Album Review: “thank u, next”

Ariana Grande releases her best album yet

Kolby Spomer
Staff Writer

Ariana Grande has, in my opinion, not made very good music during her highly successful career. Art is subjective in any of its many forms, but to me she has not created anything that set her apart from the hundreds of attractive pop icons who came before her. All of that changed, however, with her latest album “thank u, next”.

Focusing on her interpretation of relationships and what they truly mean to her, she has crafted by far her best album. The production is very well constructed, adding to the mood of the whole thing. Her vocals are kept relatively in check, which was a big positive to me.

I found her belting to be tedious on previous records, but here she doesn’t go as over the top as she had in previous years. These, among other reasons, are a large part of why this album works so well.

Ariana’s release of this album on its own warrants merit. Dropping a full-length studio album only six months after the previous effort is a very foreign concept in the world of pop music.

Typically, there would be a whole release plan involving tours and merchandise and singles but due to the way Ariana worked on these two albums, she has forgone the majority of that to pursue something a little more artistically valuable. Regardless of your opinion, the release of this album at all deserves praise.

The music thankfully, is very well crafted. Ariana delves into her personal life and romance in a smart, thoughtful way for the majority of the album. The only exception to this that I could find was on the track “7 Rings”. While this song is fun to listen to, the lyrics leave a whole bunch to be desired.

However, stand out tracks like “Ghostin” and “Needy” more than make up for this small hiccup. Production is a surprise plus to this record as front to back it grooves you in a way reminiscent of a slower hip-hop album.

The atmosphere is cool, personal, and honestly kind of sexy and the production plays a big part in creating and maintaining this. Stand out moments production wise include tracks like “‘NASA” and “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored”.

Is this album getting a lot of buzz because not much of note has released yet this year? Maybe. In a few months, we’ll know how good this album really is. As of now, though, this remains the best album of the year and something that will be on your playlist for weeks to come. Nice job, Ariana. I honestly didn’t think you had it in you.

Feature photo courtesy of the Associated Press.