Ariana Grande has entered a new era of music with the recent release of her seventh studio album, “eternal sunshine.” The title is a nod to the 2004 film, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” with Jim Carrey, one of Grande’s longtime idols. Having released albums during back to back years in 2018, 2019 and 2020, her fans had been eagerly anticipating Grande’s first album in over three years. With 13 tracks that total to a short 35 minutes long, “eternal sunshine” reveals a vulnerable and intimate side to the pop star’s life.
“eternal sunshine” contrasts two different types of music: there’s a couple of mellower, tear jerking tracks, and then some more upbeat, house party-like tunes. The first single to be from the album, “yes, and,” released in January, gave listeners a little taste of the feel of the album. The song received mixed reviews: many were excited about a peppy, feel-good song, while others complained that it sounded generic and was the type of song H&M would play. The entire album, however, received an overwhelmingly positive response, with many of its listeners being able to relate to the heartfelt stories being told within the lyrics. The standout track, “we can’t be friends (wait for your love),” features an emotional music video shot with actor Evan Peters in which Grande and Peters play a couple who have separated, and Grande is erasing all of her memories of Peters’ character. This video is another hint towards “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” which incorporates a storyline about the same concept. It’s an incredibly emotional and raw ballad, with lyrics “We can’t be friends / But I’d just like to pretend / You cling to your papers and pens / Wait until you like me again / Wait for your love / Love, I’ll wait for your love.”
The content within these new songs aren’t entirely different from Grande’s previous work, as most of her lyrics are about heartbreak. However, Grande’s recent divorce from Dalton Gomez is largely relevant and has been suspected to inspire many of the songs from “eternal sunshine.” In a song titled “Bye” Grande sings about leaving her partner with lyrics, “Bye bye, boy bye, bye bye, it’s over it’s over yeah” and “didn’t think you’d lose me but it’s just too late to choose me.” Yet some of the songs on “eternal sunshine” are about falling in love as well. Many of the songs have sort of a magical, twinkly feel and involve themes like fate and outside forces. The song “supernatural” is about a type of love that seems to be possessive and mystical. “The boy is mine” is another track which explores a relationship that is just meant to be with lyrics “‘Cause the boy is mine, mine / Something about him is made for somebody like me / I can’t wait to try him / let’s get intertwined / the stars, they aligned.”
Grande has also released a “slightly deluxe” edition of “eternal sunshine” which features extra tracks with singers Troye Sivan and Mariah Carey as well as acoustic versions of the songs “imperfect for you” and “true story.” Will we be getting a full deluxe version soon? Grande has her upcoming Wicked movie which is set to release in November of this year, so she’s incredibly busy as of now. It’s safe to say that Ariana Grande is back and has reasserted herself within the business. Her music career now spans over ten years, and “eternal sunshine” is a testament to all she’s been through. The album is beautifully sung and produced and there’s a song on there for everyone.
