Why Did Ariana Grande Cry Onstage?

Ariana Grande cried in the middle of a performance on Saturday, leaving many fans confused and curious. Later on, Grande took to Twitter, opening up about what led to the sudden rush of tears. Put simply, the singer is “still processing a lot.”

Grande broke down crying during a concert in St. Louis, Missouri. She was trying to sing “R.E.M.,” from her 2018 album Sweetener. Fans have long speculated that the song is about her relationship with Pete Davidson, whom she had a famously fast-paced relationship with around that time. Grande broke up with Davidson shortly after he ex, Mac Miller, died of an accidental drug overdose.

All of this added up to an understandably confusing and emotional time for Grande, which she is apparently still working through. In her now-deleted tweets, Grande wrote that her tour schedule is dredging up feelings at an unpredictable rate.

“I feel everything very intensely and have committed to doing this tour during a time in my life when I’m still processing a lot,” she explained. “So sometimes I cry a lot!”

Grande added that she was being open about her emotional experiences “because I’m grateful and because I want you to know that if you too are hurting, you can push through and are not alone.”

This is Grande’s first big tour playing songs from Sweetener. After Miller’s death and the end of her engagement, Grande canceled her plans for a world tour, opting instead to crank out another album, Thank U, Next.

Grande tweeted that finally touring with these songs was “a dream come true… no matter how hard it gets or how many feelings come up that are screaming at me to be processed and sorted through one day.”

“I’m grounded by gratitude and promise not to give up on what I’ve started,” she went on. “It is hard to balance taking care of the people around you, doing your job, and healing/taking care of yourself at the same time… but I want you to know, you aren’t alone and I think you’re doing great. Love you.”

Grande set out on tour in March, beginning with dates all across the U.S. From here, she will venture over to the United Kingdom and Ireland at the end of the year, including a triumphant return to Manchester Pride.

Grande thanked her fans for comforting her through her grief and her fast-paced tour.

“I’m not sure what I did to deserve to meet so many loving souls every night… but I want you to know that it really does carry me through,” she wrote.

It is unclear why Grande deleted her heartfelt tweets.