Ariana Grande Recalls ‘Dealing with PTSD’ Plus ‘Grief,’ ‘Depression and Anxiety’ in Sweetener and Thank U, Next Eras

The process of making Sweetener and Thank U, Next was an emotionally taxing time for Ariana Grande.

In a new interview on the Feb. 3 episode of the Hollywood Reporter podcast Awards Chatter, the Grammy-winning singer and Oscar-nominated actress opened up about experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, depression and anxiety while making the back-to-back albums.

Sweetener was released in August 2018 and marked Grande’s first project following the 2017 bombing at the Manchester stop of her Dangerous Woman Tour that killed 22 people and injured hundreds of others. Less than one month after the album came out, the Wicked star’s ex-boyfriend Mac Miller died of an accidental drug overdose.

Grande then made the bulk of Thank U, Next in about two weeks and released the album in February 2019, something she “needed” to do at the time.

“I was doing so much therapy, and I was dealing with PTSD and all different kinds of grief and depression and anxiety. And, I was, of course, treating it very seriously, but having music be a part of that remedy was absolutely contributing to saving my life,” she said on the podcast.

“They were dark times, and the music brought so much levity and so did the experience. But it poured out with urgency, and it was made with urgency, and it was a means of survival,” she added.

While the “God Is a Woman” musician said her record label “understood” the need to make more music, the company was “hesitant” to move on from Sweetener “so quickly because at the time that wasn’t really something that people did.”

“Unless it was rap music or hip-hop, it wasn’t really a commonly done thing,” explained Grande. “And I just said, ‘I don’t really care about the formula. I don’t really want to play by the rules at this moment because this is what I need from my soul.’”

She continued, “It felt really healing and freeing. It was just such a beautiful moment of connection.”

Maintaining a deep connection with fans has “been one of the most beautiful pieces of the puzzle” throughout Grande’s career, she told Awards Chatter.

“Like, meeting waiters at a restaurant who will tell me that they felt like they had a big sister in me because they didn’t have a sister growing up, and they’re gay, and they have felt like I was their sister, and they could come out because I was there and made a silly song,” she said.

“It’s just really beautiful, and I carry that with me,” added Grande.