Recommended Tracks: “twilight zone,” “dandelion”
Artists You May Like: Selena Gomez, Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish
Ariana Grande is one of the most influential and versatile artists of her generation. The past year of her career has been transformative — making her highly anticipated comeback to music with Eternal Sunshine and staring as Glinda in the film adaption of Wicked, a role she has been dreaming of playing her entire life.
Grande expands on already deeply personal and musically seamless album with Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Days Ahead. The story continues with six new tracks, offering a fresh take on a story about self-discovery, love, and heartbreak, allowing Grande to face what she’s endured.
Since the release of Eternal Sunshine, fans have voiced their desire for an extended version of “intro (end of the world)” after going viral on TikTok with over 40,000 videos. Fans ask, and Grande delivers. The extended version is the start of Grande reclaiming her self-worth as she begins to step into her power, similar to a phoenix rising from the ashes.
“twilight zone” is the twisted sister of “we can’t be friends (wait for your love).” The track feels dark and mysterious, blending haunting melodies and eerie synths to create a ethereal listening experience. The pop star seems to be trapped in “different dimensions,” playing into themes of disorientation. The mood shifts as listeners flow into “warm,” a track that feels empowering. You can feel the confidence radiating from Grande as she moves past previous relationships, singing “If you dare, meet me there / I’ll be higher than the exosphere / Cause I know now, I’m safe and sound / And I won’t come down for you.”
Grande taps into a sultry, jazz, and R&B vibe with “dandelion” and “past life.” Both tracks explore the singers healing journey and finding peace after moving on. Rounding out the newest additions comes “Hampstead,” a song that was inspired by her time in Hampstead, London while filming Wicked. While living in Hampstead, the singers marriage ended and the world watched as she fell in love with co-star Ethan Slater. In the track she faces her critics with lyrics like “But quite frankly, you’re still wrong about everything / So far off, your seats no where near the table / But I find something sweet in your peculiar behavior / Cause I think to be so dumb must be nice.”
Complementing the deluxe album is a 26-minute short film, Brighter Days Ahead, co-directed by Christian Breslauer and Ariana Grande. Peaches, who was first introduced in the “we can’t be friends (wait for your love” music video, has found herself in the waiting room of Brighter Days Inc seventy years later. When we last saw Peaches, she was completely wiping a previous relationship from her memory. She finds herself back in the waiting room to have her memory restored, allowing her to revisit moments in her life that have made her who she is.
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