Frankie Grande revealed how his family will honor their beloved Nonna (real name Marjorie Grande) during the first holiday season without her.
“We have some ornaments that remind me of her, and there’s a picture of us that we’re gonna hang on the tree,” he told Us Weekly exclusively at Out Magazine’s Out100 event on Friday, November 21, in Hollywood.
Frankie, 42, said he and his sister, Ariana Grande, will keep up with Nonna’s traditions, including making some of her famous foods.
“We’re gonna make Nonna’s meatballs and Nonna’s zeppole. So, she has a recipe that she passed down to my mother and then to me and to Ari, and we’ve been cooking it every year since she hasn’t been able to actually stand at the stove for the past few years,” he explained. “It will be very different making it without her there at all. But we know she’s there. She’s watching.”
The actor and singer joked that Nonna will likely “have notes” on the holiday food he and Ariana, 32, plan to make in her memory.
“She’s gonna smell that garlic cooking in the fried oil, and she’s gonna be like, ‘Smells good.’ Actually, she’ll probably have notes,” he said. “Yeah, she’ll have notes. She’ll be like, ‘There’s too much milk in that!’”
Frankie is most excited about the Christmas events in New York.
“I love the Rockettes. So, I really want to go see the Rockettes,” he told Us about his upcoming holiday plans. He also made sure to give his little sister a shout-out ahead of Ariana hosting Saturday Night Live’s Christmas episode with musical guest Cher.
“I want to go see Cher sing a Christmas song at SNL. I gotta be in the room for that one with my sister, so that’s fun. I love when Ariana hosts, so I can’t wait to see what she does,” Frankie stated.
He’s also looking forward to catching up on sleep, noting his schedule has been hectic lately.
“Christmas is busy already. My God! I’m going on the Slay Ride tour with Alyssa Edwards and Kori King. [We’re] going into red and purple cities as well as some blue ones, so look up the tour schedule. [I’m] dropping a new single [on] December 5,” Frankie shared. “I mean, hopefully on Christmas, I’m asleep.”
Frankie spoke to Us about his upcoming memoir, Supergay!, set to be released next year, and teased that there will be “lots of Nonna stories” throughout the entire book.
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“I’m just really grateful that we’ve already started the tradition of saying the amazing stories about my Nonna,” he said, laughing when asked about Ariana recalling his coming-out story on a recent episode of Amy Poehler’s podcast.
“We all share our family stories all the time,” he reacted. “The rest of the story is even funnier. Oh, my God. Nonna is just such a character. It’s the best thing in the entire world.”
Frankie and Ariana’s grandmother died in June at age 99. The family revealed the news by reposting their mom Joan Grande’s tribute.
“We are devastated to share that the beloved matriarch of our family has passed away,” the statement read. “Marjorie (Nonna) Grande passed peacefully in her home and was surrounded by her family and loved ones for every moment of her last few weeks. We thank you for your love, support and for respecting our privacy as we grieve and celebrate her beautiful, extraordinary life.”
Frankie joined several other LGBTQIA+ stars at the Out100event, highlighting the most influential people in the queer community.
The night included Niecy Nash-Betts accepting the Icon Award via a video message due to scheduling issues, Kathy Griffin being presented with the Advocate of the Year by Sia, and Boots star Miles Heizer as one of the Out100 honorees.
Sophia Bush was in attendance with her girlfriend, soccer star Ashlyn Harris, as was Anna Camp, who came out in May, Magic Johnson’s son EJ Johnson, Scandal star Guillermo Díaz, and more.
