While attending her worldwide Sweetener tour, crowds have exploded at the sound of Ariana Grande's sincere, unguarded anthem "Thank U, Next." She reflects on the complexities of her love life and vows to prioritize self-love above all else. That mature, genuine vulnerability was on full display Wednesday night when she performed the chart-topping hit during a stop in Mac Miller's hometown of Pittsburgh.
During her performance, she began singing the lyric, "which I could say thank you to Malcolm / Cause he was an angel" when she understandably, choked up. The crowd jumped in to assist Grande, collectively shouting out the name of the Pittsburgh-native.
The singer, who dated the late rapper for several years prior to his death in 2018, reportedly reserved a seat for Miller at the concert, where his songs were played before Grande's entrance.
Although the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette criticized Grande for not delivering a speech explicitly mentioning Miller, her emotional response during the "Thank U, Next" performance illustrated that although the city is still mourning the late rapper's death, so is she.
