Considered a modern cultural phenomenon, the song's title and its lyrics spawned several catch phrases and online memes.
The music video referenced the early 2000s' cult classic films Bring It On, Legally Blonde, Mean Girls and 13 Going on 30, and featured several celebrity cameos.
On November 2, 2018, Grande tweeted lyrics of a mysterious track, after her ex-fiancé, Pete Davidson, joked about their broken engagement on Saturday Night Live.
He also said the song is "sultry, cathartic and expressive" and praised Grande's breathy vocals as "pristine and heavenly, and it is evident the pop throne is still hers.
"[19] Quinn Moreland from Pitchfork named the song "Best New Track" and praised Grande's ability to talk about her past relationships with newfound serenity: "She doesn't stir the pot about her recent breakup, as the common media narrative might expect; instead she finds the value in letting go.
"[20] Spencer Kornhaber from The Atlantic said the song highlights Grande's ownership of not only the breakup gossip, but also "her romantic life, her growth as a person, and her career as a maker of catchily inspirational bops".
She also remarked the song works beautifully around how unbothered it is "here is pettiness for mostly good with a dash of evil, subverting the traditional spurned lover subtweet of the sort preferred by an artist like Taylor Swift.
Pitchfork stated the song itself works against the somewhat dismissive sentiment of the title "the twinkling chorus is steeped in a kind of corny but joyful gratitude, for the past but also for the present self.
"thank u, next" might even be considered a little bit of a troll because of how it challenges the voyeurism of her situation: It would have been salacious to air an ex out for the world to see, but it is more fascinating to draw an eager audience close before offering what is merely a small token of gratitude".
[24] Dan Weiss from Consequence of Sound said Grande "regained control of her world with an amazing, off-the-cuff ditty that nipped several tabloid narratives in the bud.
[53] "Thank U, Next" started at the Hot 100's summit powered by its number-one debut on the Billboard Digital Songs sales chart – Grande's second to do so in 2018 and fourth overall – having sold 81,000 digital downloads according to Nielsen SoundScan, while drawing in 55.5 million US streams in its first week of availability ending November 8, allowing it to enter atop the Streaming Songs chart, becoming her first number one there as well.
[54] Grande also extended her record for being the first artist to debut within the opening ten positions of the Hot 100 chart with every lead single—"The Way", "Problem", "Dangerous Woman", "No Tears Left to Cry" and "Thank U, Next"—of her first five studio albums.
[58] The same week, the song was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments exceeding one million units in the country.
"Thank U, Next" descended one position to number two on the Hot 100 in its fourth frame on the issue dated December 8, 2018, boasting just 5 percent less overall chart points than Travis Scott's "Sicko Mode" which jumped to the top spot following a Skrillex remix.
"Thank U, Next" also became the first song since Drake's "In My Feelings" to become the week's Greatest Gainer in all three metrics (streaming, sales, and airplay) while atop the Hot 100.
[62] It debuted at number two on the Canadian Digital Songs Sales chart behind Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's "Shallow".
In the United Kingdom, the song debuted at the top of the UK Singles Chart on November 9, 2018, for the week ending date November 15, 2018, with first-week sales of 73,000 units (including 6.7 million streams) according to the Official Charts Company, becoming Grande's third chart-topper there and first since "Bang Bang" in 2014.
It additionally was the first solo song by a female artist to debut at the top of the UK charts since Taylor Swift's "Look What You Made Me Do" in 2017.
[84] On November 27, Grande released a teaser video featuring cameos from singer-songwriter Troye Sivan, YouTube stars Colleen Ballinger and Gabi DeMartino, Mean Girls actors Jonathan Bennett and Stefanie Drummond, and Grande's former Victorious co-stars Elizabeth Gillies, Daniella Monet and Matt Bennett.
List of cameo appearances who appeared in the music video:[86] The video begins with an intro featuring different singers, actors and YouTube personalities including American YouTuber Colleen Ballinger, American actors Jonathan Bennett and Stefanie Drummond, Grande's backup dancer Scott Nicholson, Australian singer Troye Sivan and American singer Gabi DeMartino, parodying the montage in Mean Girls where many high school students are talking about Regina George, the leader of school clique, The Plastics.
[91] The video then follows Grande as Regina George among The Plastics (formed by Elizabeth Gillies as Cady, Alexa Luria as Karen, and Courtney Chipolone as Gretchen, as well as Jonathan Bennett in his original role as Aaron) walking down the hall, another reference to Mean Girls.
The next clip is set in a bathroom and shows Grande, as Torrance, and her love interest Cliff (portrayed by Matt Bennett) brushing their teeth, similar to a scene from the movie Bring It On (2000),[92][93] which then transitions to Grande cheerleading among others including Daniella Monet versing against the other team, including singer-songwriters Victoria Monét and Tayla Parx, who are contributing the background vocals in the track.
A magic-like transition moves into the following scene where Grande drives a convertible with the license plate which reads "7 RINGS", foreshadowing the next single from her Thank U, Next album.
The video then concludes with Grande and the cheerleaders dancing, the singer leaving a red lipstick trace by kissing Ballinger's pregnant stomach and Jenner, whilst holding the camera, saying "Thank you, next, bitch!"
Esther Zuckerman of Thrillist stated in her review, "what Grande is doing -- as she has done with her conversational Twitter account -- is inviting her fans into sisterhood where everyone knows what it means to be "flirty, and thirty, and thriving" and where the "limit does not exist."
"[109] Grande performed the song alongside its co-writers Victoria Monét and Tayla Parx on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on November 7, 2018.
[110] The performance paid homage to Grande's favorite movie, The First Wives Club (1996), recreating a scene in which the three leading female characters "clad in white suits [and] team up to sing an anthem of freedom in the wake of a life-changing breakup, bidding adieu to the men of their past and ushering in a new age of independence and personal growth.
The song's title and lyrics were used and talked about extensively by news outlets, protestors and commentators, while its unexpected release was also discussed.
[117] Quartz observed that "Thank U, Next" was "constantly streaming, at parties, hangouts, and on commutes" due to its popularity and wrote that "[Grande] widens the emotional possibilities for women going through heartbreak--revealing the multiplicity of our romantic and sexual preferences" throughout the song.
[118] During the 2019 Women's March, attendees held up posters and signs with political spins using the song's catch phrase lyrics.