Very few people experience heartbreak as publicly as Ariana Grande.
A ubiquitous pop culture figure since her teenage years, Grande hit a new zenith with 2018's "thank u, next," a spectacular pop song doubling as a candid document of personal tumult. Written in the wake of a concert bombing, the accidental death-by-overdose of ex-boyfriend (and celebrated rapper) Mac Miller, and a volatile separation from former fiancé Pete Davidson of NBC's Saturday Night Live, "thank u, next" - Grande's first number one single in America - contextualizes her struggles so that they aren't struggles at all, merely steps in her personal growth. Whether a product of her healing or a part of its process, the song approaches heartbreak with a tenderness that runs counter to its moment in history, when society's gradual relocation to the internet normalized fast judgments and anonymous hostility. While breakup songs tend to be justifications for unfettered vitriol, even if that vitriol needs no justification, "thank u, next" is a rarity: a championing of self-empowerment without a hint of scorn.
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