Ariana Grande candidly opens up about depression and anxiety
Ariana Grande has explained which song saved her life during "dark times".
Ariana Grande has candidly opened up about battling against depression and anxiety.
The 31-year-old chart-topping star was devastated in 2017 when an Islamic extremist targeted her concert at Manchester Arena in a terrorist attack that killed 22 and injured over 1,000.
Grande was then heartbroken in September 2018 when her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller died of an accidental overdose and she split from fiancé Pete Davidson the following month - leading to an outpouring of creativity for her.
The singer has now explained that her 2019 song Thank U, Next helped her process her grief - and she wrote the song two weeks after her 2018 album, Sweetener, dropped.
Speaking on The Hollywood Reporter's Awards Chatter podcast, Grande said of writing her hit single, "I think I needed it.
"I was doing so much therapy, and I was dealing with PTSD and all different kinds of grief and depression and anxiety.
"I was, of course, treating it very seriously, but having music be a part of that remedy was absolutely contributing to saving my life. They were dark times, and the music brought so much levity."
The Wicked star explained, "(Thank U, Next) poured out with urgency, and it was made with urgency. It was a means of survival.
"The label understood that, but they were also very hesitant to stop Sweetener dead in its tracks and move onto an album so quickly ... I just said, 'I don't really care about the formula. I don't want to play by the rules at this moment, because this is what I need for my soul.' It felt really healing and freeing."