Ariana Grande addresses decision to step back from public life at her Chicago concert: ‘Not impulsive’

Ariana Grande says negative commentary and speculation around her health “has not ruined” her career amid her decision to step away from public-facing work after her tour ends.

The 33-year-old actress “cleared the air” at her Chicago concert on Monday night local time after a representative for the pop singer said she will be taking a break from the spotlight due to “endless, ongoing public scrutiny”.

Grande sparked concerns about weight loss following the release of the music video for her song Petal, the title track off her new album, where she appears very thin.

The video shared to YouTube has more than 60,000 comments from fans, with many expressing concerns over the state of her health.

A representative for Grande told People on Sunday local time: “Ariana will be taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour.

“She looks forward to finishing the tour and ending it on a high note, both healthily and happily, and then taking a much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances, which has led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny.

“This tour has been a beautiful experience for her. She loves her fans and has loved every minute of this tour so much.”

On Monday night at her first of three concerts in Chicago, Grande directly addressed her fans about her decision to step back, saying it was something she had planned “a long time ago”.

Footage shared on X showed the Wicked star standing on stage for more than four minutes, where she read a speech she wrote down on her phone in case she got “nervous and freaked out”.

“Is it okay if I talk to you guys for a moment?” she asked the crowd.

“First of all, I wanna say I love you so much, and I’m so happy to be here with you guys tonight.

“I want to get a little real tonight, is that okay? I wrote down my thoughts; I didn’t want to get nervous and freak out.

“Sometimes when a story comes out that’s not directly from me, things can get a little blown out of proportion, so I just wanted to speak to my fans directly tonight, I love you so much.

Grande said she wanted to “clear the air” after public speculation about why she was stepping back and promised to “keep it short”.

“So basically the announcement that was made yesterday is not a reactive or impulsive thing — it’s something I had decided to plan that I quietly made a long time ago and it’s a decision made from a thoughtful and empowered place and I want you to know that many things can be true at the same time,” she continued.

“I’m going to share this because I heard that my fans were worried negativity was ‘ruining things for me’ but I just have to say that could not be [further from the truth].

“I promise you this is not what that is and I just want to be very, very clear multiple things can be true at the same time. Boundaries need to be set.

“Human beings can need a break sometimes.”

Grande said touring her music “can be and will continue to be the greatest experience of my professional and creative life”.

“Nothing will get in the way of that make, I want to make that quite plain,” she said.

“No matter what noises exist out there nothing will ever be able to disturb my reality, nothing will be more live to me or real to me than this or how it feels to make art with the people I love and respect absolutely nothing will change that.”

The former Nickelodeon star wrapped up her thoughts but saying she needed to “differentiate that from my truth for you all”.

“That felt good,” she said before continuing with her performance.

Grande is also pulling out of the upcoming London revival of Sunday in the Park With George.

She was due to appear opposite her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey in a new production of Stephen Sondheim’s critically acclaimed musical at the Barbican in 2027.