Sabrina Carpenter speaks out on sexuality in her music: 'You're the ones who made these songs popular'
Sabrina Carpenter is taking a firm stand against critics of her sexual expression in music and live performances. In a candid new Rolling Stone cover interview, the Grammy-winning artist addressed the backlash she’s received for the sensuality in her lyrics and shows, particularly the viral moments during her Short n’ Sweet Tour.
Sabrina Carpenter defends her sexy songs and viral tour moments, says fans made them popular. New album Man’s Best Friend drops August 29.
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Carpenter, whose latest single “Manchild” has already generated buzz ahead of her upcoming album Man’s Best Friend, says the controversy surrounding her sultry material is often misplaced.
“It’s always so funny to me when people complain. They’re like, ‘All she does is sing about this.’ But those are the songs that you’ve made popular,” Carpenter told Rolling Stone. “Clearly you love sex. You’re obsessed with it. It’s in my show.”
A focal point of criticism has been the Juno segment of her tour, where Carpenter performs a provocative dance move aligned with the lyric, “Wanna try out some freaky positions? / Have you ever tried this one?” The clip regularly goes viral after each concert, but Carpenter insists she cannot — and will not — control what goes viral.
“There’s so many more moments than the ‘Juno’ positions,” she said. “But those are the ones you post every night and comment on. I can’t control that.”
Beyond her own experience, Carpenter broadened the conversation, criticizing the heightened scrutiny female artists face today, especially regarding appearance and expression.
“I truly feel like I’ve never lived in a time where women have been picked apart more and scrutinized in every capacity,” she said. “We’re in such a weird time where you would think it’s girl power and women supporting women — but the second you see a picture of someone wearing a dress on a carpet, you have to say everything mean about it in the first 30 seconds.”
The pop star, who rose to new heights in 2024 with the chart-topping “Please Please Please,” is gearing up for the release of Man’s Best Friend, her seventh studio album, out August 29. The release comes just a year after her Grammy-winning project Short n’ Sweet, drawing some critique for its quick turnaround — something she addressed directly.
“If I really wanted to, I could have stretched out Short n’ Sweet much longer. But I’m at that point where I’m like, ‘Wait, there’s no rules,’” Carpenter explained. “Why would I wait three years just for the sake of waiting three years? It’s all about what feels right.”
With Man’s Best Friend set to drop at the end of summer and her empowering messages gaining traction online, Carpenter shows no signs of slowing down — or silencing herself.
