It sounds somewhat unfair to say that Ariana Grande had a lot to prove in 2018 given the tragic events of Manchester 2017 but she did. It wasn't a matter of whether she was going to flourish or disappear. The dignified and heartfelt way in which she handled Manchester along with the huge commercial success of her third album Dangerous Woman put her in a position to be not only a great pop artist but one of the true superstars of our generation.



If you think about it, we've had a brief drought of artists ascending to Beyoncé-level superstardom. Rihanna and Beyoncé solidified that status long ago with big-sellers like Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift not far behind. In the past, Grande had served great, diverse pop albums but for her to truly catapult up the ranks, she had to deliver an album that truly defined her as an artist - think Beyoncé's 4, Justin Timberlake's FutureSexLoveSounds and Rihanna's ANTI.

When she returned back in April with No Tears Left To Cry, the first few seconds led you to believe she'd chosen to move forward with a ballad. It would've been a nice, if not predictable, way to return to music but at 14 seconds in, the song takes a turn. "I'm picking it up, picking it up, I'm loving, I'm living, I'm picking it up," she sings as the soundscape races towards a futuristic, beat-driven place. No Tears Left To Cry is a perfect pop song. It sounds like nothing else on the radio and yet it's like it was scientifically manufactured to take you to the state of mind she vaguely describes in the song. What shines through most though is it's unwavering positivity. As Grande would find as the year progressed, it's momentary, but so powerful.

As she worked towards the release of her album, she reconnected with her fans online, meeting them with unbridled excitement about the record. They matched that excitement while Ariana and fans spent months going back and forth with "love u". Grande has a beautiful sense of trust in her fans. They interact more than any other fanbase and she's harboured a community built on "acceptance, love, inclusion, and passion," as she told The Fader when talking about how people are responding to these trying times.

In May, news spread that Grande had split from her boyfriend Mac Miller. Weeks later, she was seen cozying up to SNL comedian Pete Davidson and weeks after that news emerged that the pair had gotten engaged. For a few months, they were arguably the most-watched couple in the entire world. This was just one hint that the world had upgraded Grande to superstar status because, let's be honest, even if Davidson is a great comedian, he wasn't the one pulling all the attention.

"I been the fuck thru it and life’s too short to be cryptic n shit about something as beautiful as this love," Grande tweeted at the time talking about Sweetener track Pete Davidson. The album that proceeded that statement seems to revolve around that sentiment. It's empowering and positive but it never pretends to have all the answers or any rationality. "I love you / Who starts a conversation like that? Nobody but I do," she sings on R.E.M. while on Pete Davidson she laments, "My whole life got me ready for you."

Sweetener wasn't spurred on entirely by love though. It came after an incredibly dark period for Grande but instead of translating that darkness onto a record, she decided to combat it and find solace in music. This is the first record that sounds like Grande's musical DNA. Together with Pharrell and Max Martin, she crafted a musical cloud of an album that references '90s RnB but ultimately looks to the future. It's made for her vocals only and is a masterclass in lofty runs and multi-coloured harmonies.

Sweetener is the album's mission statement driven by it's gliding, radiant hook but while positivity may be the desired outcome, it's not the only mode of the record. She also tackles anxiety head-on with accessible but weighty pop songs like Breathin and the stunning closer Get Well Soon which has her wrestling with her inner demons.

On top of all that, she's also a strong, female artist and that radiates on the album's most forthright single God Is A Woman. Grande has never been so sexual and powerful. It's the work of an artist who wants to be a voice for this generation and she coupled that with a groundbreaking Dave Meyers visual that looked like a moving Sistine Chapel.