Ariana Grande Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Ariana Grande Wiki
This article is about the album. For its title track, see Dangerous Woman (song).
"Moonlight" is a lovely song, and it's a lovely title. It's really romantic, and it definitely ties together the old music and the new music, but "Dangerous Woman" is a lot stronger. ... To me, a dangerous woman is someone who's not afraid to take a stand, be herself and to be honest.

– Ariana Grande on changing the name of her third album

Dangerous Woman (commonly abbreviated as DW) is the third studio album by American singer Ariana Grande, released on May 20, 2016, by Republic Records. Grande began work on the album shortly after the release of her second studio album, My Everything (August 2014), and continued until April, 2016. Grande served as the album's executive producer alongside Max Martin and Savan Kotecha. Guest vocals on the album are provided by Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Macy Gray and Future. The album was originally going to be titled Moonlight until ultimately being changed in January, 2016.

Lyrically, Dangerous Woman takes on a more mature theme in contrast to Grande's previous efforts, revolving around love, sex, rebelliousness, destructive relationships, and self-pleasure. An eclectic record, the album incorporates, EDM, disco, house, trap, hip-hop, reggae-pop, electropop, and new jack swing. The album was received positively by critics, many of whom praised Grande's powerful vocals, matured lyrical content, and ability to adapt to many different musical styles. Others felt the album was consistent, but not cohesive.

Commercially, Dangerous Woman earned 175,000 units in its first week, debuting at number two on the US Billboard 200, making it her first and only album that failed to reach the top spot. On April 12, 2021, Dangerous Woman was certified double platinum by the RIAA.

Background

Early Recording as Moonlight

On August 25, 2014, Grande released her positively received second studio album, My Everything. Just months after its release, in October, 2014, Grande confirmed that work on a third album had already begun, and even teased a potential title for the upcoming album: Moonlight. She later went on to state that she was aiming for a late-summer/early-fall 2015 release. Grande continued to record for the album all the way into the beginning of 2015.

In February 25, 2015, Grande departed on her second concert tour, the Honeymoon Tour. She would find time between shows to record for her upcoming third album. Around late-April, 2015, following the conclusion of the first leg of the tour, Grande dove head-first into new material for the album, working with longtime friends and collaborators Tommy Brown and Victoria Monét. On May 8th, 2015, Grande confirmed that she had completed a new song with the two, and described it as "very lovely and special." Brown later took to Instagram to talk about the song, expressing wishes to reveal the name of the song to fans.[1] Hints about this new song's title began circulating online, with Grande's increased crescent moon imagery. Later that month, on May 29, 2015, Grande confirmed the title of this new song as "Moonlight", and stated that her upcoming third album would also share that name.[2][3][4] "Moonlight" was later confirmed to be about "this boy" (Ricky Alvarez) that Grande was dating at the time. She went on to reveal that the song was "about this very cute night [they] had together". Grande continued: "It's the most personal music I’ve ever written."[5]

Grande spoke about the album in June, 2015, stating that she already had 12 songs for the album finished, and was planning on writing more as soon as the tour commences. On October 25, 2015, Grande posted a snippet of the song "Got Her Own" to her Snapchat.[6] Though the song was instantly a fan-favorite, its release never materialized. It wouldnt be until November 1, 2019, that the song would finally see an official release, just four years after being initally teased. It was released within the Charlie's Angels Soundtrack and features Grande's longtime friend and collaborator, American R&B and pop singer, Victoria Monét.

Grande officially announced Moonlight's lead single on September 15, 2015, the funk-pop inspired "Focus", set for release on October 30, 2015. Grande stated that the song was something of an "outlier" on the album. She continued: "...I put "Focus" first because it's the only one [on the album] that sort of sounds like that." She later went on to call the song a "bridge between the My Everything and Moonlight eras." Critically, the song received mixed-to-negative reviews upon release. While Grande's vocals were univerally praised, most critics found the song to be too similar to "Problem", and found the appearance of Jamie Foxx in the chorus to be "grating" and "annoying". The song debuted at number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Grande's sixth top-ten single on the chart.

Reconceptualizing the Album

Following the underperformance of "Focus", Grande quickly returned to the studio to record new material. On January 6, 2016, Grande posted a picture of her recording studio to Snapchat. A poster board could be seen in the corner of the image, subsequently revealing the names of three songs considered for the album: "Be Alright", "Moonlight", and "Let Me Love You".[7] On January 11, 2016, Grande removed "moonlight" from her now-defunct Twitter bio. This change made fans suspicious, to which she later responded by saying "you'll see". She later went on to reveal that she was debating on whether or not to rename the album. A few days later, on January 14, 2015, Grande appeared on Jimmy Kimmel and confirmed the possible title change. On January 21, 2016, Grande confirmed on Snapchat that she was finished with the album, though it has been confirmed that work continued after this. That same day, she posted a picture on Instagram with the caption "dw", which fans suspected was a hint towards the album's new title.[8] Later that month, Grande once again teased the album's new title by posting a picture of her in a white crewneck with writing on it, though she covered up the words, stating: "I can't tell you what this shirt says yet."[9] On February 3, 2016, Grande performed at the iHeartRadio Summit. The event was closed to the public and only a few images of the performance were released. Grande was seen playing the guitar and using a vocodor, both of which we're new for her. [10][11] [12][13] The shirt she was wearing in the performances was the same one she teased on Instagram just days prior. Though the images were somewhat low-quality, fans concluded that it said "dangerous woman", which sparked rumors on the album's new title.

On February 22, 2016, Grande confirmed the new name of the album to be Dangerous Woman on Snapchat.[14] Days later, on February 24, 2016, Grande launched a new website (dangerouswoman.com) to dedicate to album updates. She would post snippets and share exclusive information about the album on the site. On February 29, 2016, Grande hosted a live stream in which she confirmed that there would be fifteen tracks on the US standard edition of the album. Additionally, she revealed that there would be three features on the album (an additional feature (Macy Gray) was later added to the album). On March 1, 2016, "Dangerous Woman" was confirmed to be the new lead single for the album, slated for a March 11 release. A pre-order for the album was made available alongside the release of the single, and "Be Alright" was released as a gratuity track for anyone who pre-ordered the album. The next day, on March 12, 2016, Grande hosted Saturday Night Live. She also performed "Dangerous Woman" and "Be Alright" on the show.

On May 13, 2016, Grande announced via her Instagram account that a new song from the album would be premiered exclusively on Apple Music every day until the release of the album. The songs released, in order of release, were:

Release and Critical Reception

Dangerous Woman received mostly positive reviews from critics, many praising her powerful vocals and more matured image. Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote for AllMusic that "while some of these cuts work better than others, the range is impressive" In his review for Entertainment Weekly, Nolan Feeney commented that while Grande's previous album, My Everything, "suffered for trying to be everything", on Dangerous Woman, "with a streamlined team of hitmakers such as Max Martin, she pulls off pop, R&B, reggae, and house—all without overextending herself or pandering to trends". The A.V. Club's Annie Zaleski agreed, stating that the album "possesses more personality than My Everything," and writes in conclusion that "Dangerous Woman is an effortless leap forward on which Grande comes into her own as a vocalist and performer."

In a more mixed review, The Plain Dealer's Troy L. Smith wrote that the album "plays it safe and smart", claiming it "functions as My Everything 2.0 – a collection of pitch-perfect hooks and slick production. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine wrote that Grande "too often tries to look and sound more mature than she is". Christopher R. Weingarten of Rolling Stone opined that "as an album artist, she's prone to a [disjointed] sound and unfortunate sequencing."

In the United States, Dangerous Woman officially debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 making it her only album that failed to reach the top spot. It earned 175,000 units, with 129,000 coming from pure album sales. The album was blocked from the top spot by Drake's Views. On April 12, 2021, Dangerous Woman was certified double platinum by the RIAA for combined album sales, on-demand audio, video streams and track-sale equivalent of two million units. At the end of the year, Dangerous Woman was placed as the twenty-eighth best selling album of 2016. The album was placed on many year-end best lists.

Recording

The following is a list of known recording dates Grande was in the studio:

2014

2015

2016

Notable dates

  • On July 28, 2015, Grande tweeted that she was working on something exciting for her fans.[15]
  • On June 29, 2015, Grande tweeted that she worked on something special for her fans that night.[16]
    • She also had a "very important meeting" with Republic Records.
    • She worked on her "favorite song of all time".[17]
    • She then tweeted, "today was the most musically inspired day of my life".[18]
  • On November 25, 2015, Charlie Puth revealed that he was writing songs for Grande.[19]
    • However, the album doesn't contain any songs in which he is credited as a writer but he can be heard beatboxing throughout "Dangerous Woman" .
  • On March 11, 2016, Grande was featured on SNL to host and perform two new songs from her album Dangerous Woman, "Dangerous Woman" and "Be Alright".

Singles

  • The lead single, "Dangerous Woman", was released on March 11, 2016.
  • The second single, "Into You", was released on May 6, 2016.
  • The third single, "Side to Side", featuring Nicki Minaj, was released on August 30, 2016.
  • The fourth and final single, "Everyday", featuring Future, was released on January 10, 2017.

Promotional singles

Tour

Main article: Dangerous Woman Tour
Ariana Grande at Dangerous Woman Tour 2017 (4)

Grande performing "Be Alright" on the Dangerous Woman Tour.

Grande announced in May, 2016, that she would be going on tour to support Dangerous Woman at the end of the year (2016) or the start of the next year (2017).[20] On September 9, 2016, Grande announced the North American dates of the tour. The North American leg took place from February to April 2017. On October 20, 2016, Grande announced the European dates of the tour. The European leg took place in May and June 2017.

In April 2017, Grande announced tour dates in Latin America for June and July 2017; in Asia for August and September 2017, including a performance in Singapore as part of the F1 Grand Prix; and in Oceania for September 2017.

Trivia

  • Grande said that, at the time of release, she loved this album more than Yours Truly and My Everything.
  • This is Grande's first album to feature her eyes open on the cover art.
  • Dangerous Woman contained the most writing credits by Ariana herself at the time of its release, with thirteen of its eighteen tracks being co-written by her. She would later go on to be more involved in the writing process starting with Sweetener, with writing credits on every song except "raindrops" (a cover).
  • The first song recorded for the album was "Let Me Love You" and the last was "I Don't Care".
  • This is Grande's first album to feature songs with an explicit tag, as well as a Parental Advisory label.
  • Macy Gray is the only featured artist who isn't a rapper.
  • The album was nominated at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for "Best Pop Vocal Album" and its title track for "Best Pop Solo Performance".
  • The album cover was inspired by Gloria Steinem going undercover at the Playboy mansion.
  • On June 12, 2018, Grande said that her top 5 songs from Dangerous Woman were "Be Alright", "Dangerous Woman", "Let Me Love You", "Side to Side" and "Knew Better / Forever Boy".[21]
  • This is Grande's first and only album to not debut atop the US Billboard 200. This is also her first and only album to not reach #1 on that chart at all.
  • On May 20, 2021, for its 5th anniversary, an updated version of the album was released digitally that added the songs "Step on Up" and "Jason's Song (Gave it Away)" to the track list.[22]
    • "Jason's Song" was previously released as a promotional single on September 16, 2016, this update only added the song to the full album's track listing. "Step on Up," however, saw its first digital release outside Japan with this update.
  • Dangerous Woman is Grande's first album to later release its Target bonus tracks on streaming.
  • On May 13, 2016, Grande announced via her Instagram account that a new song from the album would be premiered exclusively on Apple Music every day until the release of the album.
  • "Focus" was originally intended to be the lead single off Dangerous Woman, though it was ultimately replaced by its title track after the album was reworked. This mirrors Yours Truly's release cycle, with "Put Your Hearts Up" getting replaced by "The Way" after that album was reworked.
    • Though, unlike "Put Your Hearts Up", "Focus" does appear on the album, being featured as a bonus tracks on all Japan-exclusive versions of the album.
  • Including promotional singles, Dangerous Woman ties with My Everything for having the most singles out of Grande's discography with seven singles released overall.
  • This is Grande's last album to feature a Target Edition with bonus tracks, and her last to feature a deluxe edition, until Positions (2020).
  • Grande released classic Dangerous Woman merchandize, alongside merch for all other eras, on her website as part of occasional "rewind" collections.
  • The album's cover shoot was shot by photographer Matt Barnes.
  • "Knew Better" and "Forever Boy" were combined on March 18, 2016.
  • This was Grande's shortest album before the bonus/deluxe tracks.

Merchandise

Physical Releases

Gallery

Recording

Photoshoot

Booklet

Videos

Track listing

Standard Edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Moonlight"Tommy Brown, Victoria McCants, Peter Lee Johnson, Ariana GrandeTB Hits3:22
2."Dangerous Woman"Johan Carlsson, Ross Golan, Max MartinMartin, Carlsson3:55
3."Be Alright"Grande, Brown, McCants, Khaled Rohaim, Nicholas Audino, Lewis Hughes, Willie TafaTwice as Nice, TB Hits2:59
4."Into You"Grande, Martin, Savan Kotecha, Alexander Kronlund, Ilya SalmanzadehMartin, Ilya4:04
5."Side to Side" (featuring Nicki Minaj)Salmanzadeh, Martin, Onika Maraj, Kronlund, Kotecha, Ariana GrandeMartin, Ilya3:46
6."Let Me Love You" (featuring Lil Wayne)Brown, McCants, Steven Franks, Dwayne Carter, GrandeTB Hits, Mr. Franks3:43
7."Greedy"Martin, Kotecha, Kronlund, SalmanzadehMartin, Ilya3:34
8."Leave Me Lonely" (featuring Macy Gray)Brown, Franks, Thomas Parker Lumpkins, McCantsTB Hits, Mr. Franks3:49
9."Everyday" (featuring Future)Kotecha, Salmanzadeh, Grande, Nayvadius WilburnIlya3:14
10."Bad Decisions"Martin, Kotecha, Salmanzadeh, GrandeMartin, Ilya3:46
11."Thinking Bout You"Peter Svensson, Chloe Angelides, Jacob Kasher Hindlin & Mathieu Jomphe LépineSvensson, Billboard3:20
Deluxe and North American Edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
10."Sometimes"Martin, Kotecha, Salmanzadeh, Peter SvenssonMartin, Ilya3:46
11."I Don't Care"Brown, Travis Sayles, Franks, Ryan Tedder, Michael Foster, McCants, GrandeTB Hits, Mr. Franks, Travesty2:58
12."Bad Decisions"Martin, Kotecha, Salmanzadeh, GrandeMartin, Ilya3:46
13."Touch It"Martin, Kotecha, Svensson, Ali PayamiMartin, Payami4:20
14."Knew Better / Forever Boy"Brown, Franks, McCants, Foster, Tedder, GrandeTB Hits, Mr. Franks, Tedder4:59
15."Thinking Bout You"Peter Svensson, Chloe Angelides, Jacob Kasher Hindlin & Mathieu Jomphe LépineSvensson, Billboard3:20
Japanese Edition (bonus track)[23]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
16."Focus"Grande, Kotecha, Svensson, SalmanzadehSalmanzadeh, Martin3:31
Target Exclusive Edition (bonus tracks)[24] and Edited Version[25]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
16."Step on Up"Brown, McCants, Audino, Shane Stevens, Ryan Vojtesak, Hughes, Jamil ChammasVojtesak, Twice as Nice, Brown3:01
17."Jason's Song (Gave It Away)"Grande, Jason Robert BrownJason Robert Brown, Jeffrey Lesser4:25
Japanese Special Price Edition (bonus track)[26][27]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
18."Focus"Grande, Kotecha, Svensson, SalmanzadehSalmanzadeh, Martin3:31
Japanese Deluxe Edition (Bonus DVD)[28]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Dangerous Woman" (Visual 1)Carlsson, Golan, MartinMartin, Carlsson3:56
2."Dangerous Woman" (A Capella)Carlsson, Golan, Martin 3:58
3."Focus" (Music Video)Grande, Kotecha, Svensson, IlyaIlya, Max Martin3:45
4."Focus" (Lyric Video)Grande, Kotecha, Svensson, IlyaIlya, Max Martin3:35
Japanese Christmas Edition (Bonus Disc)[27]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Franks, Foster, TedderFranks, Sayles, Brown1:05
2."Wit It This Christmas"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Foster, Tedder, JohnsonFranks, Sayles, Brown2:41
3."December"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Franks, Foster, TedderFranks, Sayles, Brown1:56
4."Not Just on Christmas"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Franks, JohnsonSayles, Brown2:02
5."True Love"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Franks, Foster, Tedder, JohnsonFranks, Sayles, Brown2:46
6."Winter Things"Grande, McCants, Brown, Sayles, Franks, JohnsonSayles, Brown2:38
7."Into You" (featuring Mac Miller) (Alex Ghenea Remix)Grande, Martin, Kotecha, Kronlund, IlyaIlya, Martin, Alex Ghenea3:38

Cut tracks

Draft track list

250?cb=20230920131117

  1. "Moonlight"
  2. "Be Alright"
  3. "Dangerous Woman"
  4. "Into You"
  5. "Greedy"
  6. "Let Me Love You" (feat. Lil Wayne)
  7. "Everyday" (feat. Future)
  8. "Bad Decisions"
  9. "Leave Me Lonely"
  10. "Touch It"
  11. "Sometimes"
  12. Unknown Song”*
  13. "Ain't Nobody Like Me"**
  14. "Thinking Bout You"
  15. "Forever Boy"**
  16. "I Don't Care"
  17. "Jason's Song"

*As seen in the photo above, the 12th song on the track list is illegible. Fans theorize that it is an outtake entitled "Ask," while others presume it could be "Step on Up," "Focus," or "All That". The existence of "Ask" has never been confirmed. There is also a posibility that it could be "Side to Side" as it is also absent from this early track list.

**These two songs were later combined into Knew Better/Forever Boy to make the tracklisting shorter, per label requests.

Rumored Moonlight Tracks

Dangerous Woman (previously titled Moonlight) was intended to have a more R&B, sexy, and vintage influence before it was reconceptualized around late-2015. Some of the songs that were recorded during the Moonlight sessions were reworked and put on the album after it was overhauled, though others ended up never being released. Through various leaks, we can determine various songs that were intended for Moonlight.

*note: Some songs are listed as their original/working titles. Songs are listed in alphabetical order. This is a compilation of songs that are speculated/confirmed to be on the original Moonlight album, not an official track listing.

References

Dangerous Woman
May 20, 2016 • 39:31 • Republic Records
Songs
Released Bad DecisionsBe AlrightDangerous WomanEverydayFocusGreedyI Don't CareInto YouJason's Song (Gave It Away)Knew Better / Forever BoyLeave Me LonelyLet Me Love YouMoonlightSide To SideSometimesStep On UpThinking Bout YouTouch It
Unreleased 1st Unknown Dangerous Woman OuttakeAll ThatAriana BeatBaby LovesControlGot Her OwnHiHourglassHow You FeelKnew Better Part TwoLeave Me Lonely (Reprise)MonsterOh, YeahOn & OnXanadu
Artists
Ariana GrandeFutureJamie FoxxLil WayneMacy GrayNicki MinajQuavoTakeoffTayla ParxVictoria Monét
Tour
Dangerous Woman Tour
This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia
Advertisement