Since it has been awhile since you last attended a concert, allow Ariana Grande (and Netflix) to remind you what it’s like to lose yourself in a sweaty, ecstatic crowd while scream-singing your favorite songs. Excuse Me, I Love You follows Grande during a stop on the 2019 Sweetener World Tour, but like any good concert film, it also brings fans into her orbit and offers an intimate look at her reactions to meeting fans, hanging out with friends, and even learning about Donald Trump’s impeachment. But the Queen of Christmas herself (Mariah Carey, of course) is the one who inadvertently causes the doc’s most emotional moment.
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In a behind-the-scenes snippet, Grande can’t contain her giddiness when she learns that Mariah Carey personally asked her to appear in a star-studded music video. “Does that mean she likes me?” she asks her manager, Scooter Braun. She’s unable to stop beaming after Braun confirms she "really" does. Understandable — it was only a few years ago that Carey said she didn’t even know who she was.
“Mariah is doing a video for ‘All I Want for Christmas is You,’ and it’s like, a compilation of, I guess, some of her favorite artists right now,” Grande explains. “She asked me to be one of them and apparently the request came directly from her, so I don’t know how to feel right now.”
She goes on to add that, growing up, she was always inspired and influenced by Carey’s music. “The fact that she thought of me is very soul-shaking,” she concludes. You can watch the clip of Grande in the 2019 music video below.
If just a quick cameo made Grande this elated, it’s no surprise she was psyched this year. Grande joined forces with Carey and Jennifer Hudson for an “Oh Santa!” remix that featured in Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special (and also on holiday playlists around the world). “no i’m not okay nor will i ever recover,” she wrote on Instagram. Later, she shared an adoring tweet from 2011 next to a photo from Carey’s holiday special. “how it started / how it’s going,” she joked.
Unfortunately, Carey doesn't appear in the doc itself, and neither does Dalton Gomez, Grande's new fiancé. In fact, there's no mention of her love life anywhere in the documentary (if you want more on that, you might have to revisit the explicit lyrics positions). The doc is more focused on showing Grande the entertainer, proving that the project's title, Excuse Me, I Love You isn't about a guy or an idol — it's really a love letter to her fans.