Over the past two years, Ariana Grande rose to prominence as one of the world's biggest pop stars. She released the No. 1 album Sweetener, which won a Grammy for Best Vocal Pop album, and her new No. 1 album, Thank U, Next, is expected to be nominated next year. But now the 25-year-old has really hit the big time, securing her own branded Starbucks drink.
Throughout the year, Starbucks rotates their menu, offering unique beverages like the Pumpkin Spice Latte, Peppermint Mocha and Unicorn Frappuccino. Last week the coffee chain debuted a brand new drink, which was created in collaboration with Ariana Grande. It's called the Cloud Macchiato, and consists of an expresso shot, a bunch of milk foam and Pete Davidson's tears. Just kidding. There are no Pete Davidson tears. But maybe you can find some on your own - just go to one of his stand-up shows wearing an Ariana Grande shirt.
The collection seems like perfect synergy, since Ari loves cloud emojis, and her last name is 'Grande,' the size of a 16 ounce drink at Starbucks. However, many of her fans are upset about the Cloud Macchiato and expressed their displeasure on Twitter. The drink comes in caramel or cinnamon flavor, hot or iced, but not does not come in vegan. According to Starbucks' website, the foam contains egg white powder, and the syrup in the caramel version contains butter, heavy cream and milk.
Fans expected the Cloud Macchiato to be vegan, since Grande declared she was 100% vegan in 2013. "I've eaten organically since I was little and always kept meat minimal," she tweeted, "but today marks my first day as a 100% Vegan!!!! Joyous day." Then, while promoting her new Starbucks drink, she encouraged fans to try the soy version, which substitutes soy for milk, but contains egg white powder, and therefore is not vegan. Arianators haven't been this angry since they discovered Michael Rappaport's Twitter account.
Starbucks baristas explained that egg white powder is required to make the cloud-like foam and thus "you literally cannot make it vegan." Reportedly a lot of customers assumed the soy version was vegan, spurring one frustrating employee to write a hilarious all-caps tweet, warning that if it happens one more time, "IM GOING TO SCREAM."
Meanwhile, some fans leapt to the high ponytail queen's defense, pointing out that she claimed to be vegan six years ago. That doesn't mean she's still vegan now. Also, Grande might have just pitched the idea of a "cloud" drink to Starbucks, without being aware of every single ingredient.
As of this writing, Ariana Grande has not responded to the complaints on social media. But maybe she'll take the opportunity to collaborate with Starbucks on a new vegan-friendly drink. They could call it the Stop Bitching Frappuccino!
