What’s The Deal With Ariana Grande’s Estranged Dad?

We’re pretty familiar with Ariana Grande’s family, to a certain extent. We know all about her mam, Joan, see her brother Frankie in snaps frequently, even get a look in at her nanny and late grandad. However, one person Ari doesn’t really touch on is her dad, so what’s the craic with him?

People are wondering about Ariana’s dad since the release of her latest single, ‘Thank You, Next’, was released. In the song Ariana mentions the past men in her life, from Big Sean and Pete Davidson to her dad. Lyrics in the song read:

“One day I’ll walk down the aisle/ holding hands with my mama / I’ll be thanking my dad / ’cause she grew from the drama.”

Sort of sounds like her dad isn’t in the picture, doesn’t it? Well the truth of the matter is that Ari’s dad, a Florida-based graphic designer named Edward Butera, split from her mother Joan when Ariana was eight.

After that, the two grew apart, before more or less losing all contact in 2013.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bm08QJcn0h8/

In a 2014 interview with Seventeen, Ariana, at the time, admitted that losing contact with her father was the toughest thing she’d ever had to deal with.

“Falling out of touch with my dad,” she said. “It’s private, but it happened last year. It took me so long to be okay with it.”

“The thing that got me there was embracing the fact that that I am made up of half my dad, and a lot of my traits come from him,” she admitted. “So much of me comes from my father, and for so long, I didn’t like that about myself. I had to accept that it’s okay not to get along with somebody and still love them.”

Despite her comments, Ariana wished Edward a Happy Father’s Day last year on Instagram, by sharing an old photo of them together.

• Ariana Grande