Ariana Grande makes lyric change in ‘Thank U, Next’ directed at parents

Ariana Grande has surprised fans by subtly altering a lyric in her hit song ‘Thank U, Next’.

The 32-year-old Grammy winner is currently on her Eternal Sunshine tour, where the change was first noticed during a recent performance.

One of the hits on the set list is Grande’s 2018 smash hit in which she names some of her exes.

The Wicked star also references a future wedding and her parents’ estranged relationship. In the song she says “One day I’ll walk down the aisle holding hands with my mama / I’ll be thanking my dad, ‘cause she grew from the drama.”

However, Grande is now signing the line, “We all grew from the drama.”

Ariana Grande with her parents Joan Grande and Edward Butera at the 2020 Grammys (VALERIE MACON / AFP)

In the years that have passed since the song came out, Grande married luxury real estate agent Dalton Gomez in 2021 but the pair separated in 2023 and eventually divorced in 2024.

Her father, Edward Butera, was one of the attendees at the private ceremony after they made amends a few years prior.

The ‘Dangerous Woman’ singer and her dad fell out of touch in 2013. Butera and Grande’s mum, Joan Grande, divorced when she was just eight.

The former Nickelodeon star opened up about their complicated relationship during an interview with Seventeen in 2014.

"It’s private… It took me so long to be OK with it," she said.

"So much of me comes from my father, and for so long, I didn’t like that about myself.

"I had to accept that it’s OK not to get along with somebody and still love them."

Ariana Grande mentions her parents in her song 'Thank U, Next' (YouTube/Ariana Grande)

However, in more recent years the pair seem to have reconnected. Grande invited both of her parents along to the 62nd Grammy Awards back in 2020.

She also used her official name, Ariana Grande-Butera, in the credits for Wicked, which many fans saw as a cute nod to her dad, signalling that their relationship was in a good place.

Ariana Grande launched the Eternal Sunshine Tour on 6 June 2026 in Oakland, California, marking her first major tour in about seven years.

The tour is mainly visiting cities across the US, Canada, and the UK with 41 dates scheduled and is due to wrap on 1 September at The O2 in London, England.

Grande will also release her new album Petal on 31 July featuring new song 'Hate That I Made You Love Me'.