Early life and career
By age 13, she became serious about pursuing a music career, though she still concentrated on theater.
[22] When she first arrived in
Los Angeles to meet with her managers, she expressed a desire to record an
R&B album: "I was like, 'I want to make an R&B album,' They were like 'Um, that's a helluva goal! Who is going to buy a 14-year-old's R&B album?!'"
Artistry
Grande's music is generally described as
pop and
R&B with elements of
EDM and
hip hop.
[55][191][192] Grande said she grew up mainly listening to
urban pop and
90s music.
[191]Grande's debut album,
Yours Truly was complimented for recreating the R&B "vibe and feel of the 90s" with the help of songwriter and producer
Babyface.
[193] The follow-up,
My Everything, has been described as an evolution from her first album with a new sound exploring EDM and
electropop genres.
[99] The
Los Angeles Times review of her third album,
Dangerous Woman, commented that it is "impressive how fully she inhabits the emotional environment of each song here, even when one directly contradicts another. ... She's ... deft [at] adapting to different styles".
[194]
Grande has cited
Whitney Houston and
Mariah Carey as her major vocal influences, saying: "I love Mariah Carey. She is literally my favorite human being on the planet. And of course Whitney [Houston] as well. As far as vocal influences go, Whitney and Mariah pretty much cover it."
[195][196]She describes
Gloria Estefan as the person who inspired her to pursue a career in the music industry, after Estefan complimented a performance she saw Grande give on a cruise ship when she was eight years old.
[197] She has also cited
Fergie,
[195] Destiny's Child,
Beyoncé,
[198] India.Arie and
Brandy as influences or inspirations.
[199] She has praised
Imogen Heap's "intricate" song structure and cited
Judy Garland as being a childhood influence, admiring Garland's ability to tell "a story when she sings"
