Are Ariana Grande, Ricky Alvarez Dating Again? Pair Are Reportedly 'Taking Things Very Slowly'

Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez are quietly exploring a second shot at romance, with a source claiming the pair are 'taking things very slowly' as they spend more time together on the singer's current tour and family trips.

The pop star and her former backup dancer first dated between 2015 and 2016, a relationship that unfolded in the glare of Grande's early superstardom. Their split appeared amicable at the time, and Alvarez went on to be immortalised, briefly and wryly, in her 2018 hit 'Thank U, Next.' Now, eight years later, the dynamic between the exes is edging back into romantic territory, according to people close to them.

Are Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez Back Together?

The latest update on Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez came via an unnamed source, who said the 33-year-old singer and the 35-year-old dancer are reconnecting but refusing to rush into labels. 'They're not jumping into anything serious right away,' the source said, adding that they are 'taking things very slowly' and that Grande is simply 'happy to have him back in her life.'

The insider painted a picture of a relationship rooted in longstanding trust rather than sudden infatuation. 'Ariana has always considered Ricky a friend,' the source said. 'She's not held ill will against him [since their split]. Ricky is dependable, trustworthy and very supportive. Ariana feels she can be herself around Ricky.'

That detail matters. Grande has lived much of her romantic life in public, from high-profile engagements to widely dissected break-ups. A man described as 'dependable' and low drama is, in celebrity terms, practically a luxury item.

According to the same source, humour is a big part of their renewed connection. Grande is said to love how 'funny' Alvarez is, with the pair sharing a 'similar, smart, dry sense of humour.' It sounds small, but anyone who has followed Grande for a while knows that shared jokes and slightly chaotic banter are very much her thing.

Fourth of July, Family Time and a Slow-Burn Reunion

The suggestion that Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez are inching towards a reunion did not appear out of thin air. Earlier in the week, another source close to Grande said that Alvarez had joined the singer and her family in Florida over the Fourth of July weekend, where she took a short break from her Eternal Sunshine tour.

'She's having a great time on tour,' the Grande source said, describing how the singer enjoys inviting 'close friends' to join her for parts of the run. Alvarez, they added, has 'always been a friend and confidant' whom she 'really trusts.'

The source went further, calling his presence 'great, positive energy' and saying he 'makes her laugh' and that she 'enjoys spending time with him.' That kind of language, from people who know them, is exactly the stuff fans latch onto when speculating about whether exes are circling back.

None of this is official confirmation of a romance, to be clear. Grande has not publicly commented, and her representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the latest rumours. What is confirmed is that Alvarez has been physically present on key dates and very visible on her shows, not least on his birthday.

Lyric Changes, Inside Jokes and a Public Wink

Ariana Grande and Ricky Alvarez have a history that is literally written into her catalogue. In 'Thank U, Next,' Grande famously sang: 'Wrote some songs about Ricky / Now I listen and laugh.' At the time, it read like a mildly savage but ultimately affectionate line about an ex she had long since moved past.

Recently, though, that lyric has started to shift. During one show on her Eternal Sunshine tour, she altered it to: 'Wrote some songs about Ricky / I know he's still got my back.' Earlier in the week, she had already played with the line, singing: 'Wrote some songs about Ricky / And they still kinda slap.'

Those tweaks could be pure fun, but they are very deliberate fun and fans are not daft. When an artist who is hyper-conscious of her audience rewrites one of her most famous breakup lyrics night after night, she knows exactly what she is doing.

The most pointed change so far came at her 13 July concert at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, which coincided with Alvarez's birthday. On that night, Grande sang: 'Wrote some songs about Ricky / We always find our way back.'

For anyone who had been watching the Florida trip and the backstage sightings, that line landed like a quiet announcement. Grande's camp declined to expand on it when approached, but the lyric itself did the heavy lifting.

It is also worth remembering where this started. Grande and Alvarez first went public in 2015, when he was a dancer in her crew and she was in the middle of her early arena tours. They were photographed together in Milan and Los Angeles, an easy-looking pairing that never turned into full tabloid meltdown. By mid 2016, it was over but, as Grande herself implied in 'Thank U, Next,' not in a way that poisoned the well.

The current situation feels like a grown-up sequel to that era. Grande is now a three-time Grammy winner, midway through a 41-date world tour and gearing up to release her eighth album, 'Petal,' later this month. Alvarez, no longer just 'the backup dancer boyfriend,' has his own life and work but remains part of her inner circle.

Whether this slow-burn reconnection turns into a fully fledged relationship or stays in the murky zone between friendship and romance is, for now, unknown. What is clear is that, on stage and off it, Alvarez is back in Grande's orbit, and she seems in no rush to send him away this time.