Ariana Grande encountered a less-than-enthusiastic response to her new single late on Thursday night as she attempted to restart her musical career. The 32-year-old singer and actress kicked off her comeback by releasing Hate That I Made You Love Me, the lead single from her upcoming album, Petal.
However, the track landed with a thud, as fans on social media decried it as 'boring' and dubbed it one of her worst songs to date. Others found it so generic that they speculated AI might have been involved in its creation.
It was a disappointing return to music for Grande, who has been primarily focused on acting in recent years, starring as Glinda in the hit films Wicked (2024) and its less-successful sequel, last year's Wicked: For Good. Grande, who fell in love with her boyfriend Ethan Slater while co-starring in the blockbuster films, made her last major musical statement two years ago with the release of her LP Eternal Sunshine in March 2024.
On X, fans did not hold back their dislike for the new single. One grammatically challenged pan read: 'This is her most s***tiest song... The song is so boring.' Another user wrote: 'Kinda underwhelming tbh especially for a lead,' while a fan opined it was 'kinda mid.' One particularly harsh fan labeled Hate That I Made You Love Me 'literally the worst song I've ever heard.'
Even more charitable fans expressed disappointment. One poster declared: 'It's high time we tell Ariana the truth, she's no longer the industry plant. We no longer in 2018, she's past now and her songs are mid either way.' Some fans blasted the music for a perceived lack of originality and humanity. 'Omg what possessed her to choose this as a lead.. it sounds ai generated ????,' complained one person.
Others thought the track could have been a leftover from Grande's previous album. 'So disappointed. Nothing new it could literally fit in the Eternal Sunshine album,' bemoaned an underwhelmed fan. 'Mama I love you but this is trash!!' added another unenthused listener.
Grande first announced Hate That I Made You Love Me on May 8 with an Instagram post, calling it 'one of my favorite songs i'll ever write.' She noted it was 'produced by my favorite collaborators and dearest human beings in the world, the brilliant @ilya_music, the one and only max martin (and me).' She concluded, 'i simply cannot wait for it to be yours,' before returning on May 18 to tease the release with a snippet of the song's instrumental backing track.
On Wednesday, Grande teased the upcoming video for Hate That I Made You Love Me, set for release on Monday. She shared a short clip featuring Barbarian star Justin Long speeding along in a car while peering into his rearview mirror. Long suddenly looks frightened as he adjusts the mirror and sees Grande sitting in the back seat, staring at him. The actor's presence continues Grande's recent tradition of casting major stars in her music videos. In 2024, she featured Penn Badgley in the video for The Boy Is Mine and Evan Peters in We Can't Be Friends. She previously enlisted Charles Melton for Break Up With Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored in 2020 and Jonathan Bennett for Thank U, Next in 2019.
