Marcus Vinicius’s review of the albumthank u, next

After "Sweetener" showcasing growth and an interesting path for Ariana to walk on, "Thank U, Next" came as the quick successor and a much more discussed and controversial one - which is astounding, because the album sounds perfectly fine and completely solid in each aspect Ariana tries to approach here. Loosing some of Sweetener's quirkier production and rose-tinted melodies, "Thank U, Next" sees Ariana lining up with more a more contemporary R&B sound and modern mainstream elements, with a bigger Trap influence, using most of its tropes. In any case, the album comes off as a very interesting mix of emotive and heartfelt songs (with the most straightfoward and verboharrigc Ariana has been, so far) and vapid party songs approached in a campy, tongue-in-cheek tone and both are delivered with grace and in a very solid way. "Needy" has a gorgeous synth hammering behind the fragile lyrics, "Ghostin" sees Ariana in a way more atmospheric approach, creating encapsulating melodies with an orchestral instrumentation and there's of course the fantastic title track and its direct lyrics and sassy melody, on the other side you have trap-influenced songs like the controversial "7 Rings" and the campy "Break Up with Your Girlfriend", these provides a different energy to the album and make it more varied - but never losing the coherence of the production, keeping everything tied together in the same aesthetic, thus making 'Thank U, Next' a perfectly enjoyable and easy listen experience and one of this year's mainstream most efficient offerings