Thank U, Next

Lore & Background

The recording of Thank U, Next began less than two months after Sweetener's release. Grande assembled a production team from producers and songwriters with shared rapport to cope with the trauma following Mac Miller's death. Songwriters included her longtime collaborators Victoria Monet, Max Martin, Ilya Salmanzadeh, Tommy Brown, Tayla Parx, and Social House. The development was unusually swift but productive: Grande and her team wrote about nine songs in merely a week, and completed most of the recording after another two weeks. Grande's team kept champagne in the studio, notably Veuve Clicquot, as later referenced in her collaboration with Victoria Monét, 'Monopoly'. Monét contributed to six songs, including 'Ghostin', the first and simultaneously longest song to develop. Grande found creating 'Ghostin' difficult and initially requested the song's exclusion from the final track listing. The producers conducted most of their recordings at Jungle City Studios in New York City, with additional sessions at Right Track Studios, MXM, Conway Recording Studios, the Record Plant, Wolf Cousins Studios in Stockholm, and Entirety Studios in London.

In Their Own Story

The album begins with 'Imagine', an R&B ballad with a trap-inspired rhythm featuring multiple whistle notes, speaking about Grande's denial of failed relationships, specifically with Mac Miller. 'Needy' follows as a mid-tempo minimalistic song about Grande's insecurities in relationships. 'NASA' is a 'bouncy-R&B tune' with a spoken introduction by drag queen Shangela. 'Bloodline' is a reggae-pop song with R&B influences containing brassy horns, featuring a sound bite from Grande's grandmother. 'Fake Smile' is a hip hop soul-inspired track with a trap groove, lyrically about the attack on her concert in Manchester and the death of Mac Miller. 'Bad Idea' is an EDM and trap number beginning with an 80's rock-ballad intro. 'Make Up' is Grande's most sexually explicit song on the album, a trap record with wonky pop and bubblegum influences. 'Ghostin' is an emotional art pop synth-and-strings ballad discussing Grande's last two relationships with Miller and Davidson. 'In My Head' begins with a voicemail from Grande's close friend Doug Middlebrook. '7 Rings' is a trap-pop and R&B song where Grande discusses 'how global success has allowed her to enjoy the finer things'. The title track 'Thank U, Next' is a self-empowerment pop and R&B song discussing many of Grande's past relationships. The final track 'Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored' is a trap-pop and R&B song that samples 'It Makes Me Ill' by NSYNC.

Reader's Guide

Released on February 8, 2019, Thank U, Next was preceded by two singles: the title track and '7 Rings', both of which debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Grande's first two number-one songs in the United States. 'Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored' became the third single on the day of the album's release, peaking at number two on the Hot 100. All of the album's 12 tracks entered the Hot 100, with the singles occupying the top three spots, making Grande the first soloist to achieve this feat. The album landed at number two on the US Billboard 200 Year-End chart of 2019. Globally, it was the eighth best-selling album of 2019, and fourth best-selling album by a female artist. Upon its release, Thank U, Next received critical acclaim, with praise for its cohesiveness, production, and Grande's vulnerability. It was named by several publications as the best album of 2019 and was included in numerous year-end and decade-end lists. The album and its songs received nominations for four Grammy Awards (including Album of the Year), an American Music Award, a Billboard Music Award and a Juno Award. In support of both Sweetener and Thank U, Next, Grande embarked on the Sweetener World Tour from March to December 2019, which grossed over $146 million from 97 shows.

Did You Know?

• Grande began working on Thank U, Next in October 2018, just two months after the release of Sweetener.
• The album was written and recorded in an unusually short period: about nine songs in one week, with most recording completed after another two weeks.
• Grande initially begged her manager Scooter Braun to remove the song 'Ghostin' from the album, but he convinced her to keep it.
• The final track 'Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored' replaced a song called 'Remember' that was too personal for Grande to release.
• The album's cover art was shot by Alf.