thank u, next: wut?
I just watched the clip to this. It left me perplexed. Starts out with an absurd self-flattery, then name dropping multiple (and actual) ex boyfriends of the singer. Then the clip, it's something totally different and unrelated. It's as if clips (which are somewhat sexist againt almost all sorts of gender out there) collected from a stock media site.
Then the lyrics. A list of someone's ex-SOs. Then self-flattery. Then, let's put a few buzzwords here and there. She's in a lesbian relationship, and her dad is transsexual. Apparently queer people reduced to pure stereotypes. It all comes off to me either as an exploitation of the current atmosphere among the youth, or something so personal would better be a vlog.
There is a strong contrast between the video and lyrics. Objectification of male genitalia sprinkled towards the end of the song. An "eww" at people with missing teeth. Women in sexualised outfit.
Am I too out of touch with mainstream pop stuff? I mean something like Nicky Minaj doesn't come of this "dissonant" to me. There's lots of sexuality in her stuff, but I don't think that's a problem per se. I just don't like her stuff (or swathes of stereotypical male rappers and pop singers) and move on. But this entire combination of clip and song comes off as literally repugnant to me. Is there something I'm missing?
Edit: just to clarify, it's not sexuality or queer stuff that is the problem for me (I don't have any problems with these things and them being depicted), but a strong sense of exploitation and dishonesty that I get.
I'm sorry but this is a terrible critical analysis of the song. I've only ever heard it once, so I'm far from a diehard fan, but so much of what you're claiming here is just so off-base, or downright wrong. A trip to the Genius lyrics would helped a lot, I think.
Firstly, some context: Ariana Grande has seen some shit in the last year or two. There was a terrorist attack at one of her performances that left her pretty shaken, then a beloved ex of hers OD'd and a bunch of idiots on the internet had a blame campaign against her. Over the past year (and since that breakup), she's been on a spree of whirlwind romances that the paparazzi have been overcovering (which led to the furor she received when Mac Miller OD'd and people assumed it was a suicide).
This song is something of a response to all of that, and a healthy one: she's thankful for all her exes but she will always look forward. That's the idea behind the phrase "thank u, next". So, yes, a list of infamously highly publicized exes is prudent for the message about being thankful for having those exes. So is the "self-flattery" as you call it, though I don't know what you're referring to in those lyrics since everything seems more like a simple expression of confidence than something like... well, Nicki Minaj's entire last album and subsequent tantrum when she wasn't selling like the queen she claimed to be. I don't know what the self-flattery is unless you mean any words of self-actualization or self-worth are flattering oneself. She's certainly not staking a claim to anything except a healthy mindset, and I don't see why that should be dismissed as "self-flattery".
What's the issue with referring to exes? This isn't new, Taylor Swift has been using exes for her music for how many years now? Pop music has been using exes as material for how many decades now? You mentioned Nicki Manaj not being dissonant to you but what do you think about this song off her latest album? I'd dare say Ariana's list of exes that she's thankful for is many, many orders of magnitude more palatable than what's in Nicki's song, especially considering her message is "thank you for our shared time together" while Nicki's seems to be (playfully) "you're all terrible at fucking my pussy deep and hard".
Also, lesbian relationship? You mean with Ari? Ari is Ariana herself.
Transsexual father? You definitely misunderstood that one, or missed the two lines right before:
The "she" is her mother. Not her father, who divorced her mother when she was much younger. This is part of the theme of "growing from your past relationships".
All that about queer people in your analysis is entirely due to your own misreading of this song. I don't think she talks about or refers to LGBT-related matters, it's pretty gender and sexuality non-specific since it's about growing from relationships in general.
As for the video: did you notice that they're all themed after famous teenage movies? Everything from John Hughes to Mean Girls is referenced in some form, and a lot of what you point out about it are references to those movies. Again, I've only seen it the once, so I can't speak to it but it's certainly not as it seems on the surface.
This song is very popular because, quite frankly, Ariana is popular. She's a pop star that commands millions of followers, but she has infamously been around some really wild stuff in the last year. Importantly, she is coming out with her head held high, squarely on her shoulders, and has avoided the mire of self-destruction that has plagued other pop starlets. People are rooting for her, and this song is a healthy expression of self-love and self-reflection from someone in that position. This isn't supposed to be a very deep song, just a very honest one.
W.r.t. self flattery I was referrong to the clip where in the beginning there is, among other things, a woman telling that she became pregnant because she read Ariana was so, but turns out it was rumours.
W.r.t. exes, name dropping them, regardless of context, is totally new to me. Especially in a commercially produced song.
I am totally an alien to these genres of movies, so, now it clicks.
So I understand it now, it is usual pop icon drama with an exceptionally sad event embedded in it. Sorry for the inconvenience and thanks for your answer!
Edit: I don't really listen to Nicky Minaj, just that it was easier to comprehend what it is about for me.