It was the lick heard 'round the world. Or at least, the lick that almost ended the career of one of the biggest pop stars on the planet.
Back in July 2015, a grainy security camera video from Wolfee Donuts in Lake Elsinore, California, hit the internet like a freight train. In the footage, a then-22-year-old Ariana Grande is seen with her then-boyfriend, backup dancer Ricky Alvarez. They weren't just buying snacks. They were caught on camera "maliciously" licking donuts sitting on top of the counter. But the real kicker—the part that sparked a national firestorm—wasn't just the hygiene.
It was four words: "I hate Americans. I hate America."
Why Everyone Is Still Talking About Ariana Grande I Hate
You might think a decade is long enough for a celebrity scandal to die. Usually, it is. But the "Ariana Grande I hate" incident is different because it was one of the first times we saw the "perfect" Nickelodeon star persona crack in real-time. It wasn't a scripted PR move. It was raw, weird, and deeply offensive to a lot of people.
People were livid.
The backlash was swift. She was replaced as the headliner for the MLB All-Star Concert. Police and health officials actually launched an investigation into the donut shop. The shop’s health rating even plummeted from an "A" to a "B" because they left the food unprotected.
The "Obesity" Defense: What She Actually Said
When the video first leaked via TMZ, Ariana didn’t just say sorry. She tried to explain the philosophy behind her outburst.
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Honestly, it didn't go well.
In her first written statement, she claimed her comments were a frustrated reaction to the American food industry. She said she was "EXTREMELY proud to be an American," but that she was upset by how freely we consume things without thinking about the consequences. She pointed to the high rate of childhood obesity in the U.S. and said she was frustrated by the "poison" we put in our bodies.
Critics weren't buying it.
Twitter (now X) was a mess. People pointed out the obvious: if you hate American overconsumption and unhealthy food, maybe don't go to a donut shop at midnight? The defense felt like a reach. It felt like she was "preaching" to cover up a moment of acting like a "spoiled brat," a label that stuck to her for years afterward.
The Two Apologies
Ariana eventually realized the "childhood obesity" angle was a swing and a miss. She posted a four-minute YouTube video titled "Sorry Babes."
She looked tired. She looked humbled.
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"Seeing a video of yourself behaving poorly that you had no idea was taken is such a rude awakening," she said in the video. "I was so disgusted with myself, I wanted to shove my face in a pillow and just disappear."
She admitted that she had missed the mark with her first apology. She stopped trying to justify the "I hate America" comment as a political statement and just owned that she acted like a jerk. She mentioned she was 22 and still learning. It was a classic "I'm human and I mess up" plea.
Was It "Donutgate" or Something Deeper?
If you look at this through a 2026 lens, the reaction seems almost quaint compared to modern "cancel culture." But at the time, it was a massive test of her brand.
Some fans defend her to this day, claiming she was probably loopy from a recent wisdom tooth surgery (the official reason she gave for dropping out of the MLB show). Others think it revealed a deep-seated fatphobia or a "mean girl" streak that she’s spent the rest of her career trying to soften.
There's a nuanced middle ground here.
Ariana was a young woman in the middle of a meteoric rise. She was under a microscope. Does that excuse licking food other people might eat? Absolutely not. It was gross. But did it deserve an actual police investigation? Probably not.
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What You Should Know Now
The Ariana Grande I hate controversy serves as a blueprint for how a celebrity can survive a "career-ending" moment. She didn't disappear. She didn't lean into being a villain.
- She pivoted to music. Shortly after, she released Dangerous Woman, which was so good it forced people to focus on her voice rather than her late-night snack habits.
- She leaned into vulnerability. From the Manchester bombing to the loss of Mac Miller, her public persona shifted from "diva" to "survivor."
- She became a marketing genius. By the time thank u, next dropped, she was controlling her own narrative so tightly that "Donutgate" felt like a fever dream from another life.
The Lasting Impact
If you’re still annoyed by it, you’re not alone. Many people still find the incident "viscerally disgusting," especially in a post-pandemic world where we’re all hyper-aware of germs. But for the entertainment industry, it remains a case study in PR recovery.
Basically, if you can survive telling the world you hate your own country while licking a stranger's pastry, you can survive almost anything.
Actionable Insights for the Future:
- Check the CCTV: If you’re a public figure, assume you are always being recorded. There is no "private moment" in a retail space.
- The First Apology Matters: If you mess up, don't try to make it a "teaching moment" about a social issue. Just apologize for the action.
- Consistency Wins: Ariana's career didn't survive because of the apology video; it survived because she stayed prolific and consistent with her work.
If you’re looking to understand her current public image, compare this era to her recent "Glinda" transformation in Wicked. The "good witch" persona is a far cry from the girl in Wolfee Donuts, but both are parts of the same complex, high-pressure career.
Next Steps to Understand the Drama:
- Watch the original TMZ footage to see the context of the "I hate Americans" remark.
- Compare her 2015 "Sorry Babes" video to her 2024 interviews to see how her communication style has evolved.
- Check out the health code regulations for "unprotected food displays" if you’re curious why the shop actually got in trouble.