So last year, Ariana Grande announced her tour and I was excited but hesitant. I wasn’t feeling the last album (only two songs did it for me), and on top of that, I had just gotten laid off. So I held off, thinking I’d maybe grab last minute tickets this year instead.
Then she announced a new album dropping this summer, and honestly? I’m hoping it’s more upbeat — more bops, less heartbreak. Because post breakup albums are not my thing. Take Beyoncé’s Lemonade (okay, technically marital issues, not a breakup but same energy). Visually? Art. Emotionally? Deep. But sometimes I don’t want to feel all of that. I just want to dance.
Post breakup albums are a vibe killer.
Anyway, back to Ariana.
The tour kicked off over the weekend and I did my usual social media check to see how it went and what I saw was a little concerning. Videos and photos showed her looking very frail and low energy.
Now, I’ll give her some grace. I know that the opening dates of any major tour come with enormous pressure. Every detail has to be perfect and nerves run high. I’ve been to a BTS concert (their first U.S. date in Tampa, Florida, not the first stop in Korea but the first one stateside), and even they didn’t fully hit their stride until the second or third show. So some of what I saw could simply be first show jitters, especially since this is Ariana’s first tour in nearly ten years.
But here’s what actually concerns me: she looked noticeably more frail than in recent appearances, even more so than during her Wicked press run as Glinda.
And now the pieces of the puzzle are starting to come together. Ariana and Ethan Slater reportedly broke up, and breakups are not easy. They can do a number on you in ways people don’t always talk about, including your appetite. When you’re going through it emotionally, eating can be the last thing on your mind, and that could absolutely be contributing to how frail she’s been looking.
As a fellow Cancer, I understand this on a deeper level. The centered body part for Cancer is the stomach, and our emotions have a very real way of affecting our appetite. When we are not okay on the inside, our body shows it. It is just how we are wired.
I don’t know the full picture of what she’s going through, but the signs are there. I genuinely wish she had given herself more time before jumping back into a full tour. A year or two off would not have hurt anyone. She doesn’t have to tour right now. Honestly, I’d be perfectly fine with her just releasing albums. Whoever pushed for this tour should have maybe let it wait, because some things are worth holding off for.
But I pray she gets through it, because she usually does. Hang in there, Ari.
What do you think?