Ariana Grande has spoken out ahead of her London concert dates, saying she "cannot wait" to hit the stage. The singer, 33, previously announced she would step back from the spotlight after completing her 10-night residency at The O2, which will end her Eternal Sunshine tour.
The residency begins on August 15 and concludes on September 1. Grande has also withdrawn from the upcoming theatre production of Stephen Sondheim's Sunday In The Park With George, which was set to star opposite her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey.
Instagram update
Marking the end of the North American leg of her tour, Grande shared a collection of images on Instagram. In view of her 363 million followers, she wrote: "I love you … I cannot believe that this concludes the North American leg of the Eternal Sunshine tour. I am overwhelmed with love and the deepest gratitude."
She continued: "Thank you endlessly for the most special, beautiful, joyful and deeply fulfilling few months… I will cherish every moment of this time with you all & these memories forever. Thank you, Chicago… London, I cannot wait to see you soon. I love you all more than ever."
Grande disabled comments on the post, which came after she halted her show in Chicago to address her decision to step back from upcoming commitments amid intense public scrutiny.
Addressing fans
The No Tears Left To Cry musician said: "Sometimes when a story comes out that's not directly from me, things can get a little blown out of proportion, so I wanted to speak to my fans directly tonight because I love you so much."
She added: "So basically, the announcement that was made yesterday was not a reactive or impulsive thing. It is something that I had decided, it's a plan that I had quietly made a long time ago, and it's a decision that was made from a thoughtful and empowered place."
Grande also said: "I promise you, this is not what that is. And I just want to be very, very clear. Nothing can ruin... Multiple things can be true at the same time. Bound- Boundaries can need to be set. Human beings can need a break sometimes."
She went on to say that despite "what noises exist," nothing will be able to "distort" the reality or "be real to me or louder to me than this love that we share, or even how it feels to make art with the people that I love and respect."
While reading from her phone, Grande continued: "This is what I will always take with me and carry with me, because the rest of that shit is not mine to carry, so I don't carry it. And I wanted you to hear that from me." Before returning to her performance, she said she "needed" to "differentiate that from my truth for all of you," adding: "I love you and this tour has been the most healing, beautiful, corrective, magnificent, special experience of my life."
Representative's statement
A representative for the popstar told People: "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."
