ‘The Way’.
While she works on her role in the upcoming Wicked film, Ari has said that she isn’t focusing on putting out new music. Speaking in May 2022 about a seventh album, she said: “The truth is, I have not begun an album. I hear through the grapevine that you have a lot of theories and expectations in that department.”Adding that taking part in the film was a childhood dream come true, she said: “That is going to have every piece of me, every minute, every ounce of my heart, my time, my soul, my everything that I can give it. My hands are quite full with a lot of other ‘thrillifying’ work at the moment. I am spending all of my time with Glinda, I just was not ready.”
‘Yours Truly’
As mentioned above, ‘Yours Truly’ was Ariana’s debut album. As the album nears its 10th anniversary on 3rd September, Ariana has teased fans with rehearsals from a forthcoming performance.
She took to Instagram to share some photos telling her fans: ‘almost ten ……. ♡’.
What is R.E.M. Beauty?
On 10th September 2021, Ariana revealed to her fans that she was officially launching her own beauty brand called R.E.M. Beauty. Sharing a stunning snap of herself with some pretty gorgeous make-up on, Ari wrote: ‘thank you @allure . thrilled and honored to introduce you all to my baby @r.e.m.beauty with @allure on their 25th annual best of beauty cover !’ (sic)
She continued: ‘i began quietly working on this two years ago while on tour and i’m beyond excited to finally tell you a bit about it and for it to become yours this fall. 🌄’ (sic).
Ariana has now released more Chapters of her R.E.M. Beauty make-up range. Throughout 2022, Ariana has shared videos promoting the new products. These include things such as concealer, eye shadow, lipstick, lip gloss, brow pencils and gels, highlighter, and eyeliner. So, pretty much a full face!
What is Ariana Grande Cloud?
It’s one of Ari’s many perfumes!
Yep, like many other celebs, the singer has also branched out into the world of fragrance! From releasing her first perfume, Ari, back in 2015, the singer has now gone on to release a total of twelve fragrances, two of which are a ‘duo’.
Ari’s perfumes have been famed for their fruity and playful smell, whilst her second release, Cloud perfume, has become famed for fans thinking it smells not too dissimilar to a popular luxury scent… 👀
Cloud has proven so popular, that it was even nominated for Best Fragrance at the Allure Best of Beauty Awards 2023. Ari is even set to release a new spin on the scent, called Cloud Pink, which will be released on 13 August 2023.
Ariana released multiple fragrances in 2022 – including Thank U Next 2.0 (October) and her duo Mod Blush and Mod Vanilla (December). Her complete list of fragrances now runs: Ari, Cloud, Frankie, Moonlight, R.E.M., Sweet Like Candy, Thank U Next, God Is a Woman, Thank U Next 2.0, her first ever fragrance duo – Mod Vanilla and Mod Blush – and Cloud Pink.
Her latest fragrance, Cloud Pink, was be released on 13th August 2023 in the US, with Ari gushing that she wants ‘everyone to experience’ it.
Has she been to NASA headquarters?
In a series of Instagram Stories, the ‘One Last Time’ singer revealed she’d been spending some time at NASA HQ, trying on a spacesuit and taking a ride in a rover in May 2019! Ariana captioned one of her Stories, ‘Thank you for the coolest day of my life @nasa’.
Has Ariana ever performed at the Super Bowl Half-Time show?
She hasn’t yet, but many fans have shared their desire for Ariana to perform at the iconic sporting event. We’d love to see it happen!
Who has she collaborated with?
Ariana has had PLENTY of epic collaborations in her time. You can read up on our full guide to Ariana’s biggest and best collaborations here.
Has she worked with Adele?
After Adele posted a photo at Drake’s birthday party, Ariana left a comment of appreciation – and fans immediately jumped on it as a sign that the two were friends – and could possibly collaborate on a song together! It’s fair to say that fans are very eager for Adele and Ariana Grande to collaborate…
How many awards has she won?
It’s safe to say that Ariana has had a pretty impressive career so far, so it comes as no surprise that the singer has picked up her fair share of awards and accolades along the way.
Check out our complete guide to all of the awards Ariana Grande has won during her career.
Ariana’s 2019 Halloween costume
Ariana freaked everyone out with her 2019 Halloween costume, dressing up as a character from an episode of 60’s show The Twilight Zone entitled ‘Eye of the Beholder’. The terrifying episode depicts ‘normal’ people as having slightly deformed faces with turned-up ‘pig’ noses and layers of ‘skin’ drooping down the face – and according to Metro.co.uk, Ariana spent a whopping five hours in the prosthetics chair to complete the look.
Is she on social media?
She sure is! You can follow Ari on Instagram using the handle ArianaGrande, however she left Twitter back in December 2021.
Ariana was previously the most followed woman on Instagram in 2020, becoming the first woman to reach 200 million followers on the social media site – knocking beauty mogul Kylie Jenner off the top spot!
In late 2022, Kylie re-gained the title, with Ariana becoming the third most followed woman on Insta, just behind Selena Gomez. However, as of June 2023, Selena Gomez currently holds the title, followed by Kylie Jenner, again with Ariana in third place.
NOW WATCH: Little Mix reveal that their dream collaboration would be Ariana Grande
The Voice US
In March 2021, US television channel NBC announced that none other than Ariana Grande would serve as a coach on season 21 of The Voice. She is reportedly the ‘highest paid judge ever’ with podcast host Rob Shuter revealing: “Sources say Ariana is getting a whopping 20 to 25 million dollars for the show, putting her in the same category as Katy Perry on American Idol.”
The 13 Going on 30 dress
Ariana delighted her fans with some stunning outfits throughout her time on the show – even wearing the EXACT same rainbow dress that featured in the iconic 2004 film 13 Going On 30!
In November 2021, the singer appeared in the usual spot in her judges chair rocking the colourful number, which was worn by film character Jenna Rink.
The rainbow-striped mini dress is from Versace’s spring 2003 show, and Ari even added a spiked bun just like Jenna!
Her role in the Wicked movie
In November 2021, Ariana landed the part of Glinda in the upcoming Wicked movie! The singer was cast alongside award-winning actress and singer Cynthia Erivo, who will be playing the role of Elphaba. The pair both revealed their excitement at their parts on Instagram, with Ari sharing a series of pictures with her followers, writing: ‘thank goodness 💘.’
Cynthia also sent Ariana a special note that read: ‘Pink goes good with green. Congratulations Miss A, the part was made for you, I look forward to sharing this musical journey with you.’
The films has faced setbacks since it was first announced in 2016, with the pandemic pushing back filming. It is set to be directed by Jon M.Chu and filming has now started.
While at the Pinocchio film premiere in September 2022, Ariana’s co-star Cynthia Erivo opened up about working with the singer on Wicked, saying: “She is funny and unbelievably talented and unbelievably sweet and truly working hard.”
The moment was shared on Twitter by Variety who interviewed the film star.
Ariana took to her Instagram in March 2023 to reveal that the first Wicked movie will be released on 27th November 2024.
First look at the Wicked movie
Fans were incredibly excited on 16th April 2023 when movie bosses shared some first look images from the upcoming film! Offering the first glimpse of Ari and Cynthia as their characters Glinda and Elphaba, two images were shared to the film’s official Instagram.
Keeping us on our toes, the images are notably rather small – serving as a tease of what we can expect! You may want to zoom a little…
Ariana as Glinda
Cynthia as Elphaba
Behind-the-scenes of Wicked the movie
Filming has now started for Wicked and Ariana Grande has shared some photos and videos. The singer shared a photo dump of 10 snaps, starting with a pic of her dressed in white in what appears to be a dressing room.
Is she still making music?
For the time being, Ari has revealed that she is focusing her efforts into the upcoming Wicked movie. In a YouTube video uploaded for R.E.M. Beauty, she said: “The truth is, I have not begun an album,” continuing: “I hear through the grapevine that you have a lot of theories and expectations in that department – but after ‘Positions’, I was not ready to start another album yet, so I have not begun another album.”
Ari took to TikTok to shut down trolls who claimed she ‘wasn’t a singer anymore’, giving us a gorgeous rendition of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ – adding the text: ‘*is literally on set filming two music movies all day every day’. (sic)
Ari also showed off her vocals in a video she uploaded to her Instagram in February 2023, where she wrote: ‘wrote and recorded a verse for my friend after a 14 hour day on set’, continuing: ‘this certain exception had to be made’.
She can then be seen recording vocals and comping them herself. Elated with the sweet post, many took to the comments to share the love, with many expressing how much they miss her voice.
She’s also dropped various hints on Instagram over the past few months about another album… Here’s everything we know so far about AG7.
Ariana in Don’t Look Up
Putting on her acting hat, Ariana starred as herself in Netflix film ‘Don’t Look Up’, released in January 2022. She starred alongside Leonardo Dicaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, who appear as a Michigan State professor and PhD student, trying to warn the world that a planet-killing comet is on a collision course with Earth.
She sings a duet with Kid Cudi, who plays her boyfriend in the film, and it is just glorious! We won’t ruin the film, but you should definitely look out for the lyrics – which Ari apparently improvised in the moment!
Which other TV shows and films has Ariana Grande been in?
Ariana’s big break on the box was her role in Nickelodeon’s Victorious. She starred as the quirky red-headed Cat Valentine, with the show running from 2010 to 2013.
In true Nickelodeon style, 2011 saw an iconic cross-over episode of huge shows iCarly and Victorious. With the episode aptly named iParty with Victorious, it combined both shows, seeing Carly Shay, Sam Puckett and Freddie Benson’s world collide with the likes of Tori Vega, Andre Harris and Cat Valentine.
In 2013, Ariana featured in the film Swindle alongside other Nickelodeon stars such as Noah Crawford, Chris O’Neal, Jennette McCurdy and Noah Munck. Ariana played the popular and peppy Amanda Pitch Benson.
Following the end of Victorious, Ariana next starred in a spin-off series combining two main characters from Victorious and iCarly. In the show, Ari continued to star as Cat, and was joined by fellow Nickelodeon star Jennette McCurdy, who played Sam.
Alongside other famous names such as Shawn Mendes and Rupert Grint, Ariana voiced the character Laura in 2013 film Underdogs.
Yep, just like a lot of her fellow celebs, Ariana Grande actually leant her vocals to the popular cartoon Family Guy. Ari can be heard featuring as ‘Italian Girl’ in the 2014 episode Mom’s The Word.
In 2015, Ariana appeared in Fox’s satirical black comedy slasher series Scream Queens as Chanel #2. Ari starred alongside huge names such as Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Billie Lourd and Keke Palmer, despite her character’s time in the series coming to a rather brutal end…
Although this one isn’t an acting role, Ariana did appear on RuPaul’s Drag Race as a guest judge! Fans will have spotted her on the box back in 2015.
Ariana also made an appearance in the Zoolander sequel, which was released in 2016. Although her role was brief, it paid homage to Ari’s ‘Dangerous Woman’ latex look.
In 2020, Ariana had her very own documentary released on Netflix, titled excuse me, i love you. Granted this isn’t an acting role, the documentary gets up close and personal as it follows the singer on-stage and behind the scenes, as she takes on the Sweetener World Tour in 2019.
Fast forward a year, and fans saw Ariana star in Netflix’s Don’t Look Up, as pop princess Riley Bina. The film had an all-star cast, featuring the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Timothée Chalamet, Jonah Hill, Chris Evans and Meryl Streep. Ari even recorded the soundtrack with Kid Cudi, which features in the film as her character Riley performs on stage.
Ariana Grande has been announced as a guest judge on the season 15 premiere of RuPaul’s Drag Race due to start on 6th January 2023.
Although this one hasn’t yet been released, Ariana Grande is set to star in the upcoming movie adaptation of Wicked! Ari will play Glinda, alongside Cynthia Erivio who will be playing Elphaba. Since her role was announced, it has been revealed that the adaptation will be released in two parts – with one film in 2024 and the other in 2025.
Ariana got her fans VERY excited when she shared some behind-the-scenes pics to her Instagram page, showing off her make-up looks and costumes, as well as a sweet picture alongside Cynthia as the pair rehearse! The first film is set for release on 27th November 2024, with the second on 26th November 2025, and bosses have even release some first look images of Ari and Cynthia in character! Take a look at the photos, and check out everything we know so far.
You can hear Ariana Grande’s songs on KISS.
Read more:
11 of Ariana Grande’s biggest songs of all time 🙌
Ariana Grande’s albums: Everything you need to know about her music catalogue
Ariana Grande’s rise to fame from school plays to hit single ‘Boyfriend’
10 of Ariana Grande’s biggest collabs to date
Ariana Grande’s awards: Here’s which accolades she’s won over the years 🎶
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