Ariana Grande confronted critics of her appearance in a joint interview with her Wicked co-star, Cynthia Erivo, and her impassioned and articulate response is so satisfying to watch.
French content creator Crazy Sally sat down with the pair during the Wicked press tour, where she asked about the pressures women face to be perfect at all times, especially with regards to their appearance. The question clearly stirred some emotions in Grande, and after taking a beat to compose herself, she opened up growing up in the spotlight, and how draining she finds tuning out the constant discussion about her face and body.
“I’ve been doing this in front of the public and been a specimen in a Petri dish really since I was 16 or 17. I have heard it all,” she begins. “I’ve heard every version of it—of what’s wrong with me. And then you fix it, and it’s wrong for different reasons.”
The 31-year-old got her start as a teen star on Nickelodeon sitcoms Victorious and Sam & Cat, and, like many other pop stars before her, has reinvented her image several times throughout her career. Though she experiences more pressure than most, Grande adds that learning to protect yourself can be difficult “no matter the scale.”
“It’s hard to protect yourself from that noise,” she says. “It’s something that is uncomfortable no matter what scale you’re experiencing it on, even if you go to Thanksgiving dinner and someone’s granny says ‘Oh my god you look skinnier, what happened?’ or ‘you look heavier what happened?’”
Read moreAriana Grande Just Revealed Which Cosmetic Procedures She Has—And Hasn’t—Done
“Whatever makes women, men, non gender-confirming people feel beautiful, should be allowed. Why do we care?”
Grande also appears to reference some recent “concerns” about her weight online, where TikTok conspiracy theorists claim she’s unhealthily thin. “There’s a comfortability that we shouldn’t have, at all, commenting on others’ looks, appearance, what they think is going on ‘behind the scenes’ or health or how they present themselves, from what you’re wearing to your body to your face to your everything,” Grande continues. “There’s a comfortability people have commenting on that that I think is really dangerous, and I think it’s dangerous for all parties involved.”
In 2023, the actor addressed concerns about her weight and her appearance in her own TikTok video, telling fans that “there are many different ways to look healthy and beautiful…I know personally, for me, the body you’ve been comparing my current body to was the unhealthiest version of my body.” She explains to her followers that the physique they believed was her “natural state” was a result of poor diet, drinking while on antidepressants, and a generally low point in her life.
TikTok content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
Ariana Grande concluded her answer to Sally’s original question with a resonant message about blocking outside noise. “You keep yourself safe because no one has the right to say shit.” She exhales and smiles: “Can you tell I needed that today?”
The post Ariana Grande Chokes up Discussing Critics of Her Body and Health in Emotional Interview appeared first on Glamour.
