Atlantic Records Passed Up The Chance To Sign Ariana Grande and Now Consider This Their Biggest Regret

With Atlantic Records being one of the most successful recording labels in America, they have represented some of the most highly accredited musicians over the years.

From Aretha Franklin to Bruno Mars, this record label has worked with a wide range of talent, some of which have even made music history.

Although they’ve work with a long list of musicians throughout the years, there is one artist the label passed up the chance to represent and doing so was something they still regret to this day.

The label revealed that Grande was ‘the one that got away’

Atlantic Records may work with some of the most talented artists in the industry, but even they haven’t always gotten it right when it has come down to signing musicians to their label.

On October 3, the label took to Twitter to answer a few fan questions under the hashtag #WorkingatAtlantic.

In addition to talking about new talent they are excited to have join their team, Atlantic Records president, Pete Ganbarg, revealed something none of us would have ever guessed.

According to Ganberg, the biggest mistake the label has ever made was passing up the chance to sign Ariana Grande when she was an up and coming pop star.

“We met with Ariana Grande when she was very young, her talent was obvious but, as she was coming off broadway and TV, we weren’t sure how that would eventually be maximized for a broader audience. We got that one wrong,” Ganbarg replied to the tweet.

Since Grande wasn’t too well-known in the industry at that time, the label never thought that she would reach the level of stardom she is at today.

The label soon realized that they made a huge mistake not signing the singer when they had the chance and are continuing to live with this regret.

After being passed up by Atlantic Records, Grande signed with Republic Records in 2011 and went on to become a chart-topping success.

Grande has since topped Billboard charts with her award-winning albums and hit singles. Her music has even earned her one Grammy Award, one Brit Award, two Billboard Music Awards, and three American Music Awards.

Forbes has even ranked Grande amongst the highest-paid celebrities in 2019. Earlier this year, Time named her as one of the 100 most influential people in the world for the second time. 

All things happen for a reason

Although Ariana Grande was passed up by one label, she hasn’t looked back since signing with Republic Records.

Following the release of her first studio album, Yours Truly, Grande’s popularity skyrocketed and her career continues to reach new heights.

Most recently, Grande became the third female artist with multiple number-one debuts for her album Thank U, Next as well as her hit track, “7 Rings.” The song broke several streaming and recording industry records.

She also became the first solo artist to occupy the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 with “7 Rings” at number one, her third hit single “Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored” debuting at number two, and her lead single “Thank U, Next” rising to number three.

The only other musicians to do this were The Beatles, who occupied the top five spots on the Billboard Hot 100 back in 1964.

Grande is continuing to shine bright in the music industry and set new records with her music with each passing day.

Although Atlantic Records regrets not signing her, it is evident that Grande is with the label that was certain of her success from the very beginning.