Wicked fans have discovered that Ariana Grande was 'holding space' long before THAT viral interview, and they've been pretty vocal about it.
Social media users were sent into a right frenzy during the interview conducted by Out reporter, Tracey E. Gilchrist, which saw her telling Cynthia Erivo about the reception that one of the film's most famous tracks, 'Defying Gravity', received online.
In their chat, Gilchrist explained: "I've seen this week people are taking the lyrics of 'Defying Gravity' and really holding space with that and feeling power in that."
Erivo then reacted with an expression of shock, with Grande reaching across and taking hold of her fingers for support.
"I didn't know that that was happening," she replied. "That's really powerful. That's what I wanted. I didn't know that was happening."
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The journalist then clarified: "I've seen it on a couple of posts - I don't know how widespread - but I am in queer media."
"That's really cool," Erivo added.
She told Variety: "I just did what I do, going in and doing an interview."
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The journo added: "I’d interviewed Cynthia before, so I went in very sincerely. I’m glad people are finding joy in it and laughing, and that it’s so viral."
She explained she was 'inspired by Tony Morrison', the senior communications director from GLAAD, after he posted the lyrics of 'Defying Gravity' before her interview.
According to Gilchrist: "It was a great explainer. 'Holding space' is being physically, emotionally, and mentally present with someone or something.
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"For me, it means being in the moment, not being distracted and feeling something on a cellular level. I think you can hold space with lyrics of a song – one you’ve heard hundreds of times – and it can suddenly take on new meaning when you’re a queer person."
But it seems the viral Out interview isn't the only instance 'holding space' has been used in relation to Wicked.
One Wicked fan shared a featurette of the film, which saw Grande discussing one particular scene where a single tear poured out of Erivo's eye 'on cue' before she wiped it off.
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"Everyone in the room felt it with her. Everyone was just kind of holding space for Elphaba in that room, and you could hear a pin drop every second of that entire day," the 'Side to Side' singer recalled.
The fan captioned the video on X: "Oh my god oh my god a new Wicked featurette just dropped and WAIT FOR IT. WAIT FOR WHAT ARIANA SAYS. HELPPPPP.
"Also like, they filmed all these featurettes long ago. Which means it happened before the viral interview. So this movie has been holding space since the shoot.
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"I haven’t even seen Wicked yet I was just scrolling YouTube and pressed play and was blindsided."
A second penned: "The way my jaw dropped!"
"I actually shrieked just now," quipped a third while a fourth gushed: "I felt power in that."
A fifth chimed in: "I feel like I’m going to be holding space in my vocabulary for this phrase for a long time."
"So much space is being held rn," chirped a sixth while a seventh echoed: "I’m holding space for Ariana saying everyone on set was holding space for Elphaba."
Another piped up: "BUT DID SHE LIEEE??? I was holding space to feel this scene in every possible way.
"Such a good portrayal of confronting those raw emotions but in a way that was comforting."
And a final X user joked: "i feel like I’m being gaslit into being made to believe 'holding space' is a real thing that people say."
Topics: Ariana Grande, Celebrity, Social Media, TV And Film, Wicked
Rhiannon Ingle