In the weeks leading up to her Sweetener tour, Ariana Grande was photographed hanging out with multiple ex-boyfriends, including Big Sean, Ricky Alvarez, and Graham Phillips. Grande was the one who arranged these meetings and for a very specific reason: to get closure, Us Weekly is reporting today,
“After ‘Thank U, Next’ came out, Ariana was really living her single life and being with her friends, learning about herself,”an insider close to the singer told the outlet. She realised after a couple weeks that she wanted to better understand why her past relationships failed.
“She didn’t want any bad blood holding her back from the next phase of her life," the source continued. "She has reached out to her exes to have a positive place in her life right now and for peace of mind, so she can focus on herself and this tour, which is the only thing on her mind right now.”
Grande last dated Pete Davidson. Their engagement and relationship ended in October. Davidson has since moved on to Kate Beckinsale, and Grande already gave the two her blessing. She told TMZ's reporters that she thought the two were "so cute" in February.
Grande also already shut down any reconciliation rumors when photos came out of some of her ex meetings. In early December, she shut down fans' speculation that she and Alvarez were dating again. "We're friends everyone take a big ol breather," Grande wrote on Instagram.
Grande also tweeted that she has no plans to change her relationship status again any time soon. In response to questions about who she's dating, she wrote on Twitter on January 1 that "spoiler for the rest of this year / probably my life: it’s no one. Please refer back to this tweet for future questions."
Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she's not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.
