'eternal sunshine': A glimpse into Ariana's (controversial) personal life

'eternal sunshine' album cover (2024)

'eternal sunshine' is Ariana's latest album, being released this year (March 8th, 2024). It is the first album she has released in nearly four years, with the previous one being 'Positions' (2020)! So it is safe to say that this album was HIGHLY anticipated! Fun fact, the music video for 'we can't be friends' and the album name takes a little bit of inspiration from a romance movie called 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' (2004)! This album released during a controversial time for Ariana, where she was seen as a home wrecker by many as she had just begun a new relationship with the actor Ethan Slater (who was currently in an 'estranged marriage'), who was cast alongside her for the new 'Wicked' movie. 

The single 'yes, and?' was released before the album came out, and was received by many people as a song dismissing what everyone thinks of her controversial relationship with Ethan Slater. The lyrics "Your business is yours, mine is mine" tell me that Ariana is tired of explaining her side of the story to the public, and resorts to telling everyone to mind their own business instead of dissecting her relationships. This also shows through the lyrics "Why do you care so much" and, ultimately, "yes, and?". 

The song 'we can't be friends (wait for your love) is very interesting to me not only because of the lyrics, but the music video that came along with it! As I said before, the video is inspired by a film and shows the journey of trying to move on from an ex-partner, who I would probably guess is her recently ex-husband, Dalton Gomez. The music video shows her going through a process where she tries to erase all memories of her and her ex, and during this she experiences all those bittersweet memories again. In the end - unlike the movie - she eventually moves on from this partner and they both lead their separate lives with new partners. 

The lyrics on the other hand, I see as portraying her thoughts about the 'home wrecker' controversy again. The lyrics "Just wanna let this story die" and "You cling to your papers and pens until you like me again" tell me that she is waiting for the media to stop writing negative stories about her and perhaps hoping that with this album the media will write new stories about her, 'liking' her again. "Me and my truth, we sit in silence" seems like Ariana is trying to tell us that there is a different side of the story that the media does not know. She may feel like that she is not able to tell anyone this, hence the 'silence'. She is simply keeping her truth to herself while she waits for the media storm to pass. This makes me wonder if Dalton Gomez has any secrets he is hiding about their previous relationship? In the end, I don't think we will ever find out the truth to Ariana's relationships as like any ordinary person, she does not want the whole world to know every detail about her life. 

That's all I have for this blog post, I hope you enjoyed it! Make sure to leave a comment, and please share to anyone who may be interested in my posts! Thanks - Jamie-Lee <3