Somewhat surprisingly, Ariana Grande began teasing a new album this spring. Over the past several years Grande has been busy as a Hollywood actress, endlessly promoting her two Wicked movies and filming the upcoming Meet The Parents sequel Focker In Law. She's got some shows this summer — they're kicking off this weekend, in fact — but the tour is named for her previous album 2024's Eternal Sunshine, and she made a point of telling fans that she wouldn't have new music out before the tour. It looks like those remarks were either premature or a lie.
Late in April, Grande officially announced the new LP, which is called petal. Last Friday, she released its lead single, the low-key and midtempo "Hate That I Made You Love Me," which is catchy and will probably get burn in grocery stores for all eternity but is a bit underwhelming as Ariana Grande lead singles go. It's also the closest thing to a rock song Grande has released in quite a while, or ever? I guess something's in the air.
Today, the song gets its music video. The sight of a fiery overturned car is giving me flashbacks to the wreckage-strewn, alien-abduction-themed "Twilight Zone" and "Supernatural" videos from Grande's deluxe edition of Eternal Sunshine, Brighter Days Ahead. But no, "Hate That I Made You Love Me" exists in its own cinematic universe, though it is directed by Christian Breslauer, the same person who previously helmed Grande's Eternal Sunshine visuals.
The clip co-stars Justin Long as a presumed former love interest who is haunted by Grande's memory after burying her in some sort of underground chamber. At one point he is consumed by flames but somehow survives to be further tormented. This would never happen to John Hodgman. Watch below.
petal is out 7/31 on Republic.
