It’s giving. . . method acting. Ariana Grande recently addressed her evolving ‘persona’ amidst confusion over her elocution and accusations that she spoke with a “transatlantic” accent during the Oscars, revealing her transformation for her role in Wicked.
Ariana hosted a segment at the 96th Academy Awards ceremony on Sunday (March 10) alongside her Wicked co-star Cynthia Erivo.
The duo portrays Glinda and Elphaba in the eagerly awaited film adaptation of the beloved musical.
But upon announcing that Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell had won the Best Original Song Oscar for Barbie’s What Was I Made For?, many fans were left confused by Ariana’s apparent new accent.
Ariana Grande’s Oscars appearance sparked controversy over her accent
Image credits: Glambot Official
Image credits: Deadline Hollywood
Taking to X (formerly known as Twitter), a person wrote: “Wtf happened to Ariana Grande???
“I really thought everyone was exaggerating about her constantly changing personas.
“THE VOICE OMG THAT IS NOT ARIANA GRANDE.”
Ariana previously addressed her evolving “persona” and gave insights into her transformation for her role in Wicked
Image credits: Deadline Hollywood
Image credits: Deadline Hollywood
Another X user commented: “Ariana Grande really got rid of her previous accent in favor of a 60s transatlantic accent.”
The transatlantic accent is a cultivated way of speaking that was popular among American and British elites, particularly in the early to mid-20th century, characterized by a blend of American and British pronunciation and intonation patterns.
Nevertheless, prior to her Oscars appearance, Grande openly discussed the transformations she had been undergoing.
You can watch clips of Ariana at the 2024 Oscars below:
Speaking on the Zach Sang Show on February 26, the 30-year-old singer-actress said the following about preparing for her role of Glinda: “I tried to use that to take lessons every single day while I was doing The Voice and get ready for these auditions.”
Ariana continued: “I trained every day with Nancy [Banks] and with Eric [Vetro] to transform my voice, even, like, my singing voice, everything about me. I had to deconstruct to prove to them I could handle taking on this other person.”
Nancy and Eric are vocal coaches who specialize in training singers and actors to improve their vocal techniques, including breathing, projection, tone, and diction.
The Thank U Next singer added that she had to “completely erase popstar Ari.”
“It’s even harder to believe someone as someone else when you’re so branded as one thing,” She explained.
Ariana further recalled: “I had to go all the way to strip that down, come into my callback with no makeup, my hair down. I looked like I was 11 years old.”
Ariana previously reflected on the challenges of shedding her popstar image
During the online talk show hosted by podcaster Zach Sang, the songstress also suggested that she had been unfairly targeted by the media.
“The thing is, we know this about the tabloids and about the media. Am I crazy? Don’t we know this?” she began. “We selectively remember that this is what the tabloids do to people, especially women, based on whether or not we like the person.”
When asked whether there was anything she wished people knew about her after the events of last year, Ariana replied, “Plenty.”
Last year, Ariana found herself in the headlines due to her seemingly problematic romance with her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater.
Their at-the-time rumored romance raised some eyebrows, as both the singer and Ethan were married when the filming for Wicked began.
Ariana Grande’s alleged new accent continued to fuel different opinions
