This article is tagged as #School. It was previously published on a different website as a part of Stephanie Pichardo's Senior Comprehensive Assignment.
Last year on May 22, during an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, it was reported by ABC News that a suicide bomber detonated an IED (improvised explosive device) as the concert was ending.
Panic broke out inside and outside the venue after the bombing went off. Videos surfaced online showing the fear of those in attendance.
A total of 22 dead and 59 injured were reported after the incident.
The news saddened many people and the community online was grieving.
The “Dangerous Woman” singer tweeted after the attack that she was “broken.”
#PrayForManchester began trending shortly after and many fans were posting a black ribbon with bunny ears to remember those who passed during the attack.
As for her Dangerous Woman Tour, The O2 Arena in London released a statement on twitter stating that “[they have] been suspended until [they] can further assess the situation and pay [their] respects to these lost. The O2 shows this week have been cancelled as well as all shows through June 5 in Switzerland.”
Two days later on May 26, she released a longer apology saying “I’ll be returning to the incredibly brave city of Manchester to spend time with my fans and to have a benefit concert in honor of and to raise money for the victims and their families.”
According to Deadline, the “One Love Manchester” benefit concert raised $10.9 million. During the concert, she sang an emotional rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” to remember those fans that are gone.
A few months after these events, Grande teased new music to her fans on Instagram.
Finally, on April 17, she tweeted her new song release date and title “ʎɹɔ oʇ ʇɟǝl sɹɐǝʇ ou 4.20”
Since then, she posted daily Instagram snippets of her new song “No Tears Left to Cry”.
Fans began posting memes mimicking her upside-down tweet and the change in her signature ponytail hairstyle.
NPR adds that her album cover might have “slight cues to signify that these horrors continue to occupy her: the rainbow that crests her cheek on the single's artwork, perhaps a callback to the "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" cover from her One Love Manchester performance; a bee flies in the music video's final moments, which, as noted by the BBC, serves as an emblem for Manchester.”
USA TODAY suggests that “No Tears Left to Cry” is a “dance floor therapy session” Maeve McDermott writes “Before Grande gets to the lyrics about "turning up" and dancing in the rain, No Tears Left To Cry opens with a somber intro that lays out the narrative hinted in the track's title: "Right now, I'm in a state of mind / I wanna be in, like, all the time / Ain't got no tears left to cry / So I'm picking it up, picking it up, I'm loving, I'm livin', I'm pickin' it up." Then the beat kicks in, and Grande repeats the track's opening lyrics, this time as its celebratory chorus.”
This video itself shows Grande in unsettled settings and defying gravity. This could mean for a while she was unsure of what was to come and is searching on how to move forward, which is possibly what was going through her mind after the Manchester attack.
It’s amazing how someone so young at 24 years old is able to recover from the traumatic events of Manchester and in less than a year be able to come back with positive vibes and continue her career holding all those fans she lost close to her heart.