Petite Grande’s powerhouse pipes rouse arena filled with Arianators

IN ONE of the few times she directly addressed the crowd, the 22-year-old performer repeatedly said everyone was “so cute and so, so sweet,” and that she hoped to come back in the future. PHOTOS by Jasper Lucena for MMI Live

Ariana Grande wasn’t big on stage chatter; her audience interaction usually nothing more than intermittent exhortations and professions of love for her cat-ear-wearing admirers. She didn’t have overwrought spiels of empowerment. Nor did she spew platitudes about chasing dreams and never giving up.

What she did have, however, was a potent set of pipes that either roused fans to a bedlam or silenced them to a hush. And for an hour and a half, Grande let her singing do most of the talking.

The 22-year-old singer emerged onstage at her recent concert at SM Mall of Asia Arena, wearing a one-piece suit and thigh-high boots. To hysteric cheering, she kicked off the proceedings with “Bang Bang,” which she recorded with Jessie J and Nicki Minaj last year. Toward the end of the dance hit, the diminutive Grande unleashed a searing high belt that dissolved to a curlicue of notes.

From the get-go, it seemed that the American recording artist, who rose to fame through the Nickelodeon series “Sam and Cat” and “Victorious,” was out to prove that she’s far from the typical TV teen idol-turned-pop star.

High ponytail

When she was done, Grande scanned the roaring crowd of mostly young girls and their parents, and soaked in the adulation. She smoothed out her hair held in a high ponytail, and, coyly, cupped her hand around her ear, as if daring the crowd to crank up the decibels even more.

And then she was off again, belting, blitzing and riffing through such song as “Hands on Me,” “Be My Baby,” “Best Mistake,” “Love Me Harder,” “Right There” and “One Last Time.” All the while, Grande packed in as much choreography as she could—strutting, preening and hip-shaking.

Grande has so far released two albums, “Yours Truly” (2013) and “My Everything” (2014), from which she culled the songs that comprised her repertoire. The sound, for the most part, was a sassy mix of R&B and electronic dance beats, with occasional detours to doo-wop-tinged anthems like “Tattooed Heart,” which prompted the “Arianators” to light up their phones and wave them about.

In this era when image seemingly takes precedence over actual musical skills, Grande is perhaps the closest the industry will get to having another powerhouse diva.

That night, she paid homage to one such artist, Whitney Houston, by singing two of the late icon’s hits, “I’m Every Woman” (mashed up with Madonna’s “Vogue”) and the torch ballad, “I Have Nothing.” While she tackled the songs with remarkable ease, Grande’s vocal tone may be too bright and girly for such mature songs, though.

Grande, who had two outfit changes during the show (mounted by MMI Live), saved the best for last. She had everyone jumping, singing and shrieking with “Break Free,” and then brought the house down with the swinging, horn-laden “Problem,” in which Grande went for the glory note while kneeling down.

In one of the few times she directly addressed the crowd, Grande repeatedly said everyone was “so cute and so, so sweet,” and that she hoped to come back in the future.

“I just wanted to say thank you… You’re always on Twitter telling me to visit the Philippines,” she told fans. “Now, I’m finally here! I’m happy to see you in person.”