Linda Puga
campus editor
Ariana Grande comes back with her sixth studio album that shows her journey of
falling in love.
Ariana Grande released her sixth studio album titled “Positions” on Oct. 30, combin-ing her pop roots with R&B influence to cre-ate a new rhythmic sound for her albums to come.
Grande collaborated with a few artists for this anticipated release, each enhancing the song and the messages they carried. They included Doja Cat on “motive,” The Weeknd on “off the table” and Ty Dolla $ign on “safety net.”
The song “off the table” is a conceptual stand out within the album with a beauti-ful blend of both voices and effortless vocal runs from both singers. In the song, Grande talks about a time when she wasn’t healed or ready for love and asks if her love is off the table. The second verse comes in with The Weeknd’s feature. He gives the complemen-tary perspective of a guy saying he’ll wait even if he isn’t ready either, implying the love isn’t off the table after all.
Grande speaks to her lover on the song “love language” as she asks how she can bet-ter love him. This charming track showcased a lovey dovey side to the album compared to the more intimate, focused subject songs of the project, such as “six thirty,” “my hair” and “nasty.”
The singer talks about the happiness she feels with the line, “Been a minute since I had something sweet,” alluding to her previously ended engagement. Towards the end of thesong, she refers to her partner as her medi-cation when she is anxious, showcasing the bond between them. There’s a sudden pause and then an outro begins, adding additional sweet words and melodies as the track fades out.
The title track “positions” is the perfect title for the project as it sets up the tracks for the album, both sonically and thematically. In the song, Grande expresses the process of falling for someone, hinting at her infinite love and how she would do anything for her partner. The album concludes with the track “pov.” As the title insinuates, the track is about Grande wanting to know how her lover views her. The hook of the chorus states it all as it says, “For all of my pretty and all of my ugly too, I’d love to see me from your point of view.” The track starts off slow with subtle production that amplifies her vocals and high notes.
This song is the epitome of love songs on this album with Grande’s mentions of how her lover knows her better than she knows herself and how she finds comfort in loving him even though she’s scared with the line, “I’m getting used to receiving, still getting good at not leaving.”
The track ends the album on a lovely note with angelic runs and a heartfelt mes-sage. Grande’s project overall portrays themes of falling in love, trust and authenticity as she finds happiness in those things once more.
