Ariana Grande Teased Her New Song in the Most Brilliant Way

The singer-songwriter-actress could teach a masterclass on building suspense for her new songs off her fifth album, which she's been releasing one at a time. First, there was "Thank U, Next." Now, there's "Imagine," and Grande knew exactly how to get her fans excited.

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Access to social media means we don't have to wait for our favorite celebrities. Depending on how open they are, we can get photos, reactions, releases, and more, all with lightning speed. And nobody is better at the social media game than Ariana Grande. The singer-songwriter-actress could teach a masterclass on building suspense for her new songs off her fifth album, which she's been releasing one at a time. First, there was "Thank U, Next," which sent Twitter and the world at large into a frenzy. Now, there's "Imagine," and Ariana knew exactly how to get her fans excited.

Per People, the new romantic ballad may actually be a reference to John Lennon's song of the same title. It's about "denial," according to Grande, and envisioning a different future for her "failed yet important beautiful relationships." It's quite a change from her fluffy, upbeat "Thank U, Next" and its star-studded music video with a million movie references. That one was all about "acceptance," according to Grande.

The singer was in rare form last night. She retweeted her fans counting down by the hour until release, and even joined in on Twitter and Instagram. There were screenshots of the lyrics video (below) on her computer and the song playing on her phone. There were random shots of her dogs, clearly less enthused than she was, on her Instagram stories. Two hours before the song release, she actually started tweeting lyrics from the song—fans went wild. Right now, some of those lyrics have more retweets than the tweet with the actual song link.

Miley Cyrus was also releasing a song last night ("War Is Over," also potentially inspired by Lennon). But instead of competing, Grande recognized her fellow singer, and managed to throw some shade to Drake and Kanye's Twitter fight while she was at it:

She really, really knows how to get people excited. Listen to "Imagine" below, while we wait for another inspired video.

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Katherine J. Igoe
Katherine J. Igoe
Contributing Editor

Katherine’s a contributing syndications editor at Marie Claire who covers fashion, culture, and lifestyle. In her role, she writes stories that are syndicated by MSN and other outlets. She’s been a full-time freelancer for over a decade and has had roles with Cosmopolitan (where she covered lifestyle, culture, and fashion SEO content) and Bustle (where she was their movies and culture writer). She has bylines in New York Times, Parents, InStyle, Refinery29, and elsewhere. Her work has also been syndicated by ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Seventeen, Good Housekeeping, and Women’s Health, among others. In addition to her stories reaching millions of readers, content she's written and edited has qualified for a Bell Ringer Award and received a Communicator Award. 

Katherine has a BA in English and art history from the University of Notre Dame and an MA in art business from the Sotheby's Institute of Art (with a focus on marketing/communications). She covers a wide breadth of topics: she's written about how to find the very best petite jeans, how sustainable travel has found its footing on Instagram, and what it's like to be a professional advice-giver in the modern world. Her personal essays have run the gamut from learning to dress as a queer woman to navigating food allergies as a mom. She also has deep knowledge of SEO/EATT, affiliate revenue, commerce, and social media; she regularly edits the work of other writers. She speaks at writing-related events and podcasts about freelancing and journalism, mentors students and other new writers, and consults on coursework. Currently, Katherine lives in Boston with her husband and two kids, and you can follow her on Instagram. If you're wondering about her last name, it’s “I go to dinner,” not “Her huge ego,” but she responds to both.