Look, see. Now he's listening

- with the headphones. - ♪ Boy I met you... ♪

( British accent ) It's-- It's top secret.

- It's so good. - ( cheering )

- Man: It's so good. - It's Ariana's music.

- Yay! - Lady Cultura: It's a new song.

- Ariana: Okay, David's turn. - Wow, this is a different sound,

- but I love it. - My pants are falling down. Excuse me.

Looking like a fool with your pants on the ground.

Hey.

( music playing )

This girl crazy.

This is Brian and Fredo's favorite.

Right?

My pants are falling down.

But I'm committed to the style, so I just walk like this.

I'm playing them my album. That's weird.

We're outta here again.

It's been a secret.

( laughs ) I don't know what I'm saying.

I just wanna be on camera.

Every time you try to pan away I'm like this.

I'm chasing you. I'm chasing you.

Oh, hey, I didn't see you there.

I hate that. Okay, bye.

( laughs )

Holly.

You look amazing.

So I'm just gonna walk around and keep--

And keep playing it for everyone,

asking them to like it.

I'm forcing everyone to hear it.

They're always the first to hear everything and they're always honest with me.

- What's up with, like, halfway-- - I'm so annoying.

They all want me to leave the room.

( music playing )

You know it. I'm putting pressure on him.

You like it.

( indistinct chatter )

- ( humming ) - ( coughs )

Uh, here's a little tip, kids.

Don't drink laying down.

Don't do it.

I feel like I looked cool so I just took a little sip.

Then I choked.

( humming )

- Hey. - Hey.

- Hum. - Get it.

- Hum. - He.

Okay, I have to pee.

I'm... I'm peeing.

Get it in the camera.

- ( laughs ) - Bye.

♪ We'll be alright ♪

This is the episode

in which we're gonna bring you into the "Sweetener" world.

And, uh, let you see a little bit of this journey

and how we created it, and a little behind the scenes

from "The Light is Coming" and "God is a Woman,"

and making the albums,

and studio moments with Pete, the VMAs.

I'm tired.

When you drop an album it's like...

temporarily dying.

I'm so tired.

Man: Yeah, yeah.

( snapping fingers )

Ariana: ♪ Girl, what's wrong with you? ♪

♪ Come back down, down, down, down ♪

♪ Is there such a ladder to get above this? ♪

♪ Down, down, down ♪

♪ Girl, what's wrong with you? ♪

♪ Come back down, down, down, down ♪

♪ Maybe I should grow myself where the mud is ♪

♪ Before I'm gone ♪

( holding note )

♪ This is for everybody ♪

♪ Babe, you gotta take care of your body ♪

♪ Ain't no time to deny it ♪

♪ That is why we talking about it ♪

♪ Yeah, we talking about it ♪

As an artist, I want to love each project I work on,

and in their own special way,

but this feels like the most me

an album has ever felt.

It just feels like super close to home.

More so than I've ever felt I think.

Like a lot of people were like,

"Oh, how does it feel like stepping out of your comfort zone?"

And I'm like, "Nah, I don't feel like I stepped out of my comfort zone.

I feel like I found it."

♪ Unfollow fear and just say you are blocked ♪

( humming )

Working with Pharrell is really dope, because he's always,

like, down to push you places you've never been before.

And, like, I am super open in that way.

I love-- I'll try anything.

Don't be mad at me.

- Hmm? - But I think the second time the chorus comes around,

we might need you to do all the backgrounds again,

and go... ( holding note )

Oh, completely.

Yeah, absolutely.

- It's-- - ♪ Whoo-hoo ♪

It's my "Star Search" moment.

- Yes! - I'm just gonna impersonate JHud and I'll nail it.

Yes, like, we-- Like those backgrounds--

Like they need to be so much louder the second time.

I feel like I have worked really hard for a long time

to solidify my sound.

And I feel like it's more solid than ever.

I'm doing a tutorial.

- Nice. - I'm doing a Pro Tools.

Baby's first Pro Tools lesson.

- For children. - ♪ Mmm ♪

♪ I'm too much in my head, did you notice? ♪

I like that.

And I think that came from Pharrell

bringing this new flavor.

Like '90s influenced. It was dope.

It's pretty special.

- Yeah. - And I'm so glad--

♪ You can work your way to the top ♪

♪ Just know that there's up and downs and there's drops ♪

Where?

♪ I'm with ya, I'm with ya, I'm with ya, with ya ♪

♪ Unfollow fear and just say you are blocked ♪

- ♪ You can feel it, feel it ♪ - What?

He's brought so much life to this music

and I'm so grateful.

I don't think you realize the vocal ( bleep )

that's about to happen.

Like, this ( bleep ) is so--

This is-- This is by far our most rainbow cloud song.

Yeah.

- It's a rainbow cloud song. - Yeah.

Literally, it's like you take a tincture,

and a tincture under the tongue.

And anybody is guaranteed to taste and see

and feel rainbow clouds.

- Hmm. - I'm just saying.

I'm excited.

( Ariana giggles )

This and R.E.M. are the most rainbow cloudy to me.

Oof. Oof.

These two I feel like sound like my DNA.

- Wow. - Does that make sense?

Yeah.

Or how I wish I felt.

( laughs ) Not how I feel.

How I'm striving to feel.

Listen, when you sing these songs on stage, okay?

You will tell people the story of how you felt

when we were doing this song.

That's what is so amazing.

- Yeah. - You-- You will have this to look back on.

It's an escape.

100%.

I feel like this is like the most updated album

- to the last second that you ever made. - Yeah.

- The last second. - It was like-- And wait--

- You know, and then it's like-- - Yeah.

- Oh, my God, one last thing, one last thing. - Oh, ( bleep ). It was-- Yeah.

I was like, "Oh, my God, I have to tell you one more thing."

Exactly!

Uh, hi.

We're at the shoot

for "The Light is Coming."

And, oh boy, do I wish it would.

♪ The light is coming ♪

♪ To give back everything the darkness stole ♪

♪ Stole, stole, stole ♪

♪ The light is coming ♪

♪ To give back everything the darkness stole ♪

♪ The light is coming ♪

♪ To give back everything the darkness stole