Sabrina Carpenter performing at the Wiltern in Los Angeles. Everyone knows the name Sabrina Carpenter — the breakout star recently released a new album named, “Short n’ Sweet” which perfectly describes her. Photo by Justin Higuchi via Flickr
Everywhere you turn nowadays, at least one of Sabrina Carpenter’s new songs is playing. The 25-year-old pop singer, who started out as a Disney Channel star in the show “Girl Meets World,” has become a household name. One of her most popular songs, “Espresso,” has been topping charts for weeks — making it Billboard’s number one global song of the summer. “Short n’ Sweet,” her new album featuring “Espresso,” was released on Aug. 23, 2024, and includes songs ranging in topic from wanting an ex to stay obsessed with her to being cheated on.
“Short n’ Sweet” starts off with the song “Taste,” where Carpenter sings about an ex she left her mark on. She asserts that anyone who dates her ex after her will feel her presence, and that she made him the man he is now. She emphasizes this by singing, “If you want forever, and I bet you do / But just know you’ll taste me too.”
The studio album’s second track is the song “Please Please Please,” where she sings about wanting to keep her man a secret because he doesn’t have a good reputation. She sings, “I beg you, don’t embarrass me, motherfucker,” emphasizing her desperation for him not to ruin her reputation too. Freyja Nash Bird, a Franklin senior and Sabrina Carpenter fan since 2014, says, “‘Please, Please, Please’ is my new national anthem. I don’t think I’ve ever heard a song that more perfectly describes the frustration and disappointment that weaponized incompetence causes.” The music video for “Please, Please, Please” went viral because Carpenter’s boyfriend, Barry Keoghan, appeared in it. “I love the fact that [Carpenter] had her boyfriend in the music video,” Nash Bird says. “It was the perfect warning to him.”
Next, we have “Good Graces,” a song about how Carpenter loves hard but also won’t hesitate to turn her love into hatred if her partner messes up. She sings, “You should stay in my good graces / Or I’ll switch it up like that so fast.”
The album moves on to “Sharpest Tool,” where she sings about how her ex left her with no warning, leaving her confused. She sings, “We were goin’ right, then you took a left / Left me with a lot of shit to second guess.”
Next, we have “Coincidence,” where she sings about her man cheating on her with an old fling, insinuating it’s not just a coincidence he’s suddenly talking to her again. She sings, “Now she’s in the same damn city on the same damn night / And you’ve lost all your common sense / What a coincidence.”
Following “Coincidence” is “Bed Chem,” where she sings about finding the perfect man who she really wants to hook up with. She sings, “Who’s the cute boy with the white jacket and the thick accent? Like / Maybe it’s all in my head / But I bet we’d have really good bed chem.”
Track seven, “Espresso,” is definitely the most popular song on “Short n’ Sweet,” playing everywhere, from the grocery store to restaurants to boba shops. It has such a catchy beat and seductive lyrics that fans seemingly don’t get tired of hearing it. In “Espresso,” Carpenter sings about a boy who is absolutely obsessed and can’t stop thinking about her.
After “Espresso” we get “Dumb & Poetic,” which is a complete tone shift from the upbeat first half of the album, taking a more serious route. Carpenter sings in a voice filled with pain about a boy who messed her up with his manipulation. She sings, “Try to come off like you’re soft and well-spoken.”
“Slim Pickins” continues the less cheery tone of the previous track. In the country-esque song about having to settle for a boy she doesn’t like, Carpenter expresses that she can’t have who she really wants. She sings, “It’s slim pickins / If I can’t have the one I love, I guess it’s you that I’ll be kissin’.” Being the only country song, “Slim Pickins” has the most unique beat on the album, something not everyone likes. Vanessa Pham, Franklin senior and Sabrina Carpenter fan since Carpenter’s Nickelodeon days, says, “I hope this isn’t a hot take, but a song that I dislike on this album is ‘Slim Pickins.’ My taste in music overall is everything but country.”
The song “Juno” takes the album back into upbeat happy tracks. Carpenter describes liking someone so much that she’d be willing to have babies with them and settle down. She sings, “Might let you lock me down tonight / One of me is cute, but two, though?”
Track 11, “Lie to Girls,” is another sad-toned song. This song is about how girls lie to themselves and ignore the red flags in men — in turn hurting themselves. Carpenter sings, “Girls will cry, and girls will lie, and / Girls will do it till they die for you.”
Finally, “Short n’ Sweet” ends on a bittersweet note with, “Don’t Smile,” a song about being heartbroken and wishing the person who caused the pain felt the same way. Carpenter sings, “Don’t smile because it happened, baby, cry because it’s over / Oh, you’re supposed to think about me every time you hold her.”
This album is really genius when you take the time to really listen to each song; it has a song for every relationship and situationship — good or bad — that you could think of. From being cheated on to having a boy who’s totally obsessed, “Short n’ Sweet” has it all. Without a doubt, the three best songs on this album are “Please Please Please,” “Espresso,” and “Don’t Smile.” If you somehow haven’t yet, everyone should absolutely listen to “Short n’ Sweet.” It’s an amazing album with catchy lyrics, addictive beats, and deep meanings; there’s a song for everyone, and you’re sure to find something that you really like.
