Dear Ariana Grande,
First off, I want to say that I love your music, and I think that you are a talented musician. I have songs on my iPod from both of your albums, “Yours Truly” and “My Everything,” and despite listening to some of your songs millions of times, they never get old to me. The "Recently Played" and "Top 25 Most Played" playlists on my iPod consist of mostly your songs (with "Be My Baby," "Love me Harder" and "Problem" being the most popular). Needless to say, I’m a big fan of your music.
But your recent doughnut-licking, America-shaming display? I’m not such a big fan.
When I first heard rumors of your diva-esque personality, I really didn't want to believe them. She only likes to be photograph from one side? She won’t meet with contest winners and is rude to fans? I felt as if such accusations had to be embellished, but then I stumbled on the security footage of you at the doughnut shop.
I was sitting on the bus on my commute home from work, listening to music (probably one of your songs) and scrolling through online articles on my phone when I came across a BuzzFeed article titled “Ariana Grande Was Caught On A Security Camera Licking Doughnuts In A Shop." Intrigued, I read through the article, which included the doughnut shop’s security footage of you licking doughnuts that were on display for customers. After you lick a few of the doughnuts, an employee brings out a fresh tray of doughnuts and you ever-so-eloquently exclaim, “What the f*** is that? I hate Americans. I hate America”.
The entire incident is immature, rude and unnecessary. I am so happy that they caught it on camera.
What I find ironic about the entire incident is how you claim to hate America and Americans when this country is, in fact, the very reason why you have such a lucrative career.
Your apology to the incident is overwhelmingly weak.
As an advocate for healthy eating, food is very important to me, and I sometimes get upset by how freely we, as Americans, eat and consume things without giving any thought to the consequences that it has on our health and society as a whole. The fact that the United States has one of the highest child obesity rates in the world frustrates me. We need to do more to educate ourselves and our children about the dangers of overeating and the poison that we put into our bodies. We need to demand more from our food industry. — Ariana Grande
If childhood obesity really is such an important issue to you, why don’t you use your stardom to start a campaign that promotes healthy eating, instead of going into doughnut shops and publicly causing a scene by being rude to the employees?
I understand that you’re only human, that everyone makes mistakes, and no one is perfect. However, as a celebrity, you are in a unique position. As someone who is constantly under the spotlight, you need to be aware of how your actions and words are viewed and interpreted. As a well-known celebrity you also have an opportunity that not many other people have. You have the ability to use your fame and resources to promote good causes.
I hope that you use your recent on-camera mistake as a learning experience. Be more careful with your words and actions, and maybe you can start using your fame for more beneficial purposes, such as starting a campaign to help fight childhood obesity (since this issue is apparently so important to you).
Sincerely,
Meghan Carroll
