"Eternal Sunshine" is everything we hoped it would be and more

by Rebecca Pedersen

Whether you have been impatiently waiting for Ariana Grande’s seventh studio album “Eternal Sunshine” or not, you won't be able to dodge the Ariana Grande commotion that will take place today on March 8th. Album release day.

No one expected it, when a video of her in the studio suddenly appeared on her instagram feed back in December 2023. At this point, she was busy filming the first part of Wicked in London, and had not been dropping hints of any new music in the foreseeable future. Not long after, “Yes, and?” dropped, and before we knew it “Eternal Sunshine” was in our hands. 

The way she dropped “yes, and?” out of nowhere, can be traced back to an interview she did with Rolling Stone in 2018. In the interview she mentions how she wishes to put out music in the way a rapper does. Ad hoc releases, without the carefully plotted album rollouts often required in pop music. Since the “thank you, next” era, her music release strategy has changed, and no longer follows the unwritten rules dictating how a popstar should release their music. 

13 tracks with an overall duration of 35 minutes and 32 seconds. Whilst listening through the album, four themes kept resurfacing. Doubt, guilt, trust and transparency. After a rather public engagement, marriage and divorce to Dalton Gomez, and many alleged flings over the years, being portrayed in the tabloids, Grande has always been a shark at putting these feelings into her lyrics. This album is a clear example of the things she wanted to say, but didn’t want to feed into at the time. On “intro (end of the world)” she expresses doubt in the relationship she is in at the time, and guilt for thinking about someone else. This could well be a reference to her alleged romance with co-star Ethan Slater, whose now ex-wife had some rather damaging things to say about Ariana in the tabloids. 

On “Bye” she has come to the conclusion that her relationship is over. Gratitude towards herself for finally moving through her fears and acknowledging her own strength. A tiny easter egg is hidden in the pre-chorus, for those who love when real life things, places or people get referred to in lyrics. The mention of a certain “Courtney” could spark some confusion for the average listener, but actually the Courtney she is referring to, is one of her longtime best friends, Courtney Chipolone picking her up after a fight with her partner. 

Back to feeling doubt, “Don’t wanna break up again” touches upon the dark sides of being with someone, whether it’s a relationship or a situationship, as she calls it herself. When you don’t feel heard or understood by a partner or someone you love; “turn up the TV, you don’t wanna hear me [cry]”. 

When it comes to Ariana Grande, she can either blow you away with her insane pen-game like she did on “Thank you, next” or her insane production like on “no tears left to cry”.

“Supernatural”, “We can’t be friends (wait for your love) " and “the boy is mine” are three of my personal favorites due to the fantastic production. It sounds nostalgic and familiar, yet brand new and exciting. Max Martin, Oscar Görres, Ilya, Shintaro Yasuda, DaviDior, accompanied by Ariana Grande, are the producers behind these three tracks, and make so much sense to put together. 3 out of 6 being Swedes, yet again proves how many times Sweden has made impressive moves for music all over the world. Grande mentions how she has spent more time in the production seat on this album, and I think it shows in the final product. Her stacking of vocals has reached a whole new level, and she seems to have found her way back to a more pop-influenced sound. Dare I say, at various points in this new music, I actually hear a hint of her debut album “Yours Truly” that came out 11 years ago. 

The fourth track of the album is “Saturn Returns Interlude”. If you are not aware of Saturn Return, it is an astrological phenomenon that occurs in your late twenties, where Saturn takes its first full journey around the sun, and therefore returns back to the same place in the sky it was when you were born. Many see their Saturn Return as a push into adulthood, as Saturn demands full and complete accountability for whatever choices you have made. Something we can certainly say Ariana is doing on “Eternal Sunshine”. Releasing this album at the same time as her Saturn Return is truly a full-circle moment, and one can only imagine how rewarding it must feel.