Ariana Grande 'God Is A Woman'

Jul 16

Jul 16 Ariana Grande 'God Is A Woman'

DISCLAIMER: This is how I have unpacked and interpreted the music video and I have no correlation with anyone that… anyone, just anyone.

The video starts with Ariana standing in the middle of a galaxy and standing on top of the earth. She is wearing high stiletto heels and appears to be using the galaxy as a hula hoop as the galaxy spins as she moves her hips. This gives the appearance of feminine movement being the driving force of the cosmos. In the opening lines of the song she describes her movements and directly states that her intention is to show that God is a woman. Her change from a high pony tail to a low pony tail that is curled suggests she is more natural and relaxed and less dominating. She is moving the universe around her naturally, as is her purpose. The second scene shows Ariana bathing in what I assume is paint, however the colours of blue and purple reflect the previous scene showing the universe. The opening shot shows the paint to appear in a pattern representing a vagina, which Ariana is in the centre of. The vagina is easily connected to birth and the beginning of life, the similar colour schemes between the two scenes shows woman’s importance both in the beginning of human life and the universe itself. Ariana is once again shown to be natural, as she is covered with body paint matching the colours she is in. The third scene focuses on silhouettes, as the room is a white cave and Ariana and others writhe on bed. This portrays fertilisation and conception, as Ariana is above the others, clean and graceful, while the men below her aren’t. She is elevated and there for the light is centred around her while the men blend into the bed’s silhouette. She is the object of desire and the most valuable piece of the whole.

The fourth scene is once again in black and white, as on an open book, men hurl insults at Ariana. She seems unphased by their actions. The background shows a fragile cityscape seemingly made of paper. This is the first image of the modern, man-made world. This represents how men have made a world in which they may criticise and control what they please, ignoring the fragile world behind them. Ariana is larger and sitting on a marble block, still fitting the colour scheme, but from the natural environment. A later scene shows Ariana facing the opposite direction as a large group of women. The women all relatively look the same, with the same plain, white tank top, connecting them with the man-made world described previously. Ariana is wearing blues and silvers, connecting her to the original imagery of her existing in the universe. This imagery also drew me to the promotions of Katniss from the Hunger Games franchise. For example, in the film posters for the series, Katniss always rebels from how the other characters are posed; if the other characters are sitting, she will be standing or if the other characters are facing left she will face right. Whether or not this is intentional, I believe the message is the same; to rebel against the man-made world and stand out on your own for the good of everyone.

Another point made in the video is how women’s sexuality is a point of power. This is shown when Ariana sits on top of the earth, caressing the clouds and creating storms in the earth’s atmosphere. Another scene that shows the power of a woman’s sexuality is after the glass ceiling is smashed, two large legs appear in the building around Ariana dancing. Now the ceiling is smashed women are free with their sexuality and free to express themselves after being oppressed due to their sexual desires or their sexuality being oppressed entirely.

One scene displays women working on the land as the camera pans down a mountain, as the women work and the camera moves away from them it appears they become apart of the landscape. Flower’s then flourish as Ariana walks by them, she develops a baby bump as she sings the word blessed. This is a link to motherhood, and even mother nature, as women have always been a key part of symbolism when it comes to nature and the beginning of life. The next scene portrays Ariana feeding the men underneath her, providing them nourishment as an animal would. Not only do women give life but they sustain it. The video then goes back to imagery relating to the galaxy and universe, remind the viewer that all are connected.

A key scene in the music video shows Ariana holding a large gavel in a possibly religious building as she smashed the glass ceiling. This scene is voiced over by Madonna while Ariana lip syncs. What is spoken is a gender flipped version of the verse Ezekiel 25:17, “I will strike down upon thee, with great vengeance and furious anger, those who attempt to poison and destroy my sisters, and you will know my name is the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon you.” This verse was also famously said in the film Pulp Fictionby Samuel L. Jackson. Ariana is wearing a loose military outfit with ears and long gloves with the word ‘power’ printed on them. Most importantly though is how she maintains her femininity by wearing her hair relatively loose, a sheer skirt, and keeps her shoulders exposed with a halter top. Before beginning to swing the gavel Ariana winks at the viewer, which most commonly represent a shared intent. Ariana doesn’t throw the gavel on the first swing, showing the effort and time that goes into shattering the glass ceiling. The glass ceiling of course represents the barrier that keeps a people, in this case women, from rising. On this scene [through an Instagram post] Ariana states “to my fellow goddesses who work their asses off every day to “break the glass ceiling”, this is for you. I respect u and am endlessly inspired by u. please continue to fuck it up, to be yourself unapologetically and always know how celebrated u are. I hope this can be ya anthem whenever u need it for the rest of forever.”

The final image in the video is a recreation of Michelangelo’s ‘The Creation of Adam’. In this image a black woman has replaces Adam in the image and Ariana has replaced God, however there are some other differences as well. In the original image by Michelangelo, God is larger than the angels surrounding him, they are pushed to the back, in the video the women lean forward, as if reaching with Ariana. The poses of ‘Adam’ are also different, as the woman in the video is more relaxed and assured that the two will reach.

There has been a fair amount of controversy around whether or not this video or song is blasphemous, and in my honest opinion, if that is all you can say about this song you are far more concerned with oppressing women than your religion. A central theme within the comments stated that God created ‘man’ in his image. In fact, only in the past century has the word man been gendered, as previously it referred to mankind, not to mention that Genesis has a large amount of metaphor within it, as does Revelations. The Bible does not always exist to be a perfect historical document of the Christian religion, such as the Iliad for Ancient Greece.

This video is unquestionably art, and this is only some of the symbolism that exists within it. Hours could be spent studying the video, uncovering and debating on what different aspects of the video means. However, no matter how many times I watch this I will never be prepared for, or understand the gophers, but it was beautifully done.