About thank u, next

"Thank U, Next" (stylized in all lowercase) is a song by American singer Ariana Grande. It was released on November 3, 2018, through Republic Records, as the lead single from her fifth studio album of the same name (2019), without any prior announcement or promotion. Written by Grande, Tayla Parx and Victoria Monét, along with its producers Tommy Brown, Charles Anderson, and Michael Foster, "Thank U, Next" is a celebratory ode to Grande's failed relationships, following her highly-publicized breakup with then-fiancé, Pete Davidson. Considered a modern cultural phenomenon, the song's title and its lyrics spawned several catch phrases and widespread online memes. Grande originally wrote the song while engaged to Davidson, during a tumultuous point in their relationship. Several versions of the song were recorded due to the uncertainty of her relationship with Davidson at the time, as well as hesitation from Parx regarding whether Grande should list the names of her exes in the song's lyrics. Upon release, "Thank U, Next" was met with critical acclaim; critics praised its catchiness and positive message. It has been listed as one of the 100 songs that defined the 2010s decade by Billboard, and was featured in several year-end and decade-end rankings. The song was also included in Rolling Stone's 2021 revision of their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

"Thank U, Next" was a commercial success. It debuted at number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States and spent over seven weeks atop the chart, becoming Grande's first number-one single. Topping charts in many countries internationally, the song broke numerous streaming records, including the record for the most streams received by a song in a single day for a female artist on Spotify, and the largest on-demand streaming week ever recorded for a female artist in the US. The music video, directed by Hannah Lux Davis, was released on November 30, 2018. The music video referenced the early 2000s' cult classic films Bring It On, Legally Blonde, Mean Girls and 13 Going on 30. Following its release, it broke many viewership records on Youtube, including the record for the most-watched music video in YouTube within 24 hours, with over 55.4 million views. The music video received widespread critical acclaim and has been noted by journalists as a pioneering release for pop culture in 2018. It was nominated for Video of the Year at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards.