Ariana Grandeâs best friend Matt Bennett made his own Thank U, Next cover album â and she approves.
Over the weekend, Grandeâs former Victorious co-star dropped the project as somewhat of a (albeit late) birthday present to the â7 Ringsâ singer, who celebrated turning 27 last month with a Midsommar-themed bash. Aptly titled Thank Me, Next, the 28-year-old's 32-minute project features him putting his own spin on his pop star friend's biggest hits from the original 2019 record, including âBreak Up with Your Girlfriend, Iâm Bored,â âNeedy,â âNASA,â and more tunes.
âThank Me, Next is a tribute album made with love and care by Matt Bennett and @shintaroyasuda, featuring contributions from @JesseCale @lulusimonofficial @PopStarNima Happy Birthday @ArianaGrande!â Bennett wrote on Instagram.
Bennettâs hard work paid off as Grande reacted to the tribute album by giving the effort her stamp of approval.
âItâs so fâking good and thoughtful and funny and creative and well done. đ€ everyone killed it,â the superstar wrote in a comment on the post. âLuluâs voice makes me cry. popstar nima vocals sprinkled throughout were the perfect icing. shintaro smashed the production. u smashed the vocals / creative direction. đ€ uuuuuu ! the most amazing / insane surprise.â
Bennett and Grande bonded and became friends during their tenure on the 2010 Nickelodeon show, on which they starred as Robbie Shapiro and Cat Valentine. Last year, the âGod Is a Womanâ songbird even invited Bennett onstage to perform the Victorious song âI Think Youâre Swellâ during her Sweetener World Tour in Atlanta â watch it here!
Listen to Matt Bennett's tribute album below.
Photo: Getty Images