Ariana Grande marks 10th anniversary of Mac Miller duet The Way with heartfelt tribute to late rapper

The pair dated for almost two years after becoming friends previously (Picture: Getty/Rex)

Ariana Grande has marked the 10th anniversary of the duet she recorded with ex-boyfriend Mac Miller with a tribute to the late rapper.

Their collaboration in 2013 on track The Way was her breakout hit and cracked the top 10 in the US.

The 29-year-old pop star took to Instagram on Saturday to mark 10 years since the song’s release with a brief but heartfelt message.

Alongside a clip from the music video, Ariana included a caption that appeared to be directed both at the late Miller – real name Malcom McCormick – and potentially her loyal fans as well.

‘I love you,’ she wrote in tiny white font under the throwback footage on the post on her stories.

Fan account @honeymoonavenue shared the snippet originally, commenting: ‘the way (feat. mac miller)’ was released 10 YEARS AGO today!! 💘 can’t believe it’s been a whole DECADE (and more) in this road together 🫶 how are u guys celebrating today? 🍾[sic]’

The Voice judge had her first breakout hit with The Way back in 2013 (Picture: Art Streiber/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

Ariana doubled down on her message in the comments there too, where she also shared the same words.

The pair became firm friends following their working together, before going on to date for almost two years, from September 2016 to May 2018.

Following their break-up, Ariana went on to date – and then quickly become engaged to – Saturday Night Live comedian Pete Davidson.

However, Miller died from an accidental drug overdose in September 2018, with Ariana and Pete calling it quits the following month as she struggled to cope with her grief.

The 7 Rings singer, who had remained close with Miller after their break-up, paid tribute to both him and Pete on the title track of her next album, Thank U, Next.

Sharing that she was ‘grateful for my ex’, Ariana penned: ‘And for Pete, I’m so thankful / Wish I could say thank you to Malcolm / ‘Cause he was an angel.’

Miller and Ariana together in March 2018 (Picture: GC Images)

Ariana remained close to the rapper after their split (Picture: Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

Opening up about her loss in an interview the following year, the singer spoke about the aftermath of Miller’s death and trying to move on as she admitted she didn’t ‘remember those months of my life’ in the aftermath as she worked on her album.

‘If I’m completely honest, I don’t remember those months of my life because I was (a) so drunk and (b) so sad. I don’t really remember how it started or how it finished, or how all of a sudden there were 10 songs on the board,’ she told Vogue.

Ariana also admitted that she realised ‘I can no longer put off spending time with myself, just as me’.

The singer’s relationship with former fiancé Pete Davidson broke down in the wake of Miller’s death (Picture: Jason Szenes/EPA-EFE/Rex/Shutterstock)

Addressing their relationship and her ‘all-consuming grief’, she added: ‘By no means was what we had perfect, but, like, f**k. He was the best person ever, and he didn’t deserve the demons he had.

‘I was the glue for such a long time, and I found myself becoming… less and less sticky. The pieces just started to float away.’

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Her track Ghostin’ is also thought to be about her response to Miller’s death.

The former Nickelodeon star, who is set to grace the big screen as Glinda alongside Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in the film adaptation of Wizard of Oz stage spin-off Wicked, went on to marry her real estate broker husband Dalton Gomez in May 20121.

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The pair dated for two years until 2018.