Ariana Grande Says Her ‘Wicked’ Voice Might Be Permanent

Ariana Grande’s Wicked performance has changed her for good. The actress, 31, revealed in Variety‘s January cover story that the old Hollywood qualities she picked up vocally for her role as Glinda the Good Witch may be a permanent change to the way she speaks.

“I think that might stay,” Grande told the outlet. “Galinda required a lot of vocal work for me. Certain things maybe won’t melt away. Some will, but I’m really grateful for the pieces that will stay with us forever. What a beautiful thing to be left with, and to feel the ghost of every day.”

She then quipped, “And, you know, I’m still looking for my eyebrows,” jokingly referring to the bleached eyebrows she’s kept since filming. “I’ll let you know if I find them — I hope I don’t.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Grande pointed out that she and co-star Cynthia Erivo had to keep “finding and disappearing” into their characters during the two years of filming. “So when certain inflections or mannerisms take time to melt away, sometimes people poke fun,” she said. “But we had a job to do, and we had things to get lost in — because that’s what the piece required.”

Grande’s change in speaking voice has garnered plenty of attention as the “7 Rings” singer has continued to use the new way of talking that she adopted as Galinda in press interviews. After a clip of her shifting voice on the Podcrushed podcast went viral in June, the Grammy winner took to the comments on TikTok to defend herself.

“Habit (speaking like this for two years) and also vocal health 🙂 i intentionally change my vocal placement (high / low) often depending on how much singing i’m doing,” she wrote at the time. “i’ve always done this BYE.”

Grande also spoke out about the conversation surrounding her voice in the November Vanity Fair cover story, pointing out that actresses who have kept their accents after filming are “treated differently” than male actors who do the same — like Elvis‘ Austin Butler.

“When it’s a male actor that does it, it’s acclaimed,” she said. “There are definitely jokes that are made as well, but it’s always after being led with praise: ‘Oh, wow, he was so lost in the role.’ And that’s just a part of the job, really.” Grande continued, “Tale as old as time being a woman in this industry. You are treated differently, and you are under a microscope in a way that some people aren’t.”