The Real Reason Ariana Grande Always Wore Oversized Sweatshirts and Thigh-High Boots Has Fans Heartbroken

Ariana Grande is widely recognized for her signature aesthetic—the combination of oversized sweatshirts paired with thigh-high boots—but the singer recently revealed that this look wasn’t born out of a fashion trend.

Sitting down with Vogue on January 26 to look back on her most famous style choices, she opened up about the heavy emotional weight behind those 2018 outfits. While fans at the time saw a global pop icon, Grande was actually using her clothing as a shield while navigating a series of deeply traumatic life events.

The 32-year-old superstar explained that during that period, her mental health was at an all-time low. She had been processing the aftermath of the tragic 2017 Manchester bombing, the sudden loss of her former partner Mac Miller, and a high-profile, whirlwind engagement that ended in a messy public split. This was a very strange time in my life. I was processing a lot, she admitted while reviewing photos of herself from that era.

For Grande, the decision to wear baggy, cozy clothing was a literal attempt to disappear from the world. She confessed that she simply didn’t have the emotional capacity to care about high-fashion trends or complex styling. I genuinely at the time did not have the mental energy to consider clothing, she revealed.

The resulting “iconic” look was a compromise between her need for comfort and a lingering desire to maintain a sense of confidence. I always wanted to hide away in something really cozy, but I remember that the boots still made me feel c**t, she noted with a touch of her characteristic wit.

Despite the painful origins of the style, Grande emphasized that she wanted to be transparent with her audience about the reality of her life behind the scenes. She expressed a sense of regret for the darker truth behind a look that many young people tried to emulate. I’m sorry to say it. This is just the honest truth, she added, highlighting how her mental state directly influenced her public persona during those difficult years.

As of this year, Ariana is in a much more balanced place, focusing on her thriving acting career and a long-awaited return to the stage. She recently received widespread critical acclaim and several award nominations for her role as Glinda in Wicked: For Good, the second half of the massive film adaptation, which hit theaters in late 2025.

She is also currently preparing for her global “Eternal Sunshine Tour,” which is set to begin in June. This tour will mark her first time performing on the road in six years, and she has teased that it may be her “one last hurrah” before she takes a significant break from the music industry to focus on other creative chapters.

Beyond the concert stage, fans can expect to see her on the big screen later this year in the comedy Focker In-Law, where she stars alongside legends Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller. She is also set to join the cast of American Horror Story for its upcoming 13th season, a project she has described as a “blast” to film.

Even with her schedule packed with movie sets and rehearsals, Grande recently told Vogue Japan that her primary goal for the next fifteen years is finding “balance” and following her authentic impulses rather than trying to meet everyone else’s expectations.

Do you think that hearing the emotional struggle behind Ariana’s most famous fashion era changes the way you look at those “iconic” outfits from 2018? Share your thoughts in the comments.