Ariana Grande is so f*ckin’ grateful for her ex — especially right now. Ever since her breakup with Wicked co-star Ethan Slater was confirmed, the singer has been dropping some big hints about the new man in her life. Well, maybe “new” technically isn’t the right word, since Grande seems to be rekindling a romance with one of her ex-boyfriends.
Since kicking off her Eternal Sunshine Tour in June, Grande’s attention-grabbing lyric changes to her song “Thank U, Next” have sparked speculation that she is dating her former backup dancer Ricky Alvarez once again. In the 2019 single, Grande lists some of her famous exes. About Alzarez, she sings: “Wrote some songs about Ricky / Now I listen and laugh.” However, Grande has made numerous changes to this specific lyric on her recent tour.
At the end of June, she altered the line to be: “Wrote some songs about Ricky / And they still kinda slap.” A couple days later when Alvarez attended the concert, she changed the lyric again to: “Wrote some songs about Ricky / I know he’s still got my back.” Finally, Grande made the most telling wording change in mid-July, when she sang, “Wrote some songs about Ricky / We always find our way back.”
In the same time that these lyric changes were happening, Grande had also begun being spotted with Alvarez in public, and fans noticed Grande started following Alvarez’s family on social media, and the two were posting subtly matching images.
This possible rekindling comes a full decade after Grande and Alvarez first dated. They met in 2014 when Alvarez was hired as one of Grande’s backup dancers. After touring together, the two were seen kissing in July 2015. However, the couple only last for about a year, and had quietly ended things by the summer of 2016.
Despite the split, Grande and Alvarez have remained close friends throughout recent years. So close, in fact, that Grande previously had to shut down rumors they began dating again at the end of 2018. But this time, it’s looking like a romantic reconciliation may be the real deal.
