by Christian Allaire– Vogue
It was just a few days ago that Ariana Grande subtweeted her ex Pete Davidson—the couple unexpectedly called off their engagement last month—in response to Davidson making light of their failed relationship during a promo clip for SNL. (In the video, Davidson asks musical guest Maggie Rogers to marry him, and when she denies him, he replies, “0 for 3.”) Now, the singer surprised fans by releasing a whole new single last night, 30 minutes or so before SNL, aptly named after her viral tweet (“thank u, next”)—and it pays homage to all her past failed relationships, and the lessons she has learned from them.
Though she seemed to be taking a note out of Taylor Swift’s songbook (and à la Reputation, used headlines about the story, including one from Vogue, as its cover) Grande’s song was not quite the petty breakup anthem many were anticipating, especially given the timing of its release. With lyrics such as, “One taught me love, one taught me patience, and one taught me pain,” the singer makes peace with her past, and her old flames: Davidson, Big Sean, and the late Mac Miller, who passed away in September.
Grande and Davidson were engaged after dating for only a few weeks. The couple had moved in together, and adopted a pet pig, named Piggy Smallz. Since the split, Davidson has been using comedy to cope with the breakup, while Grande has kept relatively mum—until now.