Ariana Grande’s 7th studio album Eternal Sunshine released last Friday on March 8th, and it has been very well received despite Grande’s recent controversies. The album outlines the ups and downs of heartbreak and healing like no other. I’ve always personally found that artists write the greatest, most emotionally touching music when they go through heartbreaking traumas, and this album is no exception to that. Here’s a track-by-track breakdown of the album’s storyline.
intro (end of the world)
We start with her intro. It begins the album with a question, “How can I tell I’m in the right relationship?” This is important to remember as we listen throughout the album.
Bye
The first song of the album is “bye,” arguably one of the best songs to dance to on the album. Anyone who has ever been in a relationship that’s been falling apart for some time can relate to the feelings Grande encapsulates in this song. She is done and more than ready to move on to bigger and better things. Although it’s a difficult choice, it’s the right one, one that brings her so much freedom and peace. This is her break-free song in an otherwise heart-wrenching album.
don’t wanna break up again
“don’t wanna break up again” gives us a peek at the events that led up to “bye.” Opening the song with a vulnerable moment of pain she likely experienced more than once (falling asleep crying and being dismissed by her significant other), Grande admits she feels like too much for her partner. Regardless of feeling like too much, she acknowledges that she deserves better and hopes they can remember each other fondly despite the incompatibility. She doesn’t want to hurt anymore, and she doesn’t want to hurt the people she loves anymore either.
Saturn Returns Interlude
The interlude dives into Grande’s spiritual beliefs, entailing how an astrological event can perfectly depict the life experiences she’s been going through in the last few years. A specific line in the song reads “It’s time for you to get real about life and sort out who you really are.” It’s time to wake up!
eternal sunshine
The title track of the album articulates hurtful events Grande went through in the relationship she has been documenting so far. It talks about how the separations in the relationship led to more distance and hurt rather than clarity and love. She writes that she’s the first to apologize, even though she realizes she never had to apologize for the hurt she was put through to begin with. Eventually, as she heals alongside another relationship, she realizes she had an equal part of the hurt inflicted within the past relationship when she writes “Now it’s like I’m looking in a mirror.”
supernatural
“supernatural” encapsulates the magic of falling in love perfectly through its lyrics and its sound. Grande writes “This love’s possessing me, but I don’t mind at all” to describe the feelings of that honeymoon-phase obsession. It’s a scary, supernatural feeling, but you can’t help but lean into it and how good it feels.
true story
“true story” addresses the narrative that’s been created around her image in the last year. As many know by now, rumors and allegations of cheating and home wrecking have been floating around (and debunked) since last July. She addresses the public here by saying “I’ll play the villain if you need me to,” and “I’ll play the one you love to hate” because she feels defeated. She knows the truth and knows she has a voice, but also knows the media loves to make a villain out of women despite any truth. This song addresses the fabrications of what has destroyed her image in the last year, but she knows that this album is her chance to share her side of the story.
the boy is mine
Ahh, “the boy is mine,” a classic bop on the album. As stated in her Zach Sang Show interview, it was planned that there was going to be a song released on the album that represented her version of her leaked song “Fantasize” which went viral in 2023. I’ll say, watching this interview, I didn’t think Fantasize’s vibes could be topped, but I was wrong. Grande taps into that 90’s pop style and attitude with this one, and it did not disappoint. It is a must listen to on the album, and an essential to add to your playlist.
yes, and?
Her initial single of the album was the first statement she chose to make with the public out of the many she shares with her audience on this album. This song is definitely one of the more playful songs on the album, encasing other feelings she felt alongside the hurt. What does it matter what she does with her life? While this didn’t go over great as a single, putting it alongside the album’s other song statements makes her angle and point of view make much more sense.
we can’t be friends (wait for your love)
Her recent promotional single “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” is a gut-wrenching song that anyone who has experienced heartbreak can relate to. This song and its music video specifically relate to the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a movie about two lovers who choose to erase each other from their minds, although it does not successfully erase the love they have for one another in their hearts.
i wish i hated you
This is another song anyone healing from heartbreak can relate to. No matter the circumstances, sometimes we just can’t hate the people who hurt us. No matter how much other people want us to hate them, it will never be stronger than the love we have developed. You might say it out loud to convince yourself and others of its truth, but in your heart you’ll know it isn’t true. Grande writes a beautiful song that encapsulates this exact heartache perfectly.
imperfect for you
The song “imperfect for you” is a word-play on the concept of being perfect for someone. It would seem this album is all about realizing that it’s much harder than you think to know if you are perfect for someone, maybe even impossible. This song illustrates love that is stronger than flaws and imperfections like anxiety and trauma. Many of us go through relationships and heartache that perpetuate insecurities and traumas, even though real love should make those things feel smaller, and it should almost heal those things as time goes on. Grande writes about how you don’t need to be perfect to have that kind of love.
ordinary things
“ordinary things” is a great close to a heartbreaking story. This song lets us in on the unlimited possibilities of how you can spend time with someone you love, and that the time shared together will always be lovely regardless of how mundane activities might feel. It’s another great song showing us how true, deep love can feel. Grande’s grandmother Nonna speaks at the end of this song, answering the question we started the album with, to “never go to bed without kissing goodnight.”
After a walk through this album’s story, it’s not hard to see why everyone is getting emotional over Ariana Grande’s 8th studio album. Although the album is all about heartbreak, it’s clearly written and produced from a place of love and healing, making it your next best album to turn to the next time you’re the one experiencing heartbreak and looking to heal.
Correction (March 20th, 2024): A previous version of this article claimed ‘Eternal Sunshine’ as Grande’s 8th studio album. It has been updated to reflect the correct information.