Mending a relationship. Ariana Grande got into the holiday spirit by FaceTiming her estranged dad, Edward Butera, on Christmas Day.
The “God Is a Woman” singer, 25, posted a black-and-white picture, which showed her phone resting on a table in front of candles and a lit Christmas tree, to her Instagram Story on Tuesday, December 25. The graphic designer, 60, split from Grande’s mom, Joan, when the musician was 8 years old. The Nickelodeon alum previously called “falling out of touch” with her father one of the hardest things she’s ever been through.
“It’s private, but it happened last year,” she told Seventeen in June 2014. “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.”
Grande continued, “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.”
The “Imagine” songstress also addressed her rocky relationship with her father in her hit song “Thank U, Next.” She sings toward the end of the tune, “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.”
While Grande and Butera have been through many ups and downs over the years, it hasn’t all been negative for the pair. The Hairspray Live! actress paid tribute to her dad via Instagram on Father’s Day 2017, writing, “Happy Father’s Day I love you,” and sharing an old photo of Butera holding her as a baby.
Grande celebrated Christmas Eve with her family and friends, but admitted the season “can be super tough sometimes.”
“merry christmas eve y’all ! sending you all the love and light there is,” she wrote on Monday, December 23. “holidays can be super tough sometimes. sending an extra hug to those who need one. love u always & am so looking forward to sharing next year with u on the road. for now, imma stick w these queens who somehow always know how to make sense of it all. take care of yourselves.”
Us Weekly confirmed that the multihyphenate and her ex-fiancé, Pete Davidson, called off their engagement in October, just four months after he proposed. The split came a little over a month after Grande’s ex-boyfriend Mac Miller died from an accidental drug overdose.
