Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez finalize divorce: Singer ordered to pay her ex $1.25 million
LOS ANGELES — Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez are now divorced.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judgment dissolving their marriage of nearly three years became official Tuesday, six months after the 30-year-old pop star filed a petition to divorce the 28-year-old real estate broker.
The two separated more than a year ago, according to court papers. They had a pre-nuptial agreement, had no children and had no significant legal disputes in the split, allowing it to move quickly and cleanly through the court system.
The terms of their settlement were agreed upon in October, they had only to wait the required six months before a judge’s order could take effect.
Under the agreement, Grande will make a onetime payment of $1,250,000 to Gomez with no future alimony, give him half of the proceeds of the sale of their Los Angeles home, and will pay up to $25,000 toward his attorneys’ fees.
Like the vast majority of California divorces, Grande’s petition cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for the split.
The couple began dating in January 2020 and quarantined together during the pandemic. They appeared together in the video for Justin Bieber's charity single “Stuck With U” in May of that year, and announced their engagement the following December.
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The pop star married Gomez in May 2021 in a small ceremony, Grande's representative Michelle Margolis confirmed a People report to USA TODAY at the time.
The couple married at the pair's home in Montecito, California, with fewer than 20 people in attendance. Grande wore a Vera Wang gown and platform heels. Wang promised Grande at the Met Gala years ago that she would one day construct the singer's wedding dress.
Grande's divorce finalization comes after the Florida-born singer and actor released her seventh studio album, “Eternal Sunshine,” on March 8.
Grande’s romantic life has been a topic of gossip and scrutiny for the latter part of the four years since her last album, “Positions.” The singer was previously engaged to "Saturday Night Live" star Pete Davidson after meeting him during her stint on "SNL." Love blossomed for the pop star and the comedian, and they became engaged weeks after making their relationship Instagram official. The two called off their engagement in October 2018.
A month later, Grande released "Thank U, Next." The opening lines of the song mention Davidson along with her other exes Big Sean, Ricky Alvarez and Mac Miller, who died of a drug overdose in September 2018.
As fans might expect, her 2023 divorce from Gomez and rumored relationship with actor Ethan Slater inspired a ton of conflicting feelings that she channels into “Eternal Sunshine.”
Songs such as “Don’t Wanna Break Up Again” and the title track (with the memorable line, “you played me like an Atari”) are self-explanatory and find Grande spreading her supple voice over somewhat generic grooves.
“I can’t believe I’m finally moving through my fears,” Grande sings on "Bye," in what could be an homage to old-school disco. Squiggly synths and guitars coat the undercurrent of the fizzy song, which belies the vulnerability in her lyrics about finding the courage to move past a relationship gone kaput and excavate her inner strength.
Contributing: Naledi Ushe, Edward Segarra, Melissa Ruggieri and Morgan Hines, USA TODAY; The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ariana Grande to pay Dalton Gomez $1.25 million in finalizing divorce
