Ranking Ariana Grande's Album
Ariana Grande is a cultural icon, music legend, and queen of pop. She has five #1 albums, six #1 hits and 21 Guinness World Records. I love all of Ariana’s albums obviously because I have taste. But I do think some of Ariana’s works are superior to others. If you disagree with my rankings, argue with the door. This isn’t a group project, and it's not up for debate.
6. Yours Truly (2013)
Yours Truly is perfect for a debut album. It’s cute, well produced, and doesn’t take any substantial risks. Ariana was clearly influenced by many vocalists she grew up listening to in this album. The influence of Mariah Carey, Amy Winehouse and Whitney Houston are all evident. There’s nothing wrong about taking inspiration from other artists, but this album comes in at sixth because Ariana was still finding her sound at the time.
5. My Everything (2014)
My Everything has a plethora of bops. Its five radio hits including “Bang Bang,” “Problem,” “Break Free,” “Love Me Harder,” and “One Last Time” are the reason this is Ariana’s highest selling album. While the album has many great individual songs, the album as a whole isn’t cohesive. Honestly, it sounds more like a playlist than a full body of work.
4. Positions (2020)
Positions is Ariana’s most R&B heavy project. Ariana is known for soulful R&B ballads and infusing pop with other genres such as hip-hop and trap. Sonically, the album is beautiful but it doesn’t showcase Ariana’s musical diversity. The album is a beautiful body of work, but I would’ve loved to have seen Ariana take more risks here.
3. Dangerous Woman (2016)
Dangerous Woman, Ariana’s third album is often considered her best project. This album, and the visuals that accompany it are truly immaculate. She blends 2010s pop and sultry R&B sounds so beautifully. Songs like “Bad Decisions” and “Into You” remind us that Ariana still “runs pop,” as Nicki Minaj famously says in the album's biggest hit “Side to Side.” Ariana also flexes her R&B muscle with songs like “I Don’t Care, Leave Me Lonely'' and'' Dangerous Woman.”
2. Thank U, Next (2019)
Thank U, Next is easily Ariana’s most successful record*. The twelve track album holds multiple music records. In early 2019, Ariana occupied the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, making her the only female artist in history to have the three most popular songs in America at the same time. She was the first artist since the Beatles to achieve this feat. Thank U, Next also had two singles debut at number one, which helped Ariana claim her title for most #1 debuts by any artist ever. She still maintains this record at five. The album is deeply personal and explicitly discusses difficult topics like death, breakups, drug abuse and depression. Thank U, Next truly was a cultural reset.
1. Sweetener (2018)
Sweetener is probably the greatest pop album of the 2010s. Sorry Swifties, stay mad. Sweetener is an extremely experimental pop/R&B album largely produced by Pharrell. The album is extremely risky and is a common cause for debate within Ariana’s fandom. Basically, either you love it or you hate it. Personally, I think it’s incredible. Ariana nailed pop down to a science with her third album Dangerous Woman, and she perfectly incorporated her pop sound into this dreamy R&B record. Vocally, the album is obviously amazing and the content of the songs is so versatile, yet cohesive. This is the highlight of Ariana’s discography and easily her best work.
*My Everything is Ariana’s best selling album, but Thank U, Next is her highest charting and most streamed project
By Sawyer Sugarman