Ariana Grande has come forward with a revealing explanation behind one of the most recognizable fashion phases of her career, shedding light on a period she now describes as deeply painful.
The pop star and Wicked actress revisited her past during a recent Vogue interview, where she flipped through 21 looks spanning her career, from her earliest red carpet appearances to her most recent public outings.
Highlights
- Grande revealed the reason she started wearing oversized sweatshirts in 2018.
- She linked the look to trauma following the Manchester bombing and Mac Miller’s passing.
- Her comments come as renewed online criticism targets her appearance after the Golden Globes.
Among them was a series of photos from nearly a decade ago that showed Grande repeatedly stepping out in oversized sweatshirts paired with thigh high boots.
“This was a very strange time in my life,” she said.
Ariana Grande revealed the personal and emotional reasons she started wearing oversized sweatshirts in 2018
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“I was processing a lot, and I always wanted to hide away in something really cozy,” Grande explained.
The singer revealed that the now iconic outfit was the result of emotional exhaustion, and had nothing to do with style or fashion.
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“So, the easiest thing for me was to throw on a sweatshirt and a c**ty boot and that was how it happened.”
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The oversized clothes, she said, served as a form of protection during a moment when she wanted to disappear from view. The boots, on the other hand, offered her a sense of agency.
“I remember that the boots still made me feel c**t.”
At the time, photos of Grande in the look circulated constantly, particularly as she was frequently seen alongside then fiancé Pete Davidson.
The late 2010s were a particularly difficult time for Grande, with back to back tragedies
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That period coincided with a series of traumatic events that would permanently alter Grande’s life.
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In May 2017, Grande was performing in Manchester, England when a bomber detonated an explosive at her concert, taking the lives of 22 people and injuring more than 500.
The attack left the singer grappling with survivor’s guilt, and long-term psychological trauma.
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“May 22, 2017, will leave me speechless and filled with questions for the rest of my life,” Grande later said of the bombing.
Just over a year later, in September 2018, Grande’s ex-boyfriend, Mac Miller, passed away of an accidental overdose at the age of 26.
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Around the same time, she was navigating a whirlwind relationship with Pete Davidson, which began in May 2018, which escalated into an engagement less than one month later and ended abruptly in October.
At the time, many online accused Grande of cheating on Miller with Davidson, with some going so far as to blame her for the former’s deteriorating mental state.
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“Ariana Grande is a piece of sh*t that used Mac Miller's d**th to further her career,” a user wrote at the time.
“The narrative that Ariana is somehow to blame for Mac's d**th is way too prominent for how false it is,” another replied.
The conversation about Grande’s past wardrobe choices come as scrutiny of her physical health intensifies
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Grande’s Vogue reflections arrive amid renewed backlash over her appearance following her recent Golden Globes appearance, where photos of her stepping out in a pale pink dress sparked intense online scrutiny.
“Can’t believe this is the same woman,” one commenter wrote after comparing the images to photos from around 2018.
“Her stance is killing me. She genuinely looks like a grandma,” one person commented. “She looks like a wax figure you see at history museums.”
As the discussion escalated, critics accused Grande of deliberately cultivating an image of fragility on purpose.
“It’s all for sympathy and attention. She’s also putting makeup on that makes her look sickly and paler,” a viewer claimed. “She wants to look like a delicate tiny baby flower. She’s feeding off it.”
Others opted for mockery.
“She is like a human version of a chihuahua,” one user wrote. “This is the most accurate thing I’ve ever read about her,” another replied.
"Hiding in baggy clothes is comfortable," Some netizens empathized with Grande
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