It smashed YouTube\u2019s all-time record for most views in the first 24 hours of release.<\/b>
\nAriana Grande \u2019s \u201cThank U, Next\u201d video is a bona fide overnight sensation: It has smashed YouTube\u2019s all-time record for most views in the first 24 hours of release.
The video, an homage to female-driven movies from the early 2000s, dropped at 12 p.m. PT on Friday after weeks of buildup \u2014 and set the record in just under 22 hours. As of Saturday at 9:35 a.m. PT, \u201cThank U, Next\u201d had 46 million views, pushing it past the previous record holder, K-pop supergroup BTS, which notched 45.9 million views for their \u201cIdol\u201d music video in the first 24 hours in August.
In addition, according to YouTube, \u201cThank U, Next\u201d set the record for most-viewed video that used YouTube\u2019s Premiere scheduling feature with 829,000 viewers watching simultaneously at its peak. Grande fans sent over 516,000 chat messages during the video debut, also a record for YouTube Premieres. The initial traffic spike caused a delay in comments posting to the video, according to YouTube.
The video is saturated with references to movies \u201cMean Girls,\u201d \u201cBring It On,\u201d \u201c13 Going On 30\u201d and \u201cLegally Blonde.\u201d It features cameos by \u201cMean Girls\u201d actors Jonathan Bennett and Stefanie Drummond \u2014 with Kris Jenner as the dancing\/camcorder-brandishing mom. It also includes appearances by YouTube stars Colleen Ballinger and Gabi DeMartino, Jennifer Coolidge (\u201cLegally Blonde\u201d), singer Troye Sivan, and \u201cThank U, Next\u201d co-songwriters Tayla Parx and Victoria Mon\u00e9t.
The video for \u201cThank U, Next,\u201d a bittersweet ode to old flames, also includes references to Grande\u2019s exes including \u201cSNL\u201d performer Pete Davidson. The record-breaking video was directed by Hannah Lux Davis.
Here\u2019s the previous ranking of the 10 most-viewed YouTube music videos in the first 24 hours, according to YouTube:
1. BTS, \u201cIdol\u201d \u2013 45.9 million
2. Taylor Swift, \u201cLook What You Made Me Do\u201d \u2013 43.2 million
3. Eminem, \u201cKillshot\u201d \u2013 38.1 million
4. Blackpink, \u201cDdu-Du Ddu-Du\u201d \u2013 36.2 million
5. Psy, \u201cGentleman\u201d \u2013 36 million
6. BTS, \u201cFake Love\u201d \u2013 35.9 million
7. Twice, \u201cYes or Yes\u201d \u2013 31.4 million
8. Nicky Jam feat. J. Balvin, \u201cX (EQUIS)\u201d \u2013 29.7 million
9. XXXTentacion, \u201cSad!\u201d \u2013 27.7 million
10. Adele, \u201cHello\u201d \u2013 26.3 million
Meanwhile, on Thursday (Nov. 29), Grande released four-part docu-series \u201cAriana Grande: Dangerous Woman Diaries\u201d on her YouTube channel. The series follows the pop star on her 2017 concert tour through the creation of her third studio album, \u201cSweetener.\u201d All episodes are available to watch to YouTube Premium subscribers now; the first is free to view (and had more than 4.3 million views as of Saturday) and the others will be available for free weekly through Dec. 20.
Grande\u2019s \u201cThank U, Next\u201d music-video premiere Nov. 30 elicited shout-out tweets from multiple celebs, including from Kris Jenner and Troye Sivan.<\/p>\n