Music news: Ariana Grande announces new album ‘petal’
American singer and songwriter Ariana Grande has announced her eighth studio album ‘petal’, writes Music News Blitz writer Shauna Hyland.
The album follows on from her 2024 release ‘eternal sunshine’, and other recent successes such as Academy Award nominated film ‘Wicked’ and its sequel ‘Wicked: For Good’.
What we know about ‘petal’
Ariana took to Instagram to announce the album, with the release date set for Friday July 31.
Fans of Grande’s albums since her ‘Sweetener’ era will be happy to know that she has co-produced and co-written the ‘petal’ album with her long-time collaborator Ilya Salmanzadeh.
Grande describes the album as “something that is full of life and growing through the cracks of something cold and hard and challenging”.
According to Spotify, the album will have 12 tracks. We are not yet aware of which will be the lead single.
The singer had been teasing fans regarding a new album, putting a flower emoji in her Instagram bio alongside releasing photos and videos of her in a recording studio.
The album is set to release as Grande is in the midst of her long-awaited tour for her album ‘eternal sunshine’, prompting questions over whether Ariana will tour the ‘petal’ album individually or whether she will perform the album alongside the eternal sunshine discography.
Grande had joked that she would need “an extra brain and four more arms” to release a new album this summer, as she has been (and continues to be) booked and busy.
The album is ready for fans to pre-order through various platforms now.
What could we expect from the album?
There’s a high expectation for Grande’s music, as she is a three time Grammy Award winner.
Furthermore, six out of her seven released studio albums have reached number one on the Billboard 200.
Other than an expectation that her new album will be a success, fans have also been speculating what the album will entail.
Ariana Grande is best known for pop music, alongside elements of R&B and even rap, so the album could be of any genre due to her creative and flexible vocal range.
Her previous album, ‘eternal sunshine’ was based loosely on the 2004 film (which she has called one of her favourite films) ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’.
Grande even produced a similar short film alongside the album.
Fans are wondering whether her new album ‘petal’ may follow a similar concept. Will it also be derived from one of Grande's favourite films?
What else is Grande up to?
Grande is also set to star in Universal and Paramount Pictures’ ‘Focker-In-Law’ American comedy film.
The film, written and directed by John Hamburg, stars Ariana Grande as the partner of Greg Focker’s son Henry.
Ariana stars alongside legacy actors such as Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro, both reprising their roles from the original 2000’s ‘Meet the Parents’ film.
Her role attained high praise from De Niro, with De Niro calling her "probably the single most talented screen partner I’ve ever been lucky enough to share the screen with”.
The film marks Grande’s third film within two years, following a roughly six year hiatus from acting.
As well as tackling the big screen, Grande is also set to make her West End debut in 2027 in a revival of Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Sunday in the Park with George,’ alongside Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey.
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