Fans of Ariana Grande are suggesting that her latest song, "Bad Thing (Bunny Hop)," from her new album "Petal," contains lyrics that allude to a reconciliation with her ex-boyfriend and current partner, Ricky Alvarez.
The track, released Friday, features lines such as "Meet you by the staircase where we / Fell in love, let’s do it twice," which Grande's followers interpret as a nod to their past relationship. The song also includes the phrase "bad thing," and lyrics about "all of this time [she’s] been wastin'" and "You’ve been really good through all this noise / The frequency’s changing."
Further fueling speculation, the parenthetical "Bunny Hop" in the song's title has been noted by some social media users, as the phrase does not appear in the lyrics themselves. One fan pointed out that Grande's "Dangerous Woman" album cover, which featured the singer wearing rabbit ears, was released during her initial relationship with Alvarez.
Grande and Alvarez, who dated between 2015 and 2016, reportedly sparked reunion rumors last month. Page Six confirmed earlier this month that the pair are back together following Grande's breakup from "Wicked" co-star Ethan Slater. The timeline of Grande and Slater's split remains unclear, but "Petal" was recorded earlier this year.
In a recent interview with Apple Music, Grande described "Petal" as a project born from "unfiltered rage" and that she approached the songwriting with less self-censorship than usual. "I usually do a lot of rewrites and make things a little kinder," she shared. "This time, I didn’t. ... It’s definitely from a place I’ve been maybe too shy or polite to tap into before. This kind of just feels like, ‘F–k it.’"
Grande's representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment.