Ariana Grande marked the end of the North American leg of her “Eternal Sunshine” tour with an emotional message to her fans as she prepares to step back from the spotlight.
“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,” the pop star penned via Instagram Thursday.
“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’s sentimental post comes a week after her rep revealed she will be taking a break from the spotlight amid “endless public scrutiny.”
“Ariana will be taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour,” her rep told People. The tour’s last stop will be on September 1 in London.
“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,” the rep continued.
“This tour has been a beautiful experience for her. She loves her fans and has loved every minute of this tour so much,” the rep said.
The Grammy winner is also exiting the West End revival of Stephen Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George,” the outlet confirmed.
She was scheduled to star in the musical opposite “Wicked” co-star Jonathan Bailey at London’s Barbican Centre next summer.
Grande’s decision to take a break came as concern over her weight loss intensified with the release of her music video for “Petal” last week.
After watching the video, fans immediately took to social media to voice their worries.
“She is extremely thin and it’s concerning,” remarked one person, with another chiming in, “I think people are allowed to be concerned for her health.” A third said that Grande’s “bones are literally popping out” and visible.
However, others defended Grande amid the discussion of her body and speculation about her health.
“If y’all actually cared about her you wouldn’t be publicly making comments about her body,” one person on X wrote, while another urged commenters to “mind your own f–kin business.”
Following her announcement, an insider told Page Six that Grande has “been overworked.”
“She’s been nonstop and it’s taking a toll. She’s never handled the public scrutiny well and constant chatter about her weight [doesn’t help],” they added.
A second insider claimed that Grande’s decision had less to do with her workload and more to do with the relentless attention surrounding her personal life and appearance.
“She’s been in a really good place on tour. She loves doing it and it’s been positive,” the second source said, emphasizing it was the “nonstop public scrutiny,” more than her schedule, that contributed to her decision to pull back.
As for what she plans to do during her time away from the spotlight, Page Six exclusively learned that the songwriter is planning to spend time with those closest to her — including boyfriend Ricky Alvarez.
“She’ll be spending a lot of time with her family, friends and Ricky,” a source told us Tuesday.
“Between touring, rehearsals and her other work commitments, she and Ricky haven’t been able to spend as much time together as she would have liked over the past few months, so she’s looking forward to having more uninterrupted time with him.”
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