• Ariana Grande's song "7 Rings" was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance at the 2020 Grammys.
  • The song's melody is a nod to "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.
  • It stayed at the top of the chart for eight weeks, and crossed one billion streams on Spotify less than a year after its release date.
  • So is there a deeper meaning behind it? With the song, Grande delivered a cheeky ode to friendship and economic independence, also incorporating many references to her personal life.

Chances are you'll recognize "7 Rings" by Ariana Grande even if you've never heard it before. The second single off Grande's 2019 album Thank U, Next , "7 Rings" borrows a melody from one of the most iconic songs ever: "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music.

Though the 26-year-old superstar identifies some her favorite things in the song, those items are way shinier (and more expensive) than the "raindrops on roses" and "whiskers on kittens" Fraulein Maria (Julia Andrews) names in the 1965 The Sound of Music. With its descriptions of jewelry and shopping sprees, "7 Things" is a song about looking good—and feeling good as a result.

The hip hop-inspired song draws from a personal and extremely public time in Grande's life: The aftermath of her breakup with SNL comedian Pete Davidson. Only a few weeks after first being linked in May 2018, Grande sported a $93,000 pear-shaped engagement ring. By October 2018, the couple had called off their engagement (and Grande returned her ring).

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Her February 2019 album, thank u, next, contains many references to their relationship—including "7 rings."

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In December 2018, Grande revealed the incident that inspired the song in a tweet. Grande explained that after a "pretty rough day" in New York, she took six of her best friends to Tiffany & Co. and bought them all diamond rings. Grande later bought her mom and grandmother Tiffany, too—but that was long after the song was written.

Grande wrote "7 Rings" after the shopping trip with her close friends Tayla Parx, Victoria Monét, Alexa Luria, Courtney Chipolone, Njomza Vitia, and Kim "Kaydence" Krysiuk, all of whom were present for the spree. All of the women, aside from Krysiuk, appeared in the video for "7 Rings" as well.

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The shopping trip is reflected in the song's opening stanza, which references the classic 1965 movie Breakfast at Tiffany's. Grande sings, "Breakfast at Tiffany's and bottles of bubbles / Girls with tattoos who like getting in trouble / Lashes and diamonds, ATM machines / Buy myself all of my favorite things."

Typically, diamond rings are associated with engagement. In "7 Rings," Grande is deliberately placing sisterhood on the same level as romantic relationships. Those of us who had been following Grande's very eventful year in the tabloids will immediately understand why. She's committing to her friends, not to Davidson.

When Grande's personal history is taken into account, "7 Rings" is really a song about one woman recalibrating her life, and redefining success. She'd rather spoil her friends with her substantial bank account than be tied down.

Listen to "7 Rings" enough times, and you'll wonder: Maybe the Beatles were wrong. Maybe money can buy you love–and happiness. When Grande sings, "Whoever said money can't solve your problems / Must not have had enough money to solve 'em," she's speaking from experience.

"Wearing a ring, but ain't gon' be no Mrs. / Bought matching diamonds for six of my bitches / I'd rather spoil all my friends with my riches / Think retail therapy my new addiction," Grande sings.

Granted, the very premise of the song is enough to make the frugal-minded among us squirm: She bought seven diamond rings? For no real occasion? But Grande's not apologizing for her credit card statement.

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Throughout the song, Grande unabashedly flaunts her wealth, and the doors (and shopping bags) it opens. "I don't mean to brag, but I be like, 'Put it in the bag,'" Grande sings at one point. She also opens up about her real enviable estate purchases: "I bought a crib just for the closet / Both his and hers, I want it, I got it, yeah."

In the chorus, Grande basks in the delight of instant gratification: "I see it / I like it / I want it / I got it." When you're that rich, it's that easy.

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The song isn't necessarily relatable. Who among us has an AmEx "black card," available by invitation only, like the one she references in her song?

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But the song is honest, and that's the quality that remained consistent as Grande navigated that year's string of tragedies. A month before her she called off her engagement with Davidson, Grande's ex-boyfriend, 26-year-old musician Mac Miller, died of a drug overdose. A year before, in May 2017, a terrorist detonated a bomb at a concert in Manchester, U.K., killing and injuring fans. Grande suffers from PTSD as a result.

In a way, "7 Rings" is a victory song. Grande was in a tunnel, and she's coming out the other side: "Been through some bad sh*t, I should be a sad bi**h / Who woulda thought it'd turn me to a savage?"

As with her breakup anthem "thank u, next," Grande swiftly and masterfully incorporated personal events into a song with "7 Rings." Grande reclaims the narrative, and she makes it catchy.

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Hum along to "7 Rings" during your next shopping trip, or during Grande's performance at the 2020 Grammys. Here are the lyrics, courtesy of Genius.com.

Yeah, breakfast at Tiffany's and bottles of bubbles
Girls with tattoos who like getting in trouble
Lashes and diamonds, ATM machines
Buy myself all of my favorite things (Yeah)

Been through some bad shit, I should be a sad bitch
Who woulda thought it'd turn me to a savage?
Rather be tied up with calls and not strings
Write my own checks like I write what I sing, yeah (Yeah)

My wrist, stop watchin', my neck is flossin'
Make big deposits, my gloss is poppin'
You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it
I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it (Yeah)

I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it
I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it
You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it
I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it (Yeah)

Wearing a ring, but ain't gon' be no "Mrs."
Bought matching diamonds for six of my bitches
I'd rather spoil all my friends with my riches
Think retail therapy my new addiction

Whoever said money can't solve your problems
Must not have had enough money to solve 'em
They say, "Which one?" I say, "Nah, I want all of 'em"
Happiness is the same price as red-bottoms

My smile is beamin', my skin is gleamin'
The way it shine, I know you've seen it (You've seen it)
I bought a crib just for the closet
Both his and hers, I want it, I got it, yeah

I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it
I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it (Baby)
You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it (Oh yeah)
I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it (Yeah)

Yeah, my receipts, be lookin' like phone numbers
If it ain't money, then wrong number
Black card is my business card
The way it be settin' the tone for me
I don't mean to brag, but I be like, "Put it in the bag," yeah
When you see them racks, they stacked up like my ass, yeah
Shoot, go from the store to the booth
Make it all back in one loop, give me the loot
Never mind, I got the juice
Nothing but net when we shoot
Look at my neck, look at my jet
Ain't got enough money to pay me respect
Ain't no budget when I'm on the set
If I like it, then that's what I get, yeah

I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it (Yeah)
I want it, I got it, I want it, I got it (Oh yeah, yeah)
You like my hair? Gee, thanks, just bought it
I see it, I like it, I want it, I got it (Yeah)


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Elena Nicolaou

Elena Nicolaou is the former culture editor at Oprah Daily.