The Top 30 Albums Of 2019 (So Far): Ariana Grande – 'thank u, next'

"It’s an empowered attempt to tear back her post-break-up narrative from the mass media." – Hannah Story

Thank U, Next is Grande at her most emotionally bare. She’s needy, and she’s not ashamed. It’s easy to get caught up in the goss around Grande’s personal life and the release of the title single, but the spectre of Pete Davidson distracts from how assured a record Thank U, Next is. 

Over the top of skittering, trap-influenced beats, Grande talks about needing space and the way intimacy is performed, imitated or conjured out of thin air. It’s an empowered attempt to tear back her post-break-up narrative from the mass media and instead celebrate her friends and inner strength.