Just days after Ariana Grande released her new album Petal, her rep revealed Sunday that the singer will take a “step back” following the conclusion of her current tour.
Amid concerns about the singer’s physical well-being, a rep for Grande told People in a statement, “Ariana will be taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour.”
“She looks forward to finishing the tour and ending it on a high note, both healthily and happily, and then taking a much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances, which has led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny,” the rep added. “This tour has been a beautiful experience for her. She loves her fans and has loved every minute of this tour so much.”
As part of Grande’s “step back,” the singer-actress will no longer appear in a London West End revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park With George, which would have reunited Grande with her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey; it was also recently revealed that Grande would not be appearing in the upcoming season of American Horror Story as previously announced, but that was due to conflicts with her Eternal Sunshine Tour and the show’s production schedule.
The rep’s announcement comes as fans voiced their concerns online about Grande’s body following the release of her “Petal” music video on Friday. “She performs a very physical show, and there is a lot of athleticism involved,” a source close to the singer told People, downplaying the concerns. “She performs healthily and successfully at a very high level night after night.”
The North American leg of the Eternal Sunshine Tour concludes this week after three shows in Chicago. The trek will conclude September 1, the last show in Grande’s 10-concert stand at London’s O2 Arena.
Grande likely won’t be entirely out of the public eye, however; she co-stars in the upcoming Meet the Parents sequel Focker-in-Law, due out in November.
