What is going on with Ariana Grande's Wicked voice?

Pop music superstar Ariana Grande takes on her biggest acting role later this year when she plays Glinda the Good Witch in the movie adaptation of the stage show Wicked. Alongside award-winning actor and vocalist Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba — aka the Wicked Witch of the West — Grande is set to take centre stage in one of the biggest movies of the autumn.

But online, something specific about her performance has become a fascination — her voice. Grande has made her name in the music world as a powerhouse vocalist, but her recognisable speaking voice appears to have noticeably shifted since she began promoting the film.

In June, a clip of Grande from Penn Badgley's podcast Popcrushed went viral when it was shared on TikTok. The clip appeared to show Grande's voice transition to a much higher register right in the middle of a sentence.

The star responded to the clip herself, writing in a comment that the change was due to "habit (speaking like this for two years) and also vocal health". She added: "I intentionally change my vocal placement (high/low) often depending on how much singing I’m doing. I’ve always done this."

Read more: Ariana Grande reveals first time on Wicked set was 'most emotional day' of her life (Cover Media)

One of Grande's fans backed this up at the time, sharing a clip from 2013 in which the singer discussed deliberately speaking in a higher register because it was healthier for her voice. Their tweet read: "This 'voice switching' is not new. She is a vocalist, caught herself not speaking healthily for her vocal cords, and adjusted. That's it."

Grande has certainly had to use her higher register voice a lot recently in order to play the role of Glinda in Wicked. Glinda speaks with a theatrically heightened voice, as pioneered by the incredible Broadway performer Kristin Chenoweth, who originated the role on the stage. Chenoweth has an exceptional soprano range, capable of singing F above high C — the hallmark of an agile, operatic voice.

In order to do justice to the role of Glinda — especially for songs like Popular — Grande will have to use every facet of her own impressive vocal range. In a new interview with Vanity Fair, the star explained her response to those criticisms of her unusual vocal changes.

Read more: Cynthia Erivo outlines Wicked movie differences (BANG Showbiz)

“There is a part of the world that isn’t familiar with what it takes to transform your voice, whether it’s singing or taking on a different dialect for a role or doing a character voice for something," she said.

Grande also noted that "when it’s a male actor that does it, it’s acclaimed". Certainly, despite all of the gags made about Austin Butler being stuck in his Elvis Presley voice, his immersion in the role sent him all the way to awards season. He won a Bafta and a Golden Globe, while he was only just pipped by Brendan Fraser in a close Oscar race.

Grande said there's definitely a double standard between genders. “Tale as old as time being a woman in this industry. You are treated differently, and you are under a microscope in a way that some people aren’t."

She explained that it was her pride in her performance that drove her to make that TikTok comment, showcasing how much she had put into bringing Glinda to life on the big screen. Grande said she was "really proud of my hard work and of the fact that I did give 100 percent of myself, including my physicality, to this role".

Read more: Ariana Grande says filming ‘Wicked’ movie was ‘transformative’ (CNN)

Grande has clearly delved headlong into her biggest ever film role and the proof of the pudding will be when Wicked arrives in cinemas in November. Then, audiences will finally be able to see the pay-off to all of Grande's effort over the last few years. And hopefully, they'll stop criticising her voice.

Wicked is in UK cinemas from 22 November.