2026 is the year of fashion music videos, according to my favorite pop stars. First, Sabrina Carpenter revived the hot pants trend in "House Tour." Soon after, Olivia Rodrigo styled one of Jane Birkin's dresses for "Drop Dead." On June 1, Ariana Grande set her new era in motion with the prettiest lemon yellow dress in her "hate that i made you love me" music video.
Grande has Steven Spielberg-level aspirations for her music videos—releasing five-minute films with detailed sets, costumes, and storytelling. This time around, she haunts her fictional boyfriend, played by Justin Long, after he buries her underground. Not a single speck of dirt stained her custom tea-length dress from Danish label AKNVAS, though.
Grande reunited with stylist Law Roach for the lead single on her upcoming album, petal. The dynamic duo declared this era a polished, 1950s-inspired detour from eternal sunshine's Penny Lane coats and '70s-esque prints. The dress's sunshine-y shade of lemon yellow makes her unmissable beneath the video's moody, blue-green filter. Roach knew if the midi was another Spring 2026 color trend (say, butter yellow) the star of the show might've blended into the background too much.
Grande looks prim and proper in the sleeveless dress, which features a plunge neckline, teeny-tiny bows atop each strap, and a monochrome belt. Creative director Christian Juul Nielsen stacked the delicately-pleated, calf-length skirt over various voluminous petticoats. Each seamless layer mirrors the eerily picture-perfect energy of Grande's character. It almost looks creepier than a disheveled, fresh-from-the-grave costume would've (especially in front of a burning car).
Grande sings her single's chorus in equally refined accessories, including a choker necklace with two pearl pendants. Matching earring studs felt just as nostalgic as her French manicure. Director Christian Breslauer (the same creative behind Grande's Brighter Days Ahead short film) only captures the "Into You" singer's pointy pumps every once and awhile. But the stilettos seem shade-matched to her lemon dress in a gingham pattern.
Toward the end of Grande's performance, the main character's lemon midi trades places with ten looks, each portraying a different customer in a local diner. Two newsboy caps, a couple shirt dresses, and oversize suits fill just some of the restaurant booths. But before long, Grande is back in the AKNVAS design and burying her on-screen boyfriend.
As a longtime Arianator, I'm shocked to see Grande wearing something so colorful in her latest music video. In "34+35," she stuck to pastels; for "yes, and?" she danced in black-and-white Paula Abdul-coded looks; and "we can't be friends" remixed melancholy neutrals.
Perhaps she and Roach were inspired by the lemon yellow revival on Celine, McQueen, Loewe, and Dries Van Noten's spring runways. Regardless, the look sets a flashy style tone for future music videos—and maybe even her eternal sunshine tour, which kicks off on June 6.
