Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo Sings Live For ‘Wicked’

Something Wicked-ly good this way comes. Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo are so committed to the Wicked world that the two stars have insisted that they sing live for the upcoming film. Like theater geeks worldwide, Grande, 30, and Erivo, 37, have been waiting more than 20 years for the musical to be adapted for the screen. The Wicked musical started on Broadway in 2003 and has been ongoing for over 20 years already.

In a new interview with Vanity Fair published Thursday (March 21), Grande, who plays Glinda the Good Witch, playfully admits to “stalking” Marc Platt, the producer behind both the Broadway production and the film to play Glinda. For ten years, the "imperfect for you" singer" would ask him, "'Knock, knock, any developments? Is there an audition coming this year or next year? I would like to start preparing today.'" Taking the role seriously, Grande would also show up to audition at least 30 minutes early.

Then, Erivo, who plays Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, impressed the producer and director Jon M. Chu with her Emmy, Grammy, and Tony. Erivo doubted she would be "seen" for the role and was one of the last people brought in. However, she got the call and was already "training like a boxer." After singing for Platt and Chu, they knew she was the perfect fit.

Wanting to minimize the use CGI as mushc as possible, director Chu wanted to imitate the practical set of 1991's Hook. So, Wicked’s yellow brick road was made completely with mud and an actual train transporting the witches to the Emerald City. As for the vocals in the film, the director said Ariana and Cynthia said, "'F--- the pre-records. We’re going live.'" Skeptical at first, Chu was worried about having "a lot of wind" in their air pipes. Not missing a beat as the professionals they are, the stars replied confidently, "'Yeah. That’s what we do.'"

For the film's most iconic song, “Defying Gravity,” Erivo was strapped to a harness, "flying" over the Western sky, belting high notes without missing a note. The English actress gave kudos to Grande for jumping on a chandelier over her head while singing.

Singing live for musical films isn't common. There are only a few popular films where the actors were actually singing on camera and not lip-synching to pre-recorded tracks. D---s: The Musical (2023), Les Misérables (2012), The Rose (1979), A Star is Born (1976), At Long Last Love (1975), The Love Parade (1929), and The Cocoanuts (1929) are musical films that are either completely or mostly sung and recorded live on camera.

The first part of Wicked releases in theaters later this year on November 27. Watch the first look below:

Women rule the world in many ways. In music, these female artists have contributed one, many, or all of their songs to elevate, empower, and inspire other women. There is something about the power of media and art that has a long-lasting impact on women and girls from all around the world that transcends language and time.

With March being Women's History Month, we observe how women have contributed to history and changed the lives of others. For us, music is so powerful for something that doesn't require your eyes but to listen. This year's theme celebrates “Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.” This theme recognizes women throughout the country who understand the need to eliminate bias and discrimination from individuals' lives and institutions for a positive future, said the National Women's History Alliance.

Women’s History Month began as a local celebration in Santa Rosa, California as a “Women’s History Week” in 1978. The organizers selected the week of March 8 to correspond with International Women’s Day. The movement spread across the country as other communities initiated their own Women’s History Week celebrations the following year.

In 1980, an association of women’s groups and historians, led by the National Women’s History Project (now the National Women's History Alliance), successfully lobbied for national recognition. In February 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the Week of March 8, 1980 as National Women’s History Week. Since then, many activists and advocates have continually pushed Congress to recognize the achievements of women in the United States.

Through a lot of hard work and perseverance, International Women’s Day eventually turned into Women’s History Week in 1982. Following that accomplishment, the official Women’s History Month website states: “Throughout the next five years, Congress continued to pass joint resolutions designating a week in March as ‘Women’s History Week.’ In 1987, after being petitioned by the National Women’s History Project, Congress passed Pub. L. 100-9, which designated the month of March 1987 as ‘Women’s History Month.'”

We celebrate Women's History Month to remind everyone of the achievements of women throughout the years in our culture and society, and why it's important to study them and their important moments in history. Keep scrolling to see our top 9 picks of the most empowering songs for women across all genres:

Ever since Ari came out with this banger in 2018, we love referring to God as a woman. Our little pop queen makes us feel so powerful and sensual while listening to this powerful track, and it hits to this day. When she released the music video, she dedicated it to "my fellow goddesses who work their a--es off every day to 'break the glass ceiling.'" And we're still doing it.

This 1963 track by the "It's My Party" singer is an anthem for a woman declaring control over our own lives. From her body and her choices, the song is still relevant more than half a century later. Thanks to TikTok and singing competitions, this song is still pretty well known six decades after it was a hit. We think this is an important and catchy song that incites power within a woman.

Destiny's Child and Beyoncé have served us with countless female empowerment bops for decades. "Survivor" comes to the top of our minds and lists when thinking of the trio's most powerful song for women. Knowles said of the songwriting process: "It was all about what survival means for women, and how hard it is to be one when there are people out there who are trying to bring you down." She further commented on its concept in an interview with MTV in which she stated that "Survivor" was "basically about surviving different situations. Everyone in this world that I know, they've survived something, and I know the song is definitely inspirational. It really makes you feel strong and it really makes you feel like you can survive anything."

Rock star Joan Jett is a feminist icon and everyone has to have heard this song, as it had been featured in ads and movie soundtracks over and over since it released in 1980. The song has been featured in 1999's 10 Things I Hate About You, the TV show Freaks and Geeks, Shrek, and the opening theme for the 2023 movie Red, White & Royal Blue. Over forty years later, this unapologetic track has remained a timeless, powerful anthem.

Rihanna may not be a singer first and foremost any more, but every time we put this song on, we feel absolutely unstoppable. Even if no one owes you money, you bet your bottom dollar that belting along to this while imagining someone who owes you cash is the most fun thing ever. Throw on this fierce 2015 track and let it all out, girl. As it has been widely reported, Ri-Ri actually wrote this track about her former accountant who left her "effectively bankrupt," sued the accountant, and won millions.

Chaka Khan's 1978 R&B/soul smash was the singer's debut single from her debut album. She wanted everyone to know that she's every woman, and it's all in her, as it is in all of us. The song has been so impactful, Whitney Houston covered the song in 1992 for The Bodyguard soundtrack. Chaka appeared in Whitney's music video, among other powerful women. It's hard to pick a favorite version, because both women sing this song from the soul and makes us feel so happy to be a woman.

It really doesn't matter if you like pop music or not. Natasha Bedingfield's 2004 track is a universally beautiful track that fans of any genre can relate to. The lyricism alone is what gets us every time when the English singer's chorus comes in: "Reaching for something in the distance, so close you can almost taste it, release your inhibitions, feel the rain on your skin. No one else can feel it for you, only you can let it in."

Gwen Stefani originally wrote this 1995 song as an act of rebellion of a woman against her strict parents who wouldn't let her drive late at night. The anthem is the lead single from the band's third studio album, Tragic Kingdom, and is regarded as being the breakthrough song that popularized No Doubt. The accompanying music video reflects the theme, with her bandmates living wildly in a messy bathroom while hers is pristine.

This 2003 country has became an anthem for young women when McBride sang the lines "Hold on to on to your innocence, stand your ground when everybody's givin' in." If you've never heard the track, it makes us think of Shania Twain's "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" What we love about McBride's track, though, is how it really feels like a song telling a story giving a younger version of ourselves advice, and that resonates so much more. In an interview with Billboard back in 2017, McBride said that although the song was an "immediate no-brainer" and fun to record, she also had something to say. "It felt like such a positive message, and it's still one of my favorite songs to do live. It's like a shot of energy that goes through the crowd." McBride's daughters, Delaney and Emma, sang background vocals alongside fellow country singers Carolyn Dawn Johnson and Faith Hill.