Ariana Grande has discussed the aftermath of the Manchester bombing, giving her most candid interview yet as the anniversary of the terror attack approaches.
The attack, which killed 22 people, took place in the moments after Ariana’s Manchester Arena concert and the star won plaudits for giving hope to her fans, particularly with the swift organisation of the One Love Manchester benefit concert.
Speaking to Time magazine, Ariana has now said she was reluctant to speak about the bombing, because she didn’t “want to give it that much power”.
“It’s the absolute worst of humanity,” she said. “That’s why I did my best to react the way I did.
“The last thing I would ever want is for my fans to see something like that happen and think it won.
“Music is supposed to be the safest thing in the world. I think that’s why it’s still so heavy on my heart every single day.
“I wish there was more that I could fix. You think with time it’ll become easier to talk about. Or you’ll make peace with it. But every day I wait for that peace to come and it’s still very painful.”
Her manager, Scooter Braun, was also interviewed for the piece, and said that Ariana initially had no interest in putting together the One Love Manchester benefit when he first pitched the idea to her.
“She looked at me like I was insane,” Scooter recalled. “She said, ‘I can never sing these songs again. I can’t put on these outfits. Don’t put me in this position’.”
However, two days later, he touched down from a flight to find 16 messages from Ariana, who eventually told him: “If I don’t do something, these people died in vain.”
The One Love Manchester benefit was a huge success, raising millions of pounds towards the We Love Manchester fund in both ticket sales and donations.
Ariana’s efforts eventually saw her being named an honorary citizen of Manchester by the city’s council.
Last month, she unveiled her first new material since the attack, the unapologetically jubilant, ‘No Tears Left To Cry’, ahead of her new album later in the year.
Read Ariana’s full interview on Time’s website here.