By AJ Mun
Correspondent
One woman who has truly proven to be that witch is Ariana Grande. From dominating the pop industry to now soaring over Munchkinland in a bubble, she has shown that her career is a force to be reckoned with. We all remember the height of her pop era — marked by thigh-high boots and ultra-high stilettos — but lately, our pop diva-turned-good-witch has been spotted in nothing but the classiest pairs of Jimmy Choos.
Clothing is one of the biggest examples of how one views themselves, but what do somebody's shoes really say about them? For Grande, shoes are one of her biggest outlets of expression.
From way back in 2009, at the “Fantastic Mr. Fox” premiere, Grande wore a pair of red-bottom Louboutins, promoting this semi-edgy aesthetic that her character Cat Valentine embodied. It wasn't until around 2011 when we saw her step into a light of her own, as she geared up to start her independent career as a pop artist. In this stage of her life, Grande frequently matched her 50s silhouettes with a pair of black, white or nude stiletto heels that only pushed the girly vintage aesthetic forward.
While this vintage style lasted from 2011 to 2015, Grande was preparing for a total brand switch for her upcoming album “Dangerous Woman.”
In 2015, we started to see the iconic thigh-high boots that many people went crazy for under Grande's influence. Though she leaned back into her classic stilettos for red carpets and select performances, it should be noted that her style had become immensely darker, edgier and overall exuded bad witch energy — a trend you can still incorporate into your personal style today. Let us always remember what she taught us: the higher the heel, the more lethal the look.
From then on, Grande's popstarism could easily be visualized through her shoes. As her ponytail got higher, so did her heels. From 2016 to 2019, Grande iconized the thigh-high boot and started trends all over the media. Worldwide, girls rushed to get their hands on the highest boots they could find to pair with their oversized sweatshirts and high ponytails.
It’s imperative to know that these years were the most active Grande had been in the music industry. Her releases of “Dangerous Woman” in 2016, “Sweetener” in 2018 and “thank u, next” in 2019 kept the public’s gaze in the palms of her tattooed hands.
But Grande's style of pop diva had ended with the end of her “Sweetener” World Tour, for now, she was entering a new position. The first glimpses of Grande’s return to the beauties of vintage fashion had come with the release of her 2020 album “Positions.”
In this particular era, Grande leaned into the 60s Mod aesthetic, and began sporting stiletto heels once more while simultaneously unveiling a new shoe. During Grande’s time on “The Voice” and amidst her “Positions” era, she could be seen donning the Versace Aevitas platform heels in every color available. Personally, I think this heel is the perfect heel for versatility that could either be dressed up or down. This concept is something Grande did beautifully in either an everyday outfit with jeans or with couture mini dresses for more flashy events on “The Voice.”
This time in Grande's life had been a true turning point. During her time on “The Voice,” we saw her doing more things that made her happy. Unknown to the public at the time, Grande was also auditioning for her current Oscar-nominated role, Glinda Uppland in the hit film “Wicked.”
While her style during this period of her life was still classy, the overall modern themes mixed in with certain vintage aspects marked this era as one of her best, and this sentiment was shared by her fanbase. But as she started “Wicked,” she also got back in the studio after three years of being absent from the music scene.
Following the release of “eternal sunshine,” her seventh studio album, Grande's style had become grounded and down to earth, sporting lots of earth-toned stiletto boots and, of course, her signature Jimmy Choos. Notably, she even wore a pair of hooved heels for her iconic Met Gala performance.
As the dust started to settle from the hype of eternal sunshine,” bubbles began to hit the skies, as Grande went full good witch throughout the “Wicked” press tour.
In her re-entry to Hollywood, she returned to her vintage roots, and went full old Hollywood glamour at every event she attended. While wearing mainly pinks, blacks and whites, Grande completely indulged in the actress fantasy, tapping into her essence, all while pairing her look with Jimmy Choo stilettos to match the aesthetic. After all, who could ever go wrong with a classic stiletto?
While online critics would say that Grande is putting on a fake persona, true fans know that she finally understood the saying “there’s no place like home.”
“Wicked” fulfilled a dream of Grande’s as well as allowed her to finally rid herself of who she was trying to be with her pop persona. It gave way to her pathway home. One can confidently say that though she isn’t wearing ruby slippers, Grande's shoes definitely took her home.
