Ariana Grande gave “thank u, next” one final twist during the last night of her Eternal Sunshine Tour, changing the song’s famous Ricky Alvarez lyric to reflect their current relationship. While performing at London’s O2 Arena on Tuesday, September 1, Grande sang, “Wrote some songs about Ricky, I’m tryna make him my last,” prompting an immediate reaction from fans.
The lyric replaces the original line, “Wrote some songs about Ricky, now I listen and laugh,” and marks the latest in a series of Ricky-focused changes Ariana Grande has made to the 2018 hit throughout the tour. Her newest version is also the most direct yet, turning what began as playful lyrical improvisation into an apparent declaration about the future of their relationship.
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Ariana Grande has repeatedly altered “thank u, next” during the Eternal Sunshine Tour. At the June 24 show in Austin, she first sang, “Wrote some songs about Ricky / Now they still kinda slap,” before changing it two nights later to, “Wrote some songs about Ricky / I know he still got my back.”
Another notable variation arrived during her July 13 performance in Brooklyn, when Grande sang, “Wrote some songs about Ricky, we always find our way back.” The lyric came as speculation surrounding the pair continued to grow, with Alvarez also spotted attending one of Grande’s Austin concerts.
That speculation intensified in August after Grande made her relationship with Alvarez Instagram official. On August 12, she shared candid photos featuring the pair together, providing the clearest public indication yet that their long-running friendship had developed into something more.
Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez first dated in the mid-2010s, when he worked as one of her backup dancers. Their relationship lasted roughly a year and ended in 2016, but they remained close in the years that followed. Alvarez later became part of Grande’s musical history when she referenced him by name in “thank u, next,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 following its release in November 2018.
The new lyric arrived at a particularly significant moment for Grande. Tuesday’s concert marked the final show of the 41-date Eternal Sunshine Tour, which began in Oakland in June and concluded with a sold-out 10-night residency at London’s O2 Arena. The run marked her first major headline tour since the Sweetener World Tour in 2019.
Ariana Grande’s final London shows also came after she performed the penultimate concert in cozy footwear because of a deep cut on her foot. She had told fans before Monday’s show that she was recovering from the injury and might have difficulty putting weight on the affected foot, but continued performing while joking that she would be “a few inches shorter than usual.”
Photo: Julian Dakdouk
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