Ariana Grande Explains Why She Changed Her Voice for Glinda in Wicked

Originally appeared on E! Online

Ariana Grande knows the voice is hers.

Even if it does sound a little different. Indeed, to play Glinda the Good Witch opposite Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba in the upcoming Wicked film adaptation, the “The Boy is Mine” singer worked really hard to dive deep into her character. And a big part of that was altering the natural pitch of her voice.

“It was really important to erase as much of myself as possible,” Ariana told The New York Times in an interview published Nov. 6, “so that they could just be looking at Glinda.”

That higher Glinda octave has stayed with her in the months since filming ended. And she’s been quick to shut down any criticism over her current sound.

“There is a part of the world that isn’t familiar with what it takes to transform your voice,” Ariana told Vanity Fair in September, “whether it’s singing or taking on a different dialect for a role or doing a character voice for something.”

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“When it’s a male actor that does it, it’s acclaimed,” the 31-year-old continued. “There are definitely jokes that are made as well, but it’s always after being led with praise: ‘Oh, wow, he was so lost in the role.’ And that’s just a part of the job, really.”

But Ari—who met boyfriend Ethan Slater on the Wicked set—isn’t letting the naysayers get her down. After all, she sees her voice as proof of how much she gave to the role she’s dreamed of since she was a child.

Ariana Grande, Wicked — Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures

“It’s something that I’m just really proud of,” she shared of her voice. “Part of why I did want to engage [with critics] is because I am really proud of my hard work and of the fact that I did give 100 percent of myself, including my physicality, to this role. I am proud of that, so I wanted to protect it.”

And while Ariana’s voice may be noticeably different for the film, it’s not the only alteration she made.

For the film—which also stars Jonathan Bailey, Bowen Yang, Michelle Yeoh and lands in theaters Nov. 22—the “Positions” singer is credited with her full name Ariana Grande-Butera.

“This experience was such a homecoming for me,” Ariana said in a Nov. 4 clip of The Streaming Service with Justin Hill. “I feel like I came home to myself in a lot of ways through what I learned from Glinda, from Elphaba and, you know, that was my name when I went to see the show when I was 10 years old—and it felt like a really lovely way of honoring that.”

Keep reading to see more of Ariana over the years.

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