Ariana Grande Says 'Time and Therapy' Helped Her 'Re-Embrace' Her Old Music: 'I Used to, Maybe, Hear It and Cry'

Mar. 15, 2025

Ariana Grandedidn’t always hold the same reverence for her entire song catalog as some day-one fans still do.

The pop star, 31, discussed the conundrum of embracing her old hits during the latest episode ofHot Oneson Thursday, Aug. 8, after host Sean Evans asked if there are any tracks she wouldn’t mind retiring if fans didn’t yearn to hear them so much.

“Of course, that’s like a natural thing that all artists can probably relate to,” Grande starts to explain. “But seeing [fans'] reaction to it also kind of replaces that… There was a time when it was hard for me to feel that same gratitude that I do now for certain songs and for the music because I think some of it was a stressful time.”

“That experience was sort of married to some of the songs a little bit,” she shared, “or some of the songs that are more emotional that the experience that inspired them can be married to the music, for me, for a second.”

However, Grande revealed that “with time and therapy,” she’s been able to “re-embrace” the nostalgia of her discography. “I feel just really proud and grateful and happy when I hear them. I’m like, ‘That’s a good song,'” the “yes, and?” singer said, jokingly adding, “Whereas, I used to, maybe, hear it and cry, so that’s a beautiful thing.”

Ariana Grande attends the Met Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2024.Marleen Moise/Getty

Marleen Moise/Getty

Grande addressed other facets of her music during herHot Onesepisode, too, like how she feels about “frustrating” music leaks as an artist.

“It’s really hard for me because it’s really disheartening and disappointing, and it sucks, and I am constantly trying to get to the bottom of how people get stuff,” she shared. “Whether it’s videos or pictures or audio, songs… so it’s conflicting because that is very frustrating and feels very dehumanizing.”

“And then the other side [of me] is like, but I’m so grateful to be an artist that people care about,” the performer continued. “And my fans want more of me, so they’re going to these extremes to steal and break in.”

“It’s so lovely to be loved,” she joked. “But yeah, I sit somewhere in between being grateful to be here at all and being like, ‘But really? Come on.'”

Ariana Grande speaks onstage during the Universal Pictures and Focus Features Presentation during CinemaCon 2024 in Las Vegas on April 10, 2024.David Becker/WireImage

David Becker/WireImage

Lately, Grande has been full-steam ahead with herWickedpress tour as she prepares for part one of thefilm adaptation— which starsCynthia Erivo— to hit theaters on Nov. 22. The vocalist praised herleading costar’s performance of “Defying Gravity” in the movie onHot Ones, calling it “the most phenomenal thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Grande is also still in the thick of herEternal Sunshineera after dropping the studio album on March 8. For months, fans have inquired about a potential new tour to promote the LP, which thethank u, nextsinger has slylyhinted atin recent interviews.

During the July 9 episode of theShut Up Evanpodcast, Grande said of hitting the road again, “I still want it, too. I think it would be a really lovely idea to be able to trickle in some shows in between the twoWickedfilms. I think there’s a version of that that exists.”

source: people.com