Hi Vogue. I’m Ariana Grande and this is my life in looks. Well, some of my life so far. Some of so far in looks of my life. Let’s begin. Here we are. Okay. This was my first red carpet ever. It was for Fantastic Mr. Fox, I believe. I do remember leaving and being like, why did I go to this? It was beautiful movie.
I had a great time, but why am I here? and why do people go to things that they’re not in and kind of discovering what red carpet culture and promo and all of that was. I had just started working as an actress. I was on Nickelodeon, hence my red hair, which I signed over to Nickelodeon as a part of getting the role.
They had to change me so that there weren’t too many brunettes on the show. But the dress I love. It’s so cute. And I felt really excited about my big bow cuff. [laughter] It was an interesting time, I guess, when it comes to my personal style because I didn’t necessarily love the red hair, but I loved the character I was playing.
So, I had to figure out where Cat and I could meet in the middle. And I guess it’s here. I guess it’s this. Oh my god. Okay, this I love so much. I actually really love this episode. This is me as Cat Valentine. This I think was the episode Terror on Cupcake Street. I loved the episodes where we were all together where the whole ensemble was stuck in some situation together.
That was when we had the hardest laughs and the best times. And yeah, I loved this candy onesie. These are my bushy eyebrows. Look, I was figuring out here. This was like right in between when they were archy and then I started to straighten them right around this era actually cuz I like them that way.
I know you don’t but I love them. I’m so sorry. I hope that’s okay. [laughter] This is my first album cover. This was yours truly shot by Jones Crow. I really loved this sort of dramatic George Herell vintage lighting, black and white. I’ve always been a vintage girly and I’ve always loved fashion and art from the 50s and 60s.
That’s kind of my my sweet spot. I used to always close my eyes in pictures. Now I sometimes close my eyes in pictures, but I used to always do it, I think, cuz I was so anxious about being perceived or seen or judged. I wished at that time that I could have just been a floating voice and nothing and never visible ever.
Each album cover really has to be informed by the music and also by where I am at in life. For this one, it was my introduction to the world. So, I wanted it to kind of just be very simple. There were a few other options for this album cover. This was my favorite always, but I remember the label liked a couple of different ones and this ended up being the fan favorite, I believe, as well.
And this was kind of my first moment with with the label I love you guys where I was like told you so. Scream Queens. I remember I was on the honeymoon tour and I blocked off one week to shoot this for Ryan Murphy and it was such a fun amazing experience. I had the best time of my life. I actually wasn’t offered many acting projects at the time but I was so excited when this one came in.
A because I missed acting so much and B because I love horror. But I was so happy to die in the first episode because so many of my favorite iconic horror movie roles die in the first 10 minutes. I mean, hello, it’s Drew Barrymore and Scream. So, I felt honored to die immediately in Scream Queens. And what a death. Chanel number two forever.
Penny. This is me as Penny Pingleton in the Hairspray live. The first show I ever saw on Broadway was Beauty and the Beast, but I was very little. The first one I remember would probably be Thoroughly Modern Millie. I loved that musical more than life itself. I used to sing Gimme Gimme every single day in my room. Sutton Foster.
I remember that sparking my interest and made me want to go see as many different shows as I could and I fell in love with them all. And one of them also was Hairspray. I was a huge Hairspray fan and that’s what made me want to join the cast of Hairspray Live and do this production. Oh, interesting story about this. My character Penny chewed a lot of bubble gum and I had to chew gum constantly for all the rehearsals and my voice I was not singing the way I could usually sing and I could not figure it out until the day before the live show and it was the
bubble gum. There’s aspartame in sugar-free bubble gum, which was great for blowing bubbles, but it was destroying my cords. And that was kind of one of the only times in my life, knock on wood, that I’ve ever had that kind of vocal health malfunction. Yeah. Now we do aspartame free. Ah, here we are.
This was my first time at the Met Gala wearing Vera Wang. This was 2018 Heavenly Bodies Met Gala. And I remember we were on a creative call trying to figure out what it should be. We were just talking about the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and we decided to put it all over the fabric and make it into a dress.
There were no other options from that moment on. L and I were just kind of like that has to be it. That is it. Walking up the stairs of the Met Gala I remember feeling excited. I really love fashion. So, this was like kind of my first time being brave enough to do something like this because I used to have a lot of anxiety around red carpets.
I remember feeling so proud of myself for going and so proud of the look. I thought, “Wow, this is a piece of art. I’m so thankful to be wearing this dress.” And this bow, this hair bow was one of my favorite parts. Even when I went home afterwards and I got in my pajamas, I kept the hair bow on for as long as I could.
My experience the first time I went to the Macallo was very different from the second time, which was actually quite recently. It was 2 years ago maybe. And I got to perform as well. Performing was so much fun. Getting to rehearse and put that show together with our entire creative team that was there. It was really a special experience.
The most recent time I went, I got to wear Louis by Jonathan Anderson. It was a mother of pearl bodice. Then I got to perform in Margela by John Galliano, which that was my favorite thing I’ve ever worn in my life. Yeah, it felt amazing to perform in it, too. I loved that the bodysuit was hand painted all these different shades of blue and green and lavender and little streaks of yellow. It was just the most incredible.
And of course, the iconic Margello tabby. Performing in those was a treat. I love my Tabies. I wear tabby ballet flats every day of my life. So to perform in them was a first and a treat, and I hope to do it again. It was also the first time that Cynthia and I sang together in front of the world. And we sang When You Believe by Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
And I believe that my performance is like the most that people have ever seen of what happens inside the thing when you get in there. That’s it. All it is is someone sings and then everyone has a good time and goes home. This is from the God is a Woman music video. I am naked. I am painted.
This was a really fun music video directed by Dave Meyers. And it took us a long time to get the treatment exactly where it needed to be because I thought there were many different beautiful vignettes that we could explore. But this one was one of my favorites. I loved the the visual of laying in the middle of this painted looks like a vagina and I really loved that.
And this can’t go anywhere, can it? Who cares? it. [laughter] And it was a beautiful way of celebrating femininity. And the shape of what we we’ve been discussing kind of just happened naturally on set. It was kind of meant to be. As they were adding the paint around me, it just looked so vaginal and I loved it. It was fabulous.
I said don’t shy away from it. Keep it coming. Moving on. Okay. Wow. 2018. I am leaving my old apartment in New York. This was a very strange time in my life. I was processing a lot and I’ve always wanted to hide away in something really cozy, but I remember that the boots still made me feel I genuinely at the time did not have the mental energy to consider clothing.
So the easiest thing for me was to throw on a sweatshirt and a boot. And that was like that was how it happened. I’m sorry to say it. This is just the honest truth. This was Coachella 2019. I was headlining. This was designed by Michael No L. And I loved this deep plum shiny almost like wine colored version of this costume.
We had it in pink as well and I wore that on the sweetener tour. The set list for Coachella was pretty much the same as the Sweetener tour except we added some special guests. I remember I had In Sync come out with me which was really cool. We did Terran at My Heart and I got to do the original choreography with them which was the dream of my life.
The instinct of it all came about because I truly believe that they are the best boy band. I reached out not knowing what would come of it and they showed up which was unbelievable to me. It was really fun. I love those gentlemen so much and JC is the heart of InSync. I mean I love them all. Of course I love them all but to me like the sound of his voice is oh my god it’s just so special.
[gasps] Oh, here it is. Oh my goodness. My first Vogue cover. This was shot in my hometown, Boca Raton, Florida by Annie Liberowitz. And it was a beautiful day. It was a hilarious day because I was so nervous that I kept making the joke that it was Tuloose’s big day. My dog is Tuloose.
And I kept saying, “It’s to lose his big day. It’s his Vogue cover.” And I remember Annie Labowitz looking at him and saying, Oh my god, this dog is beautiful. He Excuse me. Can we c Can we please get him on the cover, please? And I was like, how is this real life? This is the best thing ever.
So, I got to share my first full cover with Tuloose, [gasps] who’s my sweet love. He’s my just he’s like the light of my life. I love him so much. I was barely allowed to wear any makeup and at the time it really scared me. But now looking back, gosh, I’m so proud of this. I love it now more than ever.
It was very meaningful to me though that it came to my childhood home and shot in my very first recording setup ever, which is where I learned how to produce vocals and where I used to write little songs when I was 12, 11. All right, Grammys 2020. I’m wearing Jean Batista Valley styled by La Ro. We loved this so much.
I loved the sort of pale blue gray fluff cloud effect of it all. There were a few that we loved. That’s actually why we wore a few in the same night, but I kind of wish I had just stayed in this the whole time because this was my favorite. I was semi blonde for this. I had a little ombre, I guess you’ll say, to to a platinum ponytail. Okay.
Well, here’s more recent. This is 2023 Wimbledon. I was a guest of Johnny Bailey’s. I’m wearing Ralph Lauren. Yeah, I just felt like being cozy. So, I wore this long fabulous little skirt and this cozy sweater and this hat and these very Aussian Tiffany glasses because they reminded me of the glasses they wear in Oz in the Elrank Bomb books in the original illustrations.
This was also my first kind of public appearance, I guess, as a as a blonde. I do love being a blonde. I loved it and I will love it again someday. And yeah, anyway, this is the 2024 Oscars. I’m wearing Jambatista Valley. This was my first Glenda influenced carpet dress. I love this column shape.
I love the big bubbly shaw and the train. It was kind of like the perfect amount of everything. We tried on a few different things for this and this one definitely felt like the perfect choice for this moment because it felt like the perfect middle ground between me and Glenda. It was definitely an immediate that’s the one.
Let’s see what’s next. Oh, this is season 49 of SNL. I was wearing a 1982 vintage Muglare that I purchased from Lily Etsy. This is one of my favorite vintage pieces in my archive. My favorite sketch from this episode would probably be Castradi. I really loved playing Lil Antonio. Of all the roles I’ve played in my life, I think he’s changed me.
I mean, I know Life in Two Chapters before and after Lil Antonio. Colin Jo, who was one of the writers on it, I think it was actually his concept. I don’t think he was sure if I’d want to do it or not cuz it’s bananas. And I was and I actually like I was like, “Oh, I have we have to please give me this chance.
” I hadn’t even seen his hair yet. This was before I had seen his hair, his his pants. I just knew. I knew. When you know, you know. I love this dress. This is me at the Wicked premiere in London in 2024. This is custom Ralph Lauren. I didn’t get to wear yellow in the movie and so I wanted to pay homage to that look from the stage show that she wears in one short day.
That’s actually her define gravity dress as well. So I wanted to pay homage to that look and this was our way of doing this. The funny thing is for the Wicked Press tours, Cynthia and I never spoke about our looks or coordinated them at all. Sometimes we would show up in similar shoes or silhouettes that really worked well together and it was just completely spontaneous.
People have a bunch of theories about how that all happened and it’s just really cosmic. They’re like, “They don’t know, but it’s in their contracts.” I’m like, “You know that and we don’t know that. I signed it. I read it. I promise.” Yay. Okay. This is what we call bubble one. This is designed by the incredible Oscar award-winning Paul Tazwell.
This dress was my home for half of the wicked shooting experience. I think it was 17 layers, this dress. So, it would start with my little bloomers and then my corset would go on top and this gorgeous skirt would go first. So, each layer of the skirt would be snapped on in a specific order.
So, there would be like little post-it notes like one cuz that was the first layer that they would snap on. to and they would snap on the other layer. 3 4 5 6 7 8 9. I held my pee a lot and um yeah, I just kind of told myself that I didn’t have to and then I didn’t have to. This was my first time going to the Golden Globes and it was my first time nominated as well and I was wearing 1966 Givveni.
I bought this dress from Lily at Sea and I was so proud. It was one of my first big vintage, you know, investment purchases, I guess. I don’t know. But I love everything about this dress. I love the butter yellow. I love the beading here. I love the gloves. I love the makeup. Michael Anthony did this like modernized version of a little 60s cut crease.
It was a little softer. Yeah, I love love loved this look so much. This is the 2025 Oscars. I am in custom Scaparelli. This is one of my favorite things I’ve ever worn in my life. Daniel Roseberry, I love you so much. He’s the most incredible human being. I’m so lucky to have shared this moment with him.
I was nominated for an Oscar and I got to wear a custom Scaparelli by Daniel Roseberry and and sing. I got to open the show as well with Cynthia singing in another customs Gaparelli look by Daniel Roseberry with the ruby slipper coming out of my back which was one of the greatest gayest moments of my life. This is always going to be in my top three dresses I’ll ever wear in my life.
Right now it’s at number one, I think. Oh, this was recently. This is the Governor’s Ball. And this is vintage Dior by John Galliano. This is another vintage find that Law and I were so excited about. And hair by Alex Lou, of course. I loved this updo a lot. And makeup by Michael Anthony, of course.
Well, the thing about Law and I is that we are absolutely insane when it comes to vintage. We need to go to vintage shopping rehab. We do. And we really love our fittings. They’re really fun. We will sit in Law’s room and go through racks and racks and racks of clothing with Ivonne. We’ll make a PDF of all the fitting photos and we’ll just decide in the moment what we think will be right for the next day or what we like for the week ahead.
And we always say big night. Whenever we’re at a fitting, when we try on a dress we love, we go big night. Wo big night. This was when we said big night. Okay. So this was in Paris when we were recently there for the wicked premiere. I had the incredible honor of going to the Givveni Atilier and I got to wear this 1995 Jivoni.
This was his final dress he made I believe. What a tremendous honor. I was so moved. This is the bubble two dress. This is Glenda’s bubble two dress. There are many different variations of it in the movie. Sometimes it has these little fins. Sometimes it does not. When I’m getting on my horse, I take them off to go sing with Alphaba.
Yeah, she loves this dress a lot. It’s a big part of her persona. You’ll notice she’s in it in every scene in the second movie, the entire movie. And I think it’s because she was playing a part. She becomes this character. when you spend two years almost, you know, playing a character between the audition process and the rehearsals leading up to it and the filming which was 150 something days and three months of rehearsal and so on and so forth.
You take pieces with you of them, of course. Some of the things that aesthetically I really enjoyed was having lighter eyebrows. Sorry, I love them. I really liked her makeup. I think having to redesign your face and kind of strip away familiarity, all things that were, I guess, associated with my pop star persona.
I kind of had to get rid of those and create a new character. And in doing so, I totally fell in love with a what’s underneath and b like different shapes of eyeshadow, different like no eyeliner, playing with eyeliner, different kinds of lashes. It was really fun. It totally reinformed my relationship to beauty. Vogue, thank you for having me.
I love you, Ariana. All right, that was my life and looks. Thank you so much for joining me and I’ll see you next time.
Ariana Grande Reveals the Secrets Behind Her Greatest Red Carpet Looks and Fashion Evolution
The journey of Ariana Grande is not merely a trajectory of hit songs and sold-out stadiums; it is a tapestry woven with the threads of the clothes she wore while living through it. In a recent reflection on her life in looks, the global superstar invited us into her personal archive, a curated collection of memories that tell the story of a girl navigating the intense spotlight of fame. From the vibrant red hair of her early television days to the sophisticated, custom couture of the Oscars, each ensemble serves as a bookmark in the story of her growth.
The “Open Loop” here is the evolution of the self. As we peel back the layers of her fashion, we are forced to ask: how much of our identity is tied to what we wear, and what happens when we strip away the persona to find what’s underneath?
“I used to always close my eyes in pictures,” she admits, reflecting on the early days of her career. “I think because I was so anxious about being perceived or seen or judged.” It is a jarring admission from a woman who has spent the better part of a decade as one of the most visible people on the planet. She shares that at times, she wished she could have been just a “floating voice,” invisible and untouched by the harsh gaze of the public. This desire to hide, contrasted with the necessity of being seen, created a friction that played out in her style choices for years.
The early years were defined by characters—the bold, red-haired Cat Valentine, and the pressure of meeting the expectations of a Nickelodeon audience. It was a time of discovery, of figuring out where the character ended and the person began. As she moved into the world of music, the styles became more deliberate, informed by a love for 1950s and 60s vintage aesthetics. This “sweet spot” of retro glamour allowed her to build a persona that felt authentic to her tastes while still maintaining the polish required by the music industry.
What would you have done in this situation?
As she matured, her relationship with fashion transformed from a shield into a form of artistic expression. The Met Gala, an event that demands boldness, became a crucible for this evolution. Walking up those stairs in a dress that mirrored the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, she wasn’t just wearing fabric; she was wearing a piece of art. It was a pivotal moment of bravery. She stopped performing as a pop star and began asserting herself as a fashion icon, finding pride in the courage to take up space.
Yet, even in the moments of high glamour, the reality was often far more chaotic. She recounts the experience of filming the music video for “God is a Woman,” where she was literally painted into the set, a visual celebration of femininity that was as much about the process as it was the final product. It was a testament to her willingness to experiment, to embrace the uncomfortable, and to lean into the bold, even when it might be misinterpreted.
This vulnerability was particularly evident in her later years, as she transitioned from pop star to actress in projects like Wicked. The process of becoming Glinda required more than just acting; it required a complete redesign of her face, a stripping away of the “pop star persona” that had defined her for so long. She had to learn to love her own features without the heavy eyeliner, to embrace lighter eyebrows, and to find beauty in a different kind of aesthetic.
The collaboration with stylist Law Roach became a cornerstone of this later period. Their “big night” tradition—a ritual of obsessing over vintage racks and creating PDFs of fitting photos—turned the process of getting dressed into an intimate, shared creative journey. They weren’t just picking clothes; they were curating an archive. From buying a 1966 Givenchy gown to rocking a custom Schiaparelli piece at the Oscars, these were not just fashion statements; they were investments in her own history.
The struggle to maintain vocal health while filming Hairspray Live serves as a reminder that behind the glamour, there is a person dealing with very real physical limitations. The discovery that aspartame in sugar-free gum was damaging her cords is a small, human detail that grounds the celebrity experience in the mundane. It is these moments—the holding of one’s breath for hours while snapping on 17 layers of a costume, the exhaustion of a press tour, the genuine love for a pet dog—that humanize the icon.
Her recent work in Wicked also highlighted a deeper, more profound change. For two years, she lived as Glinda, and in doing so, she absorbed parts of the character into her own identity. The “bubble dress,” a garment that she describes as her home during the shoot, became a symbol of this transformation. She wasn’t just acting; she was evolving.
As the interview neared its conclusion, the focus shifted back to the present. The recent years have been a time of profound self-discovery, where her relationship to beauty has been “reinformed” by her time on screen. She now views the world through a different lens, one that values authenticity over the polished, manufactured images of her past.
What do you think was the most transformative moment in her fashion career?
The evolution of her style is ultimately a story of reclaiming agency. She is no longer the girl who closes her eyes to avoid being judged; she is the woman who stands in the center of the room, fully seen, fully understood, and entirely in control. Her journey from the red carpets of her youth to the stages of the Oscars is a testament to the power of growth, the beauty of vulnerability, and the transformative impact of art.
As we look at the collection of looks she shared, we don’t just see clothes. We see a young woman learning how to walk through the world with her eyes open. We see the evolution of a person who has turned her vulnerability into her greatest strength. And in that, there is a lesson for us all: our style is not just what we wear; it is how we choose to present ourselves to the world, and more importantly, how we choose to live our lives.
Her fashion history is a roadmap of her life, a visual diary that documents the highs and the lows, the fears and the triumphs. And if there is one thing we can learn from her, it is that there is nothing more beautiful than the process of becoming who you are meant to be. The clothes will change, the trends will fade, but the person underneath—the one who has learned to love themselves, flaws and all—is the only thing that truly lasts.
The future of her journey remains unwritten, but if the past is any indicator, it will be a story told with passion, creativity, and an unapologetic commitment to her own vision. She has already proven that she is more than just a pop star; she is an artist who is willing to take risks, to challenge herself, and to evolve. And we will be right there, watching every look, every performance, and every step of the way.
The world of fashion can be fickle, but Ariana has navigated it with grace and a deep sense of self-awareness. She has shown us that style is not just about the external; it is an extension of the internal. It is a reflection of who we are at any given moment, and a tool we can use to express the complexities of our experience.
As she moves forward, she brings with her the lessons of her past, the experiences of her characters, and the confidence of a woman who knows her own worth. She is no longer hiding; she is stepping into the light, and she is inviting us to come along for the ride. And that, perhaps, is the most exciting part of it all.
The final takeaway? Never be afraid to be yourself, even if that self is constantly changing. Embrace the evolution, love the process, and above all, never stop searching for the version of you that makes you feel the most alive. Because at the end of the day, the most beautiful look you can ever wear is your own authentic self.
The legacy of these looks will live on, not just in the photos and the archives, but in the memories of the millions of people who have been touched by her story. She has given us a window into her world, and in doing so, she has allowed us to see a little bit more of our own.
So, here is to the journey, the transformation, and the looks that define us. May we all have the courage to face the world with our eyes open, and may we all find the style that speaks to the truth of who we are. Because that is the only fashion statement that truly matters.
The final word? Stay true, stay bold, and keep evolving. The world is waiting to see what you do next. And whatever it is, make sure it’s a “big night.”
