How many languages does Ariana Grande speak? Singer's language learning process with Japanese explored

Ariana Grande, who started working in showbiz as an actress, has come a long way to establish herself as an unforgettable name in the pop music industry. The two-time Grammy winner has released seven studio albums, 54 singles, and two EPs so far, and just wrapped up the shooting for the upcoming musical fantasy film, Wicked.

Besides singing and acting, Grande also harbors a deep curiosity for language learning. Besides being a native English speaker, the singer-songwriter is also proficient in Spanish, which means she speaks two languages fluently. In 2015, Ariana Grande also started learning Japanese. However, she's yet to gain proficiency in it.

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Ariana Grande started learning Japanese in 2015

In 2019, The Cut invited Ariana Grande's Japanese tutor, Ayumi Furiya for a Q&A, where she revealed that she had started the Fuji School - the only Japanese teaching school in the area - in 2012.

Talking about what it was like to teach Grande for the first time, Furiya recalled how "nervous" she was while driving to her house, further saying:

"but the moment I met her, she was so nice... When I got there, she had made tea and homemade cookies for me - SHE made them. She could've asked other people to do it for her but she didn't. That made me think, 'Oh, she's just a person, like a normal person, and she has such a sweet heart'."

Furiya also pointed out that she had read negative articles about the Bang Bang singer but felt offended by them after meeting her. The tutor then shared how she started taking home classes for Grande two or three times a week. Ariana also tried to visit the school a few times, which ended up distracting other students.

Once Grande's tours became a regular part of her life, Furiya started taking online lessons with her on Skype. Talking about the current scenario, she admitted:

"Today, to be honest, I maybe tutor her once a year in person. We talk and we text sometimes, though. But she is still my student and I'm still her teacher."

When asked what had inspired Ariana Grande to take up a new language amidst her busy working schedule, Furiya revealed that the Love Me Harder singer wanted "to be able to communicate with her Japanese fans in Japanese," which was her main motivation. She further added:

"She also really likes Japanese culture."

Recalling a conversation where Furiya suggested that Grande drop learning Japanese, the tutor said:

"At first, I told her that learning Japanese is very hard, so I said that maybe she could just memorize some phrases so she could speak to her fans. She didn't agree with me - she really wanted to learn the Japanese language from the beginning."

It was then that Furiya started teaching Ariana Grande Japanese from lesson one, as she did with the rest of her students.

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Ariana Grande's Japanese tutor defended her following her kanji tattoo debacle in 2019

On January 18, Ariana Grande released 7 Rings as the second single track from her fifth studio album - Thank U, Next. The track became an immediate commercial success, debuting at no.1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, breaking several other streaming records simultaneously. It also became the album's top-performing track.

Soon after its release, Grande wanted to celebrate the song's success by getting a kanji tattoo of the song's name on her left palm. Kanji is a Japanese form of writing which uses Chinese characters.

Ariana Grande's grand gesture took an unfortunate turn when the tattoo was misspelled - with a symbol missing - which ended up changing its entire meaning. So the tattoo that was supposed to mean "7 Rings" now meant "Japanese barbeque finger".

The NASA singer could only get two of the three characters required in the original term, which she explained in a since-deleted tweet, saying:

"Indeed, I left out ‘つの指’ which should have gone in between. It hurt like f*ck n still looks tight. I wouldn’t have lasted one more symbol lmao. But this spot also peels a ton and won’t last so if I miss it enough I’ll suffer thru the whole thing next time."

However, the internet took the misspelled tattoo too seriously, accusing Ariana Grande of cultural appropriation. Furiya then came to her rescue, speaking out about it in her 2019 interview with The Cut:

"I am so, so mad that people are making fun of her. I don't want this to stop anyone from being motivated to learn another language... If you study another language, you understand that people make mistakes. It's not necessary for her to learn Japanese - she just really wants to. I appreciate that."

Whether or not Ariana Grande's misspelled tattoo has since peeled off remains unknown.