Ariana Grande
Ariana Grande is a familiar name to everyone. Whether you know her as the high-pitched redhead from Nickelodeon, the pop superstar, or that one girl who licked a donut and claimed she hated America, you’re bound to recognize her.
2022 was a very busy year for Grande. Though many fans were displeased with the lack of new music, she got a lot done apart from her usual singer-songwriter niche.
Late last year Grande announced that she would be going back to her Broadway acting roots and fly into the role of Glinda in the movie musical of “Wicked.” This was extremely thrilling and emotional news for Grande as “Wicked” had always been one of her favorites. She delightfully teased her audience with clips and pictures from behind the scenes of the long-awaited movie shoot all of 2022. Fans were ecstatic to see a new “era” of hers play out since we haven’t gotten one in a while; her new era includes a beautiful bouncy blonde look.
Though Grande was booked and busy preparing for and shooting a movie, she also kept her beauty line buzzing. REM Beauty, Grande’s recently launched makeup company, released three new “chapters” this year. A chapter refers to a collection of makeup items all following a certain theme. This year she has released “goodnight n go,” “on your collar” and “out of body.” Her entire beauty line has been very successful, and it’s all from the mind of Grande herself.
In addition to her beauty line, Grande is also widely recognized for her large perfume collection. Before 2022, she had released 11 perfumes. In December of 2022, Grande announced and released a new perfume. However, this was a special release, as this was her first time putting out two fragrances at the same time. That’s right, “Mod Blush” and “Mod Vanilla” came out as twins which left fans everywhere desperately explaining to their parents why they need both. I would know, I was one of those people.
She left 2022 setting up for an exciting 2023. Not only do fans have “Wicked” to look forward to, but they also get to see Grande on their TV screens in early January on the two-part premiere of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.” She excitedly announced in late December 2022 that she would be a guest judge on the show she has idolized for years.
Grande, unfortunately, received a lot of hate this year from “fans” sarcastically reminding her that she is a singer and needs to stick to making music. Some even went as far as to say that it’s the only thing she’s good at.
Overall, I think Grande was the best person of 2022 for reminding people that you can branch out and never have to feel confined to what you’re known for or best at. It’s important to try new things and Grande’s very active year was a great reminder not to stick to the status quo. She greatly inspired me this year, and I’m sure others feel the same.