Ariana Grande is arguably at her best musically and her most raw emotionally. Her music has grown in every direction possible, both in musicality and its messaging. Songs like “God Is A Woman,” “Breathin’,” and “Thank U, Next” all mark some sort of…
Ariana Grande is arguably at her best musically and her most raw emotionally. Her music has grown in every direction possible, both in musicality and its messaging. Songs like “God Is A Woman,” “Breathin’,” and “Thank U, Next” all mark some sort of emotional milestone in Grande’s transformative journey, and now fans are noticing a new personal leaf ready to be turned over. Thanks to some choice lyrics in her hit “Thank U, Next,” fans are now asking — Who is Ariana Grande’s dad? The pop-star makes mention of her father in the middle of the song, causing loads of us to raise our hands.
Likely, you’ve heard “Thank U, Next,” like, a bunch already. The song most directly references Grande’s past boyfriends including Big Sean, Ricky Alvarez, Mac Miller, and Pete Davidson. Essentially, it is an ode to the lessons each relationship taught her. She sings, ” One taught me love / One taught me patience / And one taught me pain / Now, I’m so amazing.”
Additionally, during the song’s bridge, Ari brings up another man from her past — her father. The lyrics go like this:
In these words, Grande is referencing her actual father, Edward Butera, and how their strained relationship helped form who she is today.
According to AOL.com, Butera and his famous daughter have been estranged for the bulk of her adult life. Butera and Grande’s mother Joan split when Ari was eight years old, which was about 17 years ago. Usually, Grande doesn’t talk about it. However, in a rare interview from 2014 with Seventeen magazine, she let fans in just a little bit on her history with her father.
At the time, she described the falling out with her dad as “the toughest thing she has ever had to deal with.” She explained, “It’s private, but it happened last year. It took me so long to be okay with it. The thing that got me there was embracing the fact that I am made up of half my dad, and a lot of my traits come from him.” Grande added, “So much of me comes from my father, and for so long, I didn’t like that about myself. I had to accept that it’s okay not to get along with somebody and still love them.”
It was a few years until Grande’s fans heard mention of Butera again, but he did pop up in the form of a Father’s Day Instagram post. In 2017, Grande shared a photo of her father holding her as a baby with the caption, “Happy Father’s Day. I love you.”
Today, all of Grande’s fans are benefiting from the lessons the men in her life taught her.
Plus, she’s got one thing so right. This song is a smash.
