I’m no producer, but I don’t believe it’s possible for Ariana Grande’s voice to be more in your face than it is on this album. Her main vocals are mixed so far to the front you forget there’s music behind her, and on top of that you’re assaulted by a chorus of more Arianas from all sides, singing harmonies and multiplying like an Attack of the Clones. They have you surrounded and they’re not going to let you forget it. The mix and the music is all about her voice, almost to the point of narcissism.

But to be fair, she’s clearly the most talented pure singer on this list. That’s not lost on Ariana - her brand is like the mega-voiced divas of the 90’s and 2000’s, with the songs serving her voice and her persona rather than the other way around. There are lots of sparkly Disney dreamland vibes, which I suspect are mostly an act of branding. She acts very spacey and the music fits that, which on the one hand achieves a very consistent brand, but on the other hand I refuse to believe someone with so much talent is actually an airhead in real life as the occasional Insta posts the algorithm sends me about her would have me believe. I think it’s an act to appear more relatable, hiding the genius within for the simple fact that America hates smart people.

It’s cool that she makes it seem so easy and acts like she’s just kind of bopping along through life. But I also hate that fact because it probably makes people think she didn’t work her ass off to get to this level of singing prowess. I hate when artists underplay the amount of work it took them to get to their level - why hide that under the rug? Why not be proud of how hard you’ve worked? I get that they want a cool, DGAF image, but it sucks that our society doesn’t see the grind as the cool part.

This album is calculating and shrewd, and Ariana Grande has undoubtedly inspired millions of singers with her talent. But it’s interesting to me in the way a story about a CEO is interesting. Impressive, but there’s not much human connection and nothing drawing me back in.

From the roundup Jamwise #45 - Special Edition: 2024's Chart-Topping Albums.