Album: Sweetener by Ariana Grande
Release date: Friday, August 17th 2018
The past year has been a rollercoaster ride for teen pop sensation, Ariana Grande. From the terrorist attack that took place at her Manchester show, to the recent passing of her ex-boyfriend, after only breaking up just months before. The 15 track album was highly anticipated by fans and by the general public. Ariana explores different musical genres and themes on the new album.
‘Raindrops’ is a short, but sweet intro to the album. Although it is only just over half a minute in length, the song still maintains beautiful, angel like vocals in A Capella style and gives some insight to what the rest of the album has in store vocal-wise.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the beginning of ‘Blazed’, but I can assure you, the song does get better! It started off with the chorus, featuring Pharrell, who’s voice was a little over-autotuned. The chorus would have to be my least favourite part. The verses and pre-choruses were great and extremely catchy. Unfortunately, in some places it was a bit difficult to understand what Ariana was saying. The funky beat used is unique, but it payed off, for sure.
‘The Light is Coming’ starts off with a very catchy beat followed by a sample taken from a confrontation between an angry member of the public and the Pennsylvania Senator in 2009. This sample is extremely overplayed and otherwise irrelevant to the song. The song in general is repetitive and is probably the lowest point of the album. The lyrics in the pre-chorus are a bit hard to understand as she is singing quite fast.
R.E.M. stands for Rapid Eye Movement, a stage in the sleep cycle where your most vivid and memorable dreams occur. Ariana sings about the boy she likes appearing in her dreams and how she doesn’t want to wake up from said dream. This is a groovy, slow song which Ariana has declared her favourite on the album. Ariana describes how her crush is not just physical, she feels like she already loves him. This song holds many sweet, metaphoric lyrics.
Similar to Madonna’s ‘Like A Prayer’, ‘God is a woman’ has a religious theme, overpowered by a lustful message. This is one of the most popular songs on Sweetener, and rightfully so. The catchy, upbeat tune mixed with Ariana’s vocals create the perfect chart-topping song. Ignore the misleading title, the song barely touches on religious topics, but explores subjects such as the pleasures of intercourse and female sexual liberation.
My personal favourite song on the album would have to be the title track, ‘Sweetener’. Ariana takes the popular saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” and reworked it. She compares her lover to sweetener, putting the world’s salty, bitter taste to a halt. The song was written about rapper Mac Miller, Ariana’s late ex-boyfriend. ‘Sweetener’ is fun and radiates optimism. The shining message is about bringing light to people's lives, which is exactly what she intended.
‘Successful’ is a motivational anthem for girls of all ages. It sheds light on the fact that everyone is successful in their own way and how you should be proud of your achievements. The track has a funky beat, comparable to some of the popular R&B/Soul songs from the 1980’s. Ariana shares her pride of making it in the music industry while telling others that they can make it as well if they try.
Ariana shows there’s a career for her in trap music with her song ‘Everytime’. A zestful track about a couple who’s always fighting, but their infatuation brings them back to each other each time. This too is about her on and off relationship with her late ex-boyfriend, Mac Miller. Ariana tried to help him overcome his substance addiction while they were dating but couldn’t. Ariana stated that was the reason for their breakup in May 2018.
‘Breathin’ is an upbeat, synth-filled anthem about handling your anxiety. There are many different tempos in this song, which I would say fit very nicely together. This song has already helped many fans cope with anxious thoughts. The vocals and lyrics alike are great and motivating. This song, as well as taking deep breathes helps Ariana alleviate negative thoughts and she hopes it can help others do the same.
‘No Tears Left to Cry’ was the first song released after Ariana’s hiatus. This song is an uplifting anthem following the Manchester bombing at one of Ariana’s concerts. Ariana demonstrates she’s found a new sound as well as showing her strength and new mentality following the attack. ‘No Tears Left to Cry’ explores the disorientations you will go through in life and how to bounce back from it.
‘Borderline’ has Janet Jackson vibes, with a feel of the cowbells from Rhythm Nation. It is upbeat and fun with a catchy beat. Missy Elliot’s rap was a nice touch, adding a bit of flare. Although it is unclear what the song is about due to the random lyrics, it is indeed one of Ariana’s favourites.
Like several other songs on the album, ‘Better Off’ is also about rapper, Mac Miller. It is a slow, R&B tune. Ariana says she is better off without her ex-boyfriend, and how she’s better off not being around him in general. The soft, smooth vocals make this a relaxing, synth-based song.
‘Goodnight N Go’ started off with a trap sound, leading into the smooth and dreamy chorus. The song is heavily inspired by Imogen Heap’s ‘Goodnight and Go’, Imogen is one of Ariana’s biggest inspirations. Ariana exercises her high vocal range in most sections of this song.
‘Pete Davidson’ is personally dedicated to none other than her fiancé Pete Davidson. Her and Pete got engaged in June 2018, only a short amount of time after having begun dating. This song is a short, but very cute homage to Pete. It is an upbeat trap toned track and the lyrics prove her love for him. I am hoping their relationship lasts as having a song in his name could be quite awkward for Ariana if things don’t work out. (As I was finishing the rest of the review, it was just announced that the pair have called off their relationship and that things are over romantically. Very unfortunate, but also quite ironic.)
‘Get Well Soon’ is another song about Ariana’s anxiety. Ariana mentioned that for 3 months in 2017, she felt like she was floating, -- and not in a good way. Ariana hopes this song can help comfort fans who suffer with anxiety. The tune is reminiscent to some of her old songs, which is great to hear. It has a dreamy vibe and seems like it could be very helpful to listen to on days where anxiety seems to have the best of you. Initially, I was very confused about the 40 seconds of silence at the end of the song. Upon further research, I discovered time was added to get the song to 5:22. 5:22 represents the Manchester bombing which took place on 05/22/2017. The added time is a moment of silence for the victims and maybe even a moment of peace in Ariana’s mind after the trauma she has been through. I felt that it is a perfect way to end the album.
You can listen Ariana's newest album, Sweetener, on any major streaming platform, definitely worth the listen.