By ROMINA PALOMEQUE

From hairstyles and makeup to the message of her songs, the influence Sabrina Carpenter has over girls everywhere has seen an exponential growth over the last two years. While her career started when she was eleven years old as a Disney kid, and she started releasing her own music in 2014, it wasn’t until her “Emails I Can’t Send” tour, followed by the release of “Esspresso” in 2024, that her pop career started taking off; since then, her “poppy” beats and catchy lyrics have been impossible to escape.

However, while her title as “Rising Pop Star” got her nothing but overwhelming love for the better part of two years, the media’s patience for her started running thin. The brewing criticism of her all came to an abrupt end when she released “Manchild”, the first single of her new album, in June of this year. The release of this song caused a spectacle on social media between her fanbase and critics. From this arose many questions: of the merit of her song lyrics, of her authenticity, and of the broader question about feminism.

When dissecting Carpetener’s last three albums, “Emails I Can’t Send”, “Short n’ Sweet”, and “Man’s Best Friend”, critics stumble across a repeated theme: men. The media has always been quick to point out male-centered albums, with many critics of Taylor Swift, saying she only writes about men, being present in the conversation now being had about Sabrina Carpenter. It’s undeniable that the albums’ focus on men has created Carpenter’s media persona as a “Male-centered woman.” However, it is made clear throughout every single one of these albums that Carpenter is disappointed by men time and time again; the rhetoric of men being “stupid”, “slow”, and “useless”, in other words a “manchild”, resonates with most if not all women, unsurprisingly so. Apart from “Manchild”, other songs such as “Slim Pickins”, “Nobody’s Son”, and “Tornado Warnings”, share the same theme. Given that Carpenter serves as inspiration for young girls, it is very likely that this notion of revolving their lives around men, even though their stupid, sticks with them, and it becomes part of the way they see and interact with the men in their lives. This motif throughout her songs brings forth the question, are her song lyrics empowering or are they commercialized feminism? 

Furthermore, every artist leans on something social media has coined as a branding strategy; Sabrina Carpenter is not an exception to this. This is why in our heads she has become more of an image than an actual person. The question remains, though: how much of what we see of her is actually real? While it’s been the last three albums that have granted her the most success, Carpenter has released four albums before that.  The way she changed from being a Disney star to a more adult, sultry Pop star is a process that has not been unheard of, for example, Miley Cyrus or Selena Gomez. This process, while it may not be authentic, is definitely strategized. Debates about her authenticity aside, her “cheeky” lyrics, her witty phrasing, and the charm embedded in her discography have been present through her media presence, in both interviews and social media, and they’re too consistent to be solely manufactured. However, branding and authenticity aren’t opposites; sometimes they’re intertwined, and Carpenter embodies the perfect example of this.

Finally, there is the matter that is an underlying factor in conversations surrounding her name. How does Sabrina Carpenter’s image construct “Pop feminism”? The truth is, the way feminism has been labeled in the media is very superficial. It zeros in on the idea that all men are evil and that as women we should all hate them. Although this is something that comes naturally to some women, rightfully so, the way “pop feminism” is watered down as girls equals good and boys equals bad, harms the younger part of Carpenter’s fanbase. The framing of ideas like the ones shown in “Manchild” may feel empowering on the surface, but dismissing men entirely risks teaching a diluted version of gender politics, equality, and respect. Lastly, because of all the turmoil critics and her fanbase alike have created, Carpenter has been criticised for not taking a stance when it comes to feminist issues. Like many artists before her, and surely many after her, Carpenter has had her career thrive with all the publicity and conversation about her feminist stances that have been created for her, while refusing to acknowledge it.

Whether sincere or strategic, Carpenter’s discography, with her male-centered lyrics, branding that can often reinforce stereotypes about femininity rather than challenge them, and lack of stance in feminist issues, is a reminder that “pop feminism” is an idea that sells and that oftentimes the media chooses to engage with simplified ideas of an issue than giving said issue the time of day.

Featured image: The New York Times