Ariana Grande Writes an Encouragement Note for a Stranger at the NYC Marathon: The Runner Who Drew It Was Listening to Her Song
On November 1, New York City Marathon day, American singer Ariana Grande, 33, was spotted watching the race from the sidelines in Manhattan, wearing a face mask and keeping a low profile, when content creator Ella Schweiger recognized her. Schweiger asked her to hand-write a note of encouragement for a runner she had never met. Grande agreed on the spot, writing "You did it!" on a notecard, drawing three hearts and signing it "Ari + Ricky." Posted to Instagram on November 2, the video quickly went viral, with Schweiger saying it has reached ten million views.
Schweiger is the creator of "Ella's Envelope," a series in which she carries a giant envelope along the course collecting kind messages from spectators for runners they have never met, then has finishers draw one at random after the race. According to Entertainment Weekly and E! News, Grande was watching with Ricky Alvarez when Schweiger approached and explained the idea. "Sure! Yeah, that's cute," Grande replied, taking the pen and notecard and writing the message on the spot. In the video, Schweiger then holds up the card and says, "Ariana Grande has just written a message for my envelope. I'm shaking!"
After the race, a finisher named Ellie drew that very card from the envelope. As she read out "You did it, from Ari and Ricky," Schweiger told her: "I can't believe you picked that one. That's from Ariana Grande. She wrote that this morning." Ellie revealed that at mile 24, the toughest stretch of her race, she had been listening to Grande's song "The Way" to get through it.
In her caption, Schweiger thanked Grande for taking the time to write a message for a complete stranger who had just completed one of the toughest challenges in the world, and thanked everyone who contributed a note, saying they "made someone's day." The envelope, she wrote, is about bringing strangers together and spreading a little kindness.
Alvarez is a photographer and director who once worked as Grande's backup dancer, and multiple entertainment outlets describe the two as a couple. Grande has made few public appearances recently, and her sideline cameo became part of why the clip spread so widely. This year's New York City Marathon was held on November 1, over a 26.2-mile course through all five boroughs of New York City.
Source: Ella Schweiger on Instagram
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Ariana Grande本人资料图（2026年7月摄于Brooklyn，Saturnmondays摄，CC BY 4.0，经Wikimedia Commons）
