It’s been a big year so far for Ariana Grande fans, with the star *finally* dropping her highly-anticipated seventh album Eternal Sunshine, as well as starring in Wicked as Galinda. While news of new music is certainly exciting, 2024 has also seen the 30-year-old make headlines after being spotted with her rumoured new boyfriend, Ethan Slater.
While the couple have kept the details of their romance out of the spotlight, one year on from their first sighting, Ethan’s ex-wife Dr Lilly Jay opened up on the couple’s divorce and her husband’s new relationship.
“No one gets married thinking they’ll get divorced… but I really never thought I would get divorced. Especially not just after giving birth to my first child and especially not in the shadow of my husband’s new relationship with a celebrity,” she wrote in an essay on The Cut.
Working as a perinatal psychologist, Lilly reflected on how her own experience of motherhood impacted her relationship with not only Ethan, but her patients.
“I loved my life working in a helping profession and being immersed in the details of other people’s stories rather than documenting my own narrative for public consumption… My partner was on a different path, in which social media and exposure were not impediments but rather necessities.”
“I knew all the statistics — how vulnerable a marriage is in the postpartum period… but I confidently moved to another country with my 2-month-old baby and my husband to support his career. Consumed by the magic and mundanity of new motherhood, I didn’t understand the growing distance between us.”
Reflecting on her new life as a single mother, Lilly added that both she and Ethan, “fiercely love our son 100 per cent of the time, regardless of how our parenting time is divided.”
“Some of what you loved most about your partner was actually your own goodness reflected back to you; it’s yours to keep and carry forward.”
Lilly’s latest comments come just over two months after Ethan opened up for the first time about the media attention surrounding his relationship with his Wicked co-star Ariana.
Speaking to GQ in October 2024, Ethan shared that it was “really difficult” to see the continued commentary surrounding his private life, adding, “There were a lot of big changes in private lives that were really happening, so it’s really hard to see people who don’t know anything about what’s happening commenting on it and speculating, and then getting things wrong about the people you love.”
Despite not directly addressing the nature of their relationship, Ariana also responded to the ongoing media narrative surrounding the timeline of the couple’s purported romance, telling Vanity Fair “The most disappointing part was to see so many people believe the worst version of it.”
“There couldn’t be a less accurate depiction of a human being than the one that tabloids spread about him… No one on this earth tries harder or spreads themselves thinner to be there for the people that he loves and cares about,” she continued, adding, “There is no one on this earth with a better heart, and this is something that no bulls*** tabloid can rewrite in real life.”
News of Ariana and Ethan’s rumoured romance first began to circulate shortly after sources speaking to People in January 2023 claimed that Ariana and her then-husband Dalton Gomez had split after the singer travelled to England to film Wicked.
Two months later, the singer’s Wicked co-star Michelle Yeoh shared the first snap of the rumoured couple, with the cast celebrating Michelle’s Academy Award win.
In the year following their first sighting, speculation surrounding their relationship has continued to circulate, with fans remaining eager to learn more about the new Hollywood couple.
Who is Ariana Grande dating?
Although neither party have explicitly confirmed their romance, Ariana Grande is believed to be in a relationship with actor Ethan Slater.
In July 2023, rumours of Ariana and Ethan’s romance first made headlines after sources speaking to TMZ shared that the pair had allegedly begun dating shortly after meeting on set.
Speculation surrounding their new romance intensified following a report by TMZ that revealed Ethan had filed for divorce from his high-school sweetheart, Dr Lilly Jay, less than one year after the birth of their first child.
Over the following months, Ariana and Ethan were spotted together at a number of Broadway shows and while many believed their hangouts to be strictly platonic, rumours reignited after news broke in September 2023 that Ariana and Dalton had filed for divorce.
As speculation continued to bubble, the couple were spotted together out for dinner on Christmas Eve with Ariana’s father in New York City ahead of Ethan’s Spamalot Broadway performance.
“They love to support each other in their work. When she’s done with work, she loves going to the theatre when she can,” a source told TMZ following the sighting.
Following the release of her latest album on March 8, 2024, an insider source speaking to the Daily Mail claimed that Ariana’s song The Boy is Mine was directed at Ethan’s ex-wife.
“Ariana basically rubbed it in [Ethan’s ex-wife] Lilly’s face that she stole Ethan from Lilly… Those close to Lilly believe she did this because she is upset that Ethan’s divorce is still dragging out,” the source claimed.
While the reports from the source remain unsubstantiated, Ariana did respond to social media backlash regarding the song, writing to her Instagram story, “I just wanted to say anyone that is sending hateful messages to people in my life based on your interpretation of this album is not supporting me and is absolutely doing the polar opposite of what I would ever encourage.”
Speaking on the inspiration behind the song, the 31-year-old told Zane Lowe, “There is a large group of my fans that really, they do love a bad girl anthem, and this is, I think, a kind of elevated version of that.”
In October 2024, Ethan also addressed rumours surrounding whether he served as inspiration for the track Imperfect for You, telling GQ, “She’s such an amazing performer, and I think everyone knows how good she is as a recording artist and all that, but I’m just really blown away by the songwriting. I love that song.”
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