thank u, next [Clear 2 LP]

by Ariana Grande

Overview

Three months after the August 2018 release of Sweetener -- her fourth album, delivered in the wake of the 2017 tragedy at Manchester Arena -- Ariana Grande released "Thank U, Next," a clever pop song celebrating how each ex turned her into a better person. The refrain of "one taught me love, one taught me patience, and one taught me pain" quickly turned "Thank U, Next" into something more than a hit: it was a meme, eating up all the pop-cultural oxygen at the end of 2018, confirming Ariana Grande's position as the pre-eminent pop star of the moment. Like all defining pop stars, Grande's status derived in equal parts from her music and public persona, the latter shaped through the prism of tragedy -- not just the Manchester bombing, but the premature death of her ex Mac Miller -- and that collective consciousness lends weight to Thank U, Next, her swiftly delivered sequel to Sweetener, just as it did its predecessor. The difference with Thank U, Next is this time Grande is swaggering with the confidence that comes with unquestioned stardom. This freedom can be heard in "Thank U, Next," which flips heartbreak into empowerment, and is effectively the keynote for its parent album. Grande does delve into explicit darkness more than she did on Sweetener -- Miller's death haunts the album, specifically surfacing on "Ghosting" -- but she never loses sight that this is a pop album, designed to provide a soundtrack for good times as well as the bad. To this end, Thank U, Next benefits from its quick execution. Conceptually, the album feels slighter than Sweetener, which was designed to be a grand statement, but the loose ends and crass commercial cul-de-sacs scattered throughout Thank U, Next seem human -- perhaps she's appropriating several cultures on "7 Rings," yet its celebration of healing heartbreak through consumerism suits a singer who also urges a crush to break up with a girlfriend just because she's bored. Such sentiments are the product of a singer who not only knows what she wants but knows that she's wanted, and that attitude unites and propels Thank U, Next through its ballads and R&B jams, turning it into an album that embodies every aspect of Ariana Grande, the grand pop star. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	05/03/2019
Label:	Republic Records
UPC:	0602577500879

Tracks

1. imagine
2. needy
3. NASA
4. bloodline
5. fake smile
6. bad idea
7. make up
8. ghostin
9. in my head
10. 7 rings
11. thank u, next
12. break up with your girlfriend, I'm bored

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Ariana Grande   Primary Artist,Vocals
Peter Noos Johansson   Trombone
Mattias Bylund   Strings
Larrance Dopson   Guitar
Tomas Jonsson   Sax (Tenor)
Wojtek Goral   Sax (Alto)
Happy Perez   Keyboards,Guitar
Mattias Johansson   Violin
Janne Bjerger   Trumpet
David Bukovinszky   Cello
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards
Magnus Johansson   Trumpet
JProof   Keyboards
Jameel Roberts   Keyboards
Victoria Monet   Vocals (Background)
Peter Lee Johnson   Strings
Tayla Parx   Vocals (Background)
Pop Wansel   Keyboards
NOVA Wav   Co-Producer
Alexander West   Guitar
Marjorie Grande   Vocals (Background)
Wojtek Bylund   Sax (Alto)
Max Martin   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards

Technical Credits

Max Martin   Programming,Vocal Producer,String Arrangements,Composer,Producer
Michael Foster   Composer,Producer,Programming
Oscar Hammerstein II   Composer
Mattias Bylund   Horn Arrangements,String Arrangements
Richard Rodgers   Composer
Peter Svensson   Composer
Kandi Burruss   Composer
Mary Frierson   Composer
Justin Tranter   Composer
Nathan Perez   Composer
Savan Kotecha   Composer
Richard Rogers   Composer
John Hanes   Assistant
Alfredo Flores   Photography
Tommy Brown   Composer,Producer,Composer,Producer,Programming
Wendy Goldstein   A&R
Happy Perez   Producer,Programming
Randy Merrill   Mastering
Zvi Edelman   Production Coordination
Scott "Scooter" Braun   Executive Producer
Andrew Luftman   Production Coordination
Ariana Grande   Composer,Producer,Vocal Producer,Executive Producer
Joe Gallagher   Engineer
Billy Hickey   Engineer
Sarah Shelton   Production Coordination
Andrew Wansel   Composer
Cory Bice   Assistant Engineer
Brittany Coney   Composer
Priscilla Renea   Composer
Sam Holland   Engineer
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Composer,Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer,String Arrangements
Brendan Morawski   Engineer
Jameel Roberts   Composer
Victoria Monet   Composer,Vocal Producer
Denisia Andrews   Composer
Charles Anderson   Composer,Producer,Programming
Jessica Severn   Design,Art Direction
Jeremy Lertola   Assistant Engineer
Tayla Parx   Composer,Vocal Producer
Johnnie Frierson   Composer
Njomza Vitia   Composer
Sean Klein   Assistant,Assistant Engineer
Joseph Frierson   Composer
Pop Wansel   Producer,Programming
Britanny Coney   Composer
NOVA Wav   Producer,Production Assistant
Michael David Foster   Composer
Kennedi Lykken   Composer
Brian Malik Baptiste   Composer,Producer
Kim Krysiuk   Composer
Chris Tranter   Composer
Lindel Deon Nelson Jr   Composer
Eazy $ign   Engineer
Brian Baptiste   Composer,Producer
Serban Ghenea   Mixing
Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs   Composer