Ariana Grande is Finally Being Taken Seriously and She's Pumped

If you think Ariana Grande doesn't realize how quickly she ascended to the top of the pop game, you're mistaken. The 21-year-old former Disney Channel star was recently named a Billboard Women In Music Honoree, and she spoke about her meteoric rise.

"It just happened so quickly," Grande said. "This year I was really taken seriously as an artist, and it's sort of blown my mind.

"Once I started getting new attention I had to say, 'OK, I need to make adjustments in my personal life -- in what I let into my bubble and what I don't.' Anything that doesn't make you feel good should not be allowed into your bubble."

Plenty of stars are in that bubble, including boyfriend Big Sean. Asked about her favorite moments from 2014, Grande responded thusly: "Performing on the [MTV Video Music Awards] with Jessie and Nicki. Putting out 'Problem.' Spending half of June and most of July with my family in Florida. And, um, Sean."

She also got close with an unlikely abetter.

"Spending time with Imogen Heap was one of my life's highlights," Grande said. "I have dreamed about meeting her since I was 11. She invited us to her home. She cooked a vegan dinner for me."

Funnily enough, Heap also pitched in on Taylor Swift's 1989 album. The pair recorded "Clean" in a one-day recording session that also included "lunch, dinner and chat," according to Heap.

The UK singer published an extended blog post detailing her experience with Swift.

"I have to be honest here and say I had ever so slightly not done my homework on Taylor Swift but had done what I HATE others do of me, which is to pre-judge a person based on assumptions," Heap wrote on her website. "I had assumed Taylor didn't write too much of her own music (as is the case with many young, extremely successful artists these days who sell shed loads of records) and was likely puppeteered by an ageing gang of music executives, working to formulas and spread sheets."

If Heap had those misconceptions about Swift, imagine what she assumed about Grande, an industry-backed superstar who was best known as an annoying children's television character before 2014.

At least Grande has the YouTube videos to back up her assertion that she's always been #TeamImogen. Check out this "Hide and Seek" cover from 2012:

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Ariana Grande