Jarring Photos Of Ariana Grande That Put Her Makeup Mistakes On Blast

Ariana Grande never does anything halfway. When she commits to a look, she goes all the way. Whether it is cosmetic modifications cropping up in jarring photos that make us miss her old face, or before and after photos of Grande's face transformation that will give any of her old fans pause, there's no denying the pop princess follows an all or nothing philosophy that either works out incredibly well or ends up in a total disaster (Exhibit A: wearing all those awful outfits that even her killer legs couldn't save). Her makeup apparently follows the same high-risk, high-reward pattern, and since we've seen what Ariana looks like going makeup-free, it makes the mishaps stand out all the more, a reminder that sometimes the best move is to quit when you're ahead.

If that reads as overly broad, it's because her makeup routine is also all over the place. In some instances, her base causes her whole face to look much brighter than the rest of her toned body. In others, the incredibly excessive, borderline theatrical application of powder around her eyes makes it appear as though Bruce Wayne pulled up to a red carpet without bothering to wash off his Batman makeup. And sometimes, it's the poorly calibrated combination of any of these elements that throws the entire look off. Going through some of these appearances, you can't help but concur that just like Ariana's complete evolution in real life, her makeup is also in dire need of an overhaul — one that perhaps favors restraint rather than excess for a change.

Something about Ariana Grande's appearance at the 2015 American Music Awards brings to mind a vivid image of someone dipping their head in a bucket of paint and leaving the rest of their body untouched. While her body projects a healthy, naturally bronzed look, Ariana's face is operating in a completely different climate. The foundation was applied so aggressively that the halo effect is unmissable, even in wide shots. The makeup — despite its pale, ghostly sheen — works so long as you focus only on her face, but if your eyes drift down past her neck, the effect becomes a bit jarring, and that's putting it kindly.

When foundation is applied with a heavy hand, it sometimes oxidizes, creating that cakey effect so many people dread. At the 2026 Golden Globes, Ariana Grande's face was flirting with the impression of that effect throughout the night. Her contouring also carved out her cheekbones, which, thanks to all the subtle shifts in her facial structure over the past couple of years, hardly needed any makeup to stand out. But most discordant of all were Ariana's eyes, sporting a domino mask in the form of a chalky ring of over-set powder, further exaggerated by her long and downward-leaning eyelashes. Taken together, essentially nothing in this composition was enhancing Ariana's beauty.

It's not clear what Ariana Grande is going for makeup-wise, but the new aesthetic, eerily reminiscent of Tim Burton's Emily the Corpse Bride (yes, we keep piling on with the analogies, but you know what they say: if the foundations fits ...), made an appearance a few days earlier at the AFI Awards Luncheon. It also seems like her makeup artist for this event got a little too enthusiastic with the blush, because the placement only highlights the white band around Ariana's eyes.

The foundation situation here in this August 2011 appearance for the CD signing of "Victorious: Music From The Hit TV Show" is a little more balanced, giving her face that natural sheen and softening the red or uneven textures. You know, just like the base is supposed to do. That said, the blush is once again overapplied, creating a sort of muddy, orange-tinted result that looks more like a spray tan than a healthy flush. Those brows are their own tragedy. They're filled in so heavily that the end result looks more like a Sharpie accident than a natural arch, marking one of those instances where Ariana should've pumped the brakes about three products ago.

Let's talk about the most obvious problem in this 2014 MTV look, because that purple lipstick is arguably the worst coloring choice Ariana Grande could've gone with, especially considering the rest of the ensemble. It's not that purple doesn't look good on Ariana, but when combined with the ashy foundation and the mild mismatch between her face and her neck, not to mention the rather poorly blended contour, the overall effect comes off as lifeless, if not washed out. The purple might have worked with the right base, but the shade is so striking that even with an ideal concerto, we have a feeling everything else would've still had to fight for attention.

Ariana Grande's fit at the "Wicked: For Good" New York premiere event was showing her naturally bronze skin, but her foundation was several shades too light, creating a ghost-face effect against that tanned lower part. It's the kind of jarring disconnect that makes you wonder if she even looked in a mirror before showing up for the cameras, or if it would've made a difference had her glam team workshopped this a few days before. The uncomfortable possibility is that they actually did, and nobody flagged it as an issue.

The word Ariana Grande was looking to project through her 2016 AMAs appearance was probably "dramatic," but the makeup pushes it past the "overdone" territory and then some. The burgundy lip is way too harsh for her coloring, and the heavy contour is giving her a severe look, for lack of a better word. The base is patchy, with varying shades appearing across her forehead, cheeks, and chin like a badly blended paint job. The eyes were probably aiming for a sultry effect, but when factoring in the other elements — not least of which is the signature high ponytail — it all adds up to a look that's aggressive rather than alluring, much less glamorous.

Someone in Ariana Grande's inner orbit needs to have a serious conversation with her about the orange foundation problem. In numerous appearances over the years, the shade has taken on a Cheeto-dust cast, which always makes the disparity between her face and the rest of her body more pronounced. In this 2024 appearance, there's so much product on her skin that it's lost any semblance of naturalness. What makes this look particularly jarring is the slicked-back hair, exposing every little wrong decision in the makeup by putting her face on full display. We never assumed Ariana would be one to join the ranks of public figures who have tried the "Mar-a-Lago" face trend, even if she did so unwittingly.

At the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, Ariana Grande once again opted for heavy powder, which resulted in a flaky texture from her temples to her chin. The harsh black liner on her eyes is aging her tremendously, and the overall effect is mask-like and artificial, when it should be enhancing her natural beauty. What's most frustrating is that her chest and décolletage are right there in the frame, serving as a constant reminder of what her actual skin looks like if you strip away all the product, and of how far off the mark this look has landed.

The 2018 iHeartRadio Wango Tango marked another instance where Ariana Grande's makeup went a little overboard. The excessive highlighter on her cheeks and nose creates an overly shiny, almost greasy appearance, making the entire spectacle look glossy and heavy-handed. Add in foundation that's gone full tangerine mode again and contour that won't blend, and you've got a mess.

When these makeup mishaps happen to someone like Ariana, it is almost like watching someone paint over a masterpiece until it's unrecognizable. We've already seen what the singer looks like going makeup-free, which makes this insistence on burying her face under layer after layer of makeup all the more baffling.