Ariana Grande continued her vie for world dominance when, late last night, she released “Imagine,” another new song from her upcoming album, Thank U, Next. The pop singer took to Twitter earlier this week to answer fans’ questions about the promotional track, suggesting that it will “balance the energy” between the album’s hit title song and the next single, “7 Rings.”
Produced by “Pop” Wansel and Happy Perez, “Imagine” is a dreamy and sensual midtempo ballad, with Ariana pining for an Instagram-perfect romance that comprises sexy baths, “creepy” secrets, and sharing pad thai (tween Google searches for the dish will no doubt spike in the next 24 hours). It’s all ultimately unremarkable, but the track takes a sudden turn in its final third, as it builds to a hypnotic climax filled with cinematic orchestral swells and Ariana’s euphoric, Ripperton-esque whistle notes.
The lyric video for “Imagine” appropriates a striking visual created by Brussels-based glitch artist Thomas Collet that depicts a crumbling iceberg:
Thank U, Next, the follow-up to this year’s Sweetener, is due in early 2019.
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