Ariana Grande's Tragic Confession About Her Early Pop Star Fame

Superstar Ariana Grande had extensive and exciting career highlights in her young life, but some of that is news to her. Grande has admitted to suffering from memory loss when it comes to early moments in her career. During a 2025 appearance on the hit podcast "SmartLess," one of the co-hosts Will Arnett asked Grande about an appearance they made on a U.K. talk show a decade ago. Grande had no recollection at first, until the hosts jogged her memory. "I'm missing a couple of years," Grande said in regards to her career. "I'm super serious. From that time. I'm literally missing a few years."

This isn't the first time Grande's poor memory has caused her to forget a significant part of her work history. In 2024, Grande was in for a rude awakening during a Q&A for the release of "Wicked." She recalled her early roles in acting and referred to her appearance in the 2021 Netflix film "Don't Look Up" as her first movie project in Hollywood. A few seconds later, Grande realized that she had completely neglected to mention her run as Cat Valentine on the Nickelodeon series' "Victorious" and "Sam & Cat." (She also starred in the Nickelodeon film "Swindle" and some other projects). Embarrassed, Grande quickly covered her mouth in surprise. Her "Wicked" co-star and friend Cynthia Erivo pointed out that Grande had forgotten her prosperous Nickelodeon filmography, to which Grande replied, "I forgot six years of my life!" (via TikTok). She continued, "I don't remember anything. It's a blur."

In the comments of the Q&A clip on TikTok, many of Ariana Grande's fans were convinced that her loss of memory could be a response to trauma. After all, Grande had so many responsibilities and jobs at such a young age. And becoming one of the biggest names in the spotlight did not come without its demons.

On May 22, 2017, Grande was performing at the Manchester Arena in England. Moments after the show concluded, an explosive device went off that resulted in 22 people being killed and left several injured. Grande was physically okay, but emotionally was distraught. A day after the incident, Grande posted on X, formally Twitter, "Broken. From the bottom of my heart, I am so, so sorry. I don't have words," (via Billboard). To support the victims' families, Grande held a benefit concert called "One Love Manchester" where artists such as Justin Bieber and Katy Perry performed as well. Grande also got a special tattoo honoring the victims of the explosion.

Grande suffered another great loss just one year later when her ex-boyfriend, rapper Mac Miller, passed away on September 7, 2018 from an accidental drug overdose. The two met in 2012 and collaborated on the song "The Way" in 2013. After years of being friends, they told the world about their romantic relationship in 2016. Their tragic relationship reportedly came to an end in May 2018, just four months prior to Miller's death. In 2019, Grande spoke to Vogue about the time following Miller's death: "But if I'm completely honest, I don't remember those months of my life because I was (a) so drunk and (b) so sad."

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