Sabrina Carpenter is considered to be, by many, the current queen of pop music (arm in arm with Taylor Swift). Though we can probably all agree that we don’t need any more white blonde women in the spotlight, I have to say–Sabrina Carpenter is refreshing in a way I didn’t know I needed.
A lot of people (like me) know her from Girl Meets World, an early 2000s Disney Channel show about two best friends going through the trials of middle and high school. Carpenter played Maya Hart, the “bad girl” best friend with the “troubled” home life and rebel attitude.
Unlike many other child Disney stars, Sabrina Carpenter didn’t have that self-destructive spiral that we’ve seen before (think: Hannah Montana vs. “Wrecking Ball”). She didn’t spin out of control trying to separate herself from Disney; it happened naturally, and smoothly. That’s not why I love her, though. Disney definitely has its issues and being a kid in the entertainment industry isn’t easy; I can’t really blame the stars that did struggle on their path to establishing an adult persona.
No, what I love about Sabrina Carpenter are three things: her personality, her portrayal of sexuality, and her body positivity.
The first interview I ever saw of Sabrina Carpenter was Elle’s morning interview. The video walks through her routine upon waking up, and though it may not be entirely realistic (as I assume she has many schedule-packed days where there’s no time for daily affirmations or burning sage), my immediate understanding of her character is that she is laid back, peaceful, and funny.
Whenever I see her in interviews, like in Apple Music’s podcast or Vanity Fair’s self-portrait video, she’s laughing a ton, presenting as very casual but very confident. It never feels like she’s trying to be any certain way, and it’s that authenticity (or, perhaps, well-crafted impression of authenticity) that I enjoy.
The aforementioned Vanity Fair interview in particular is one of my favorites, mostly because of the line where she says: “I think over the last year I’ve heard from a lot of people like, ‘Wow, like, she’s just the horniest girl alive,’ because sometimes in my songs I say some crazy things on stage. But I’m actually a very normal amount of horny.”
She just seems, for lack of better words… really chill.
And this leads into the next thing I love about her–the way that she talks about sex. While she absolutely has some meaningful ballads (see “because i liked a boy” and “Lie to Girls,” among others), most of her songs are playful, fun, and clever. A lot of pop and rap music these days focuses on sex — so what difference am I responding to?
Sabrina Carpenter’s sexual persona, to me, is in some ways hypersexual, but in other ways still just a tease. It’s vulgar but somehow not, and it’s always casual, and it feels like the point is just to have fun; nothing intense or competitive about it.
I’m sure a lot of us have seen clips of her Juno performances online, where she says “have you ever tried this one?” while miming a different sex position. It’s just so unserious that I kind of have to love it. And in her newest Dunkin’ Donuts ad, centered around her song “Espresso” and a joke about how “shaking that ‘ess” sounds a lot like “shaking that ass,” it’s sexual but, again, in a (kind of) clever way.
Her lyrics are the same; full of wordplay and an overall unseriousness that makes them really fun, such as lines in “Nonsense,” “Espresso,” and “Bed Chem.”
And a lot of us have also probably seen those clips of how she ends “Nonsense” differently in every city she toured.
In Amsterdam: “He took me to Red Light so I ran home. / That boy’s not a player he’s a manhoe. / I look so good he’s saying ‘Amster Damn bro.’”
In Malaysia: “B*tch I’m in Malaysia it’s a world tour. / Hit it so good he wanted an encore. / Let me hear you scream Kuala Lumpur.”
In Manchester: “Should I root for City or United? / You know footballs get me so excited. / Manchester I love to be inside it.”
These lyrics are complemented by her onstage costumes, all bright colors and rhinestones and lace and fancy boots. Though they appear to reveal a lot of skin, her legs are covered in very thick tights and outfits that actually reveal nothing, and they’re more about being fun, fashionable, and feel-good than they are about being overtly sexual (although she definitely is hot).
This also leads into my third point–Sabrina Carpenter is short (5’0”). She has an amazing figure, but it’s representative of a lot more people than the rare 5’10” and tall-with-a-long-torso body types that are commonly praised in models and celebrities online.
Many women have said that seeing her being confidently herself in such tight clothing, unapologetic about her height and even naming her album “Short ‘N Sweet,” has made them feel more confident in their own proportions.
We’ve had a lot of body positivity movements in the past few years (all of which were very necessary and by no means over), so it was relieving to see some conversation about what it’s like being shorter than average and the proportions that come with this (I’m saying this as a 5’1” girl myself).
Pretty much, I just think that Sabrina Carpenter is flirty and fun in a refreshing and carefree way. Her songs are addictive, both to listen to and sing, and I always get excited when her new endings to “Nonsense” or “Juno” come up on my TikTok For You Page.