Ariana Grande released her new single and music video, "No Tears Left To Cry," Friday, April 20, 2018. Since then, she's received praise from many different celebrities across the world for her uplifting song. The new single was penned by Grande and Savan Kotecha and produced by Iilya and Max Martin, who is responsible for other hits "Into You" and "Side to Side."
"No Tears Left To Cry" has been at the top of the iTunes charts since its release. According to Express, the song has reached the top spot on charts in at least 59 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia.
The music video has already surpassed 34 million views and is trending on YouTube. Grande released part one of the behind-the-scenes clips for her music video on April 23, 2018.
Manchester Arena bombing
"No Tears Left To Cry" is the first new piece of music Grande has released since the Manchester Arena bombing. On May 22, 2017, a homemade bomb was detonated outside the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England, after the conclusion of an Ariana Grande concert. The incident was an act of terror, and resulted in 23 dearths, including the bomber, and 512 non-fatal injuries.
Following this tragedy, Grande held a benefit concert in honor of the victims. According to Glamour, One Love Manchester raised more than $13 million.
The lyrics and the video accompanying Grande's new song have subtle hints pointing to the incident. Some of the lyrics include, "we're way to fly to partake in all this hate," which could be a reference to the terrorist attack. There is a bee that flies across the screen at the end of the music video. According to Glamour, "the worker bee is the symbol of Manchester, used to represent the city's resilience during the Industrial Revolution." It's extremely fitting to use the bee to represent the city's resilience once again.
A positive response
The song has been welcomed by not only fans, but critics as well.
Chris Wilman from Variety has deemed the song the "most dance-able kind of post-traumatic recovery anthem." Pitchfork's Meghan Garvey said the song is "evoking turn-of-the-millennium." Hannah Mylrea from NME described the song as "tackling hate and devastation with hope and disco."
Grande graced fans with a surprise performance of her new single at Coachella alongside Kygo, resulting in even more positive reviews of her comeback.
