Sabrina Carpenter leaves quite an impression on the music world every time she releases music, and this time she not only reached the hearts of fans but elevated herself to a new level of fame some artists can only dream of. Her sixth studio album, Short n’ Sweet, took over the internet, breaking records and reaching number one on the Billboard 100.
Carpenter started her career in music at the age of 14. She signed a contract with Disney to produce music for them starting with her first EP Can’t Blame a Girl for Trying. When she exited her Disney contract after feeling confined as an artist, she released her next studio album under a new record label, Island Records. Her 5th studio album emails i can’t send was her first rebranding as an artist and the album became very successful. After her 5th studio album, she started working on her 6th studio album, which would later solidify her as an artist.
This new era of her career began with her first single, “Espresso,” causing her to rocket into stardom. This catchy pop song, released April 12, 2024, broke the usual song formula and became her most streamed record, surpassing her previous album’s most streamed singles, “Nonsense” and “Feather.” “Espresso” quickly became the song of the summer, with its eclectic mix of fun, yet also romantic lyrics and upbeat mood, the song allegedly being about her boyfriend, Barry Keoghan.
Coming from the success of her enormous single, “Espresso,” Sabrina had to release a song just as big if not bigger for her second single, and she gave the people just that. “Please Please Please” was the second single released on June 6, 2024, becoming another staple in her discography. This song was a big hit in the charts since it reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on June 22, 2024. It stayed at #1 for The lyrics drifted away from the loving romantic “oh he looks so cute wrapped around my finger,” which is unserious and sensuous, to a serious yet funny warning to her boyfriend not to embarrass her. The music video includes her love interest, Barry Keoghan, who is getting in constant trouble with the police. Sabrina is disappointed by the humiliation, eventually leaving him.
On June 2, 2024, Sabrina announced her new album Short n’ Sweet after the hype of “Please Please Please” which satisfied the fans until the album release on August 23, 2024. “Waiting for the new album was hard but I just listened to her previous albums on repeat and did the puzzles she posted on social media for the tracklist,” Savannah Newman, a junior and long-time fan of Sabrina’s music, said.
The album is mostly based on her ex-boyfriend Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello, and her current boyfriend Barry Keoghan. Songs including “Coincidence” and “Sharpest Tool” are about Shawn Mendes leaving his relationship with Camila Cabello for Sabrina just to go back to Camila, one and half years after separating from Camila and after three months of dating Sabrina. Songs including “Bed Chem” and “Juno” are theorized to be about Barry Keoghan and the romantic tension between them, these songs also happened to be the most streamed songs and the fan favorite songs on the album.
The day before the album came out, Carpenter announced her third single, “Taste.” She teased that the music video would have a female celebrity in a murderous environment, which was later revealed to be Jenna Ortega. The lyrics describe Sabrina Carpenter telling Camila Cabello that although she can take Mendes back, Carpenter not only left a mark on him but wants to ensure Cabello remembers it. The music video came out 10 hours after the actual album was released. The video takes inspiration from many horror movies but is mostly based on the film Death Becomes Her. They both include two invincible young women killing one another for a man, they both constantly die in creative ways but since they are invincible they simply just don’t die.
Short n’ Sweet is a perfect mix of an amusing and sincere album with captivating pop, country, and alternative pop sounds with the perfect beats for dancing, vibing, and crying. Sabrina’s lyrics and vocal abilities satisfy her long-term fans, new incoming fans, and casual listeners.
Sabrina Carpenter has truly reached a new level of fame with this album. Having already won multiple awards and reached many titles, including reaching the #1 album on the Billboard 200 for 3 weeks. The Short n’ Sweet tour and deluxe album coming out reveals that Sabrina isn’t done with this ambitious of an album.
