Songfacts®:

• Ariana Grande began dating real estate agent Dalton Gomez in 2020, marrying him in 2021. Their separation in July 2023 was followed by reports of a relationship with her Wicked co-star Ethan Slater, who was still married at the time. This sparked significant public backlash, with accusations of Grande being a homewrecker.
  
  Grande used her album Eternal Sunshine as a platform to address these rumors and public perception. "True Story" is the pop star's satirical response to her critics as Grande adopts a "villain" persona, mocking those who labeled her as such.
• This is a true story about all the lies
  You fantasized (Fantasized) 'bout you and I
  This is a true story about all the games
  I know you play
  
  The lyrics hint at fabricated stories and manipulation, blurring the lines between reality and the media's portrayal. This approach critiques the sensationalization of her personal life.
• An unreleased Ariana Grande song titled "Fantasize" leaked in 2023. The song explored themes of fantasizing about someone unavailable and gained significant online attention. Grande stressed the song's content did not reflect her personal life, despite the leak coinciding with news of her relationship with her Wicked co-star.
  
  The positive fan response to "Fantasize" inspired Grande to incorporate elements of the leaked song into two Eternal Sunshine tracks: "True Story" and the next song on the tracklist, "The Boy Is Mine."
  
  "It's an untrue story, based on all untrue events," Grande told Apple Music's Zane Lowe of "True Story." "It sets up 'The Boy is Mine' obviously. It's kind of like, 'Okay, I'll play the bad girl. Now here's your bad girl anthem.' That's why they're in that order on the tracklist."
• Grande co-wrote and co-produced the song with her frequent collaborators Max Martin and Ilya Salmanzadeh. The hook originated from an unused song for a Seth MacFarlane TV show.
  
  "That was like a sister song to 'Fantasize', a couple of these little seedlings existed before this album and I was actually, in the moment, like, 'We might have to save some of these for when we do an album,'" Grande told Zach Sang. "Everything, the production, the vocals, the lyrics, everything [are the biggest changes] it was just like a shell, it was a seedling back then, it was a song about something completely entirely different, I even don't remember that one anymore."
  
• Grande also recorded an a cappella version of "True Story," which is one of four additional tracks on Eternal Sunshine (Slightly Deluxe).