Ariana Grande: 1, Darkness: 0,
The singer dropped her new single “The Light Is Coming” at midnight Wednesday, and if you don’t have the chorus stuck in your head by the end of the day, we don’t know what to tell you.
The song, which kicks off with a fiery verse from frequent collaborator Nicki Minaj ― the two just released the sultry track “Bed” ― has more than one hitmaker involved. Pharrell is responsible for the infectious beat and synth-heavy sound.
“The light is coming to take back everything the darkness stole,” Grande sing- speaks in the catchy chorus, presumably referencing her tumultuous past year in the spotlight.
A sample of a man yelling “You wouldn’t let anybody speak” runs throughout the song, apparently pulled from CNN archive footage of someone shouting at the late Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) at a Pennsylvania town hall meeting in 2009.
Much like the lead single “No Tears Left To Cry” off her forthcoming album “Sweetner,” which arrives Aug. 17, the song is all about warding off the darkness with positive vibes.
This month marked the one-year anniversary of the terrorist attack at Grande’s concert in Manchester, England, that claimed the lives of 22 people. Grande has been paying tribute to the victims across social media.
Grande also recently ended what she called a “toxic” and “scary” relationship with Mac Miller, only to reportedly get engaged to “Saturday Night Live” comedian Pete Davidson weeks later.
The music video released Wednesday, exclusively streaming on the Reebok website, finds Grande gallivanting around what looks like the Forbidden Forest from “Harry Potter” ― she is a die-hard fan after all ― while armed with a glowing orb.
Grande also teased another new track on Instagram earlier this week. It’s called “Pete,” named after Davidson.
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