Appearing on the season 24 finale of Hot Ones, Ariana Grande answered hot questions while eating even hotter wings, revealing her cordial relationship with hot sauce but complicated relationship with some of her old songs.
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After taking the first bite, and answering the first question, Ariana had an inquiry of her own for host Sean Evans, asking “Where do you think I’ll sit on the scale from DJ Khaled to Lorde?” Noting, “I do my homework,” in regards to the show she admittedly “begged” to be on. While Evans guessed her outcome would be “Lorde leaning,” he did add, “however it happens is how it’s suppose to happen.”
Barely breaking a sweat while chowing down on the gauntlet of mouth burning plant-based wings, apart from some hiccups, Ari managed to keep her composure as the Scoville levels increased. But did at one point admit, “I think I’m learning that I don’t like hot sauce.”
Answering questions about her new album, Eternal Sunshine, working with Max Martin, and about singing live while filming Wicked, even when doing stunts, “There was lots of bubble singing, which was very high up, and I wasn’t harnessed — I was just kind of there,” she revealed. “I had a lot of stunty singing, but nothing compares to Cynthia Erivo.”
“Watching Cynthia in her harness with a broom, a hat, wig, corset, dress — the whole thing flipping upside down, flying around the set, singing ‘Defying Gravity’ every take like it’s nothing… just the most phenomenal thing I’ve ever seen,” Grande, who plays Glinda opposite Erivo’s Elphaba, expressed. “We had to do some really insane and beautiful things for this film.”
Grande also opened up about the “disheartening and disappointing” experience of music leaks, and revealed her feelings about performing her older songs.
“That’s a natural thing that all artists can relate to,” she admitted about being tired of adding her older songs to her setlist. “There was a time when it was hard for me to feel that same gratitude that I do now for certain songs and for the music, because I think some of it was stressful. And I think that experience was sort of married to some of the songs a little bit, or some of the songs that are more emotional that the experience that inspired them can be married to the music for me for a second.”
She continued, “But with time and therapy, we sort of are able to re-embrace. So I just feel just really proud and grateful, and happy when I hear them. I’m like, ‘That’s a good song.’ Whereas I used to maybe hear it and cry, so that’s a beautiful thing.”
Watch Ariana’s Hot Ones episode below.