When I was 13, I informed my parents that Ariana Grande was the next Mariah Carey. Did I have any clue who Mariah was at the time? No. But I felt the need to communicate the importance of Ariana to them in a way that they might understand, and that’s what all the critics and interviewers said about her back then. (Mariah fucking hated that, which was completely on-brand.) What can I say? I knew this woman was a superstar and I took my Arianator duties seriously from day one. Since I was already a longtime religious Lovatic by 2013, I had a deep appreciation for five-plus-octave vocal ranges combined with runs and ad libs for days. Thank goodness Ariana has always taken advantage of her tremendous gift and served us remarkable album after remarkable album for the last decade. The pop queen’s blessed us with pure pop gold hits like “Break Free,” romantic ballads like “pov,” and addictive bad bitch anthems like “7 Rings.” She simply never misses. Like Nicki Minaj once said: “Ariana run pop.”

Throughout the years, Ariana’s changed her aesthetic to reflect whatever era she’s in (as pop stars do). The singer’s rocked brown hair, red hair, and blonde hair, full faces of glam and more natural glam looks, and she’s experimented with artificial tanning a few times too. Although there’s been relentless speculation that she’s had a variety of cosmetic procedures done, Ariana denied those rumors during an October 2024 Vanity Fair lie detector test, and according to the results, she was being truthful. “I’ve had fillers in various places and Botox, but I stopped like four years ago, and that is the extent,” the Wicked star shared during that interview. “But (I’m) also in full support of all people who do these things, work, whatever makes women, men, non-gender conforming people feel beautiful should be allowed.” Period.

These days, Ari’s fully embracing her Glinda era with fabulous pink gowns, pink makeup, and blonde hair. I’m obsessed, of course. As we celebrate Wicked coming to theaters after a bazillion years of waiting, let’s take a walk down memory lane and admire some of the “yes… and?” singer’s best looks over the years.

Check out these photos of Ariana Grande then and now!