With the massive success of her earworm single Espresso practically dominating airwaves across the globe, Sabrina Carpenter is well and truly on top of the world. She has the accolades now to prove it too, having opened the South American and Australasia legs of Taylor Swift’s generation-defining Eras Tour to headlining at Coachella this year. So naturally, we’ve made a point of combing through some of her songs that we love best, and cherry-picked some of our favourite lyrics.
Show us iconic behaviour and we’ll show you Sabrina Carpenter, whose latest single Please Please Please features boyfriend Barry Keoghan in a lead role. The jury is out on the certified bop, and the verdict is in: Please Please Please give it a listen. With groovy beats marrying Carpenter’s quirky cadence with producer Jack Antonoff’s nostalgic synth beats, the catchy single and its accompanying video has already garnered 34.6 million streams on Spotify and 17 million views on YouTube.
And for good reason.
Please Please Please already among Sabrina Carpenter’s greatest hits
While Carpenter has garnered a reputation among fans and contemporaries alike for her sauciness, spice, and sass, it has only added to her inimitable girlish charm. Having famously asserted that ‘Jesus is a Carpenter’ following the scandal of her Feather music video, the singer nonetheless kicked off her year with a bang, opening for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour and debuting her chart-topping single Espresso at Coachella.
If her latest drop Please Please Please is anything to go by, Carpenter is nowhere near done sparkling for the season.
Please Please Please appears to have been written as a rather on-the-nose warning to Barry Keoghan, whom Carpenter has been been dating since December 2023. However, one cannot help but draw a comparison between its lyrics and what longtime idol Taylor Swift might have felt about the infamous Matty Healy. Its tongue-in-cheek lyrics, sung in Carpenter’s signature feather-light soprano tones serve as the perfect anthem for every woman who has ever had to defend their boyfriend’s actions, a rallying cry for those who are blind to the reddest of flags.
Further adding to the hilarity of it all is Carpenter’s bold-faced audacity in casting Keoghan himself as Please Please Please’s problematic male lead. For his part, Keoghan shines in the role, portraying the walking red flag and the object of Carpenter’s desires with an ease that recalls every magnetic bad boy in pop culture. But for all of Keoghan’s charismatic bravado, we know (and Carpenter certainly knows) that she’s got him wrapped around her little finger.
sabrina carpenter hard launching her relationship with a song that says “i beg you don’t embarrass me motherfucker” BYEEEE pic.twitter.com/V3CDyYe19y
— head taybrina⸆⸉ 樂★🩰 (@headtaybrina) June 7, 2024
Understandably, the song has quickly ascended in the charts. To date, it is Carpenter’s biggest debut, garnering 6.3 million in global Spotify streams on its first day. For comparison, Espresso debuted with 3.670 million global streams, reaching a peak of No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. If that’s any indication of how well Please Please Please will do, then Carpenter is only expected to soar on the charts in coming days. But, while we’ve been playing this fun new track on repeat for hours on end, we aren’t the only ones.
Speaking to People, Joey King, with whom Carpenter shares a friendship and a past with Disney, expressed admiration for the pop culture sensation. Mirroring Carpenter’s tongue-in-cheek jibes, King jokingly said, “It’s so rude of her to make a hit like that. It’s also so rude to make such an addicting music video. It’s really rude to make me watch it six times at 2:00 a.m. when I want to go to bed.”
If you loved Please Please Please as much as we do, check out our favourite songs from Sabrina Carpenter, along with some of her best lyrics.
The best songs from Sabrina Carpenter, plus lyrics we love
Please Please Please
It is admittedly difficult to pick out our favourite lyrics from Sabrina Carpenter’s new song; after all, the entirety of this bop is quotable. From the opening lines of, “I know I have good judgment, I know I have good taste / It’s funny and it’s ironic that only I feel that way,” to the pleading crescendo of its chorus, “And please, pleasе, please / Don’t bring me to tеars when I just did my makeup so nice / Heartbreak is one thing, my ego’s another / I beg you, don’t embarrass me, motherf–cker,” the song perfectly exemplifies the woes of those who have a habit of choosing problematic partners.
We stand by this: If Taylor Swift’s The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived is the perfect song for a wayward ex, then Please Please Please is its cheeky sister sent forth to warn current beaus against bad behaviour.
Espresso
A fantastic summer anthem for self-love and empowerment, Espresso delivers in every way. The upbeat and energetic song provides a glimpse at true confidence, and at its core shows us that there is nothing sexier than loving yourself and knowing your true worth. Carpenter certainly does, singing, “I can’t relate to desperation / My ‘give a f – cks’ are on vacation.”
Feather
For every single person who has ever lost themselves in a one-sided situationship, Feather perfectly elucidates the irresistible weightless that comes with finally letting go. Beyond matters of romance, the lyrics of the song apply to all toxic situations in life, which, once shed, allow for growth and self-actualisation. Carpenter sings of this notion with the lyrics, “It feels so good / Not caring where you are tonight / And it feels so good / Not pretending to like the wine you like.”
Because I Liked A Boy
Having garnered much internet infamy for her supposed love triangle with Olivia Rodrigo and Joshua Bassett, Carpenter is no stranger to public scrutiny. Because I Liked A Boy provides poignant commentary on the ill effects of celebrity, and how an innocent relationship between two people can spark a fire and create wars between internet strangers intent on fabricating drama where none once existed.
In the song, Carpenter highlights her ascent into villain status, providing commentary on how love can sometimes bring out the worst in people — and in fans. From the harrowing lines of, “You said I’m too late to be your first love / But I’ll always be your favourite / Now I’m a homewrecker, I’m a sl–t / I got death threats filling up semi-trucks,” to the pleading chorus of “All because I liked a boy / Fell so deeply into it / It was all so innocent/ Dating boys with exes / No, I wouldn’t recommend it,” the ballad asks the listener whether the bullying and harassment was worth it in the end. In essence, the song provides a heartbreaking glimpse into the stressful lives of celebrities as they navigate life in the public sphere.
Thumbs
If you have exhausted yourself in the monotony of daily life, Thumbs is a rallying cry to make the change you want to see in the world. Carpenter’s snappy lyrics provide commentary on those who pass their lives simply going through the motions, giving in to idleness and a refusal to fight for something better. The singer’s derision at predictability, repetition, and herd mentality is evident in her lyrics, which read, “Don’t believe everything that you hear / Let it go through your left and right ear / Don’t just march to the beat of that drum / Don’t be one of them people just twiddlin’ them thumbs.”
Things I Wish You Said
For lovers and dreamers who find it difficult to say goodbye to old lovers, Things I Wish You Said beautifully expresses the nuanced feelings of regret that accompany a breakup. In the song, which speaks strongly of a desire for closure, Carpenter sings, “’When I saw you cry, I didn’t handle it well’ / ‘Without you here, I don’t know what to do with myself’ / I think about these things at night before I fall asleep / Things I wish you said to me.”
Lonesome
In the soulfully acoustic bars of Lonesome, Carpenter explores the mournful nature of loneliness, speaking to sorrowful hearts in want of company. Feelings of abandonment and inadequacy peek through in the lyrics, which hint at loneliness even in relationships. From the opening sentences of, “If I fall in love with all my problems, will they leave me too / Or maybe I believed in all your lies ’cause I believed in you,” and “Why were you somewhere else when you were next to me? / I know you know it keeps me up / Did you think about her face with your hands around my waist?” it is made clear that the singer feels underappreciated and unseen.
Later in the song, these feelings are further vindicated with the words, “Tell me I was more than just a decent opportunity / Or will you tell me anything I wanna hear to control how you’re perceived?” which hint at the knowledge of the relationship being one of convenience, rather than one of love.
Exhale
As one of Carpenter’s most raw and vulnerable songs, Exhale provides a glimpse into the inner workings of the singer’s mind. Released just a week before Carpenter’s 20th birthday, its lyrics are a stark reminder that she is as young in her career as she is in person. And while she has since grown as a performer, Exhale remains as a stoic reminder of the societal pressures placed upon the young. Most importantly, it highlights how young performers who are often held to higher standards in an unforgiving industry where they are placed on pedestals in the public eye with little room for making human errors.
Carpenter notes this with little pretense for subtlety, singing, “Who put the baby in charge? / It’s already hard to buy all the parts and learn to use them / Who put the world on my back and not in my hands?” before going on to add, “Can I exhale for a minute? / Can we talk it out? I don’t get it / Can I calm down for a moment? / Can I breathe for just one second?”
Shadows
Shadows provides commentary on young love, and the emotional impact of fear and uncertainty, particularly at a young age. Through her lyrics, Carpenter masterfully crafts a narrative that depicts a life spent attempting to hide one’s imperfections from those they love; then, she calms that fear by reminding the listener that it is okay to be an imperfect human person, and that we are all imperfect in our own ways.
Opining that the right people will choose love over fear of darkness, she sings, “I don’t mind your shadows / ‘Cause they disappear in the light / I don’t mind your shadows / ‘Cause they look a lot like mine / And listen to me, it’s okay to be afraid / Just walk like you’re never alone / I don’t mind your shadows.”
Emails I Can’t Send
While Carpenter has never explicitly named the person for whom Emails I Can’t Send was intended, it was clearly written from a place of deepest hurt, rife with disappointment and disbelief both. Speaking to Spotify Storyline, the singer shared that the song had catalysed the entirety of the album. “Someone I looked up to let me down and it changed the way I love and receive love,” She said, adding that she used to write e-mails to herself as a coping mechanism in lieu of a therapist.
Through the lyrics of the track, Carpenter takes no prisoners, her words confronting as they are direct. From the lines “And thanks to you I, I can’t love right / I get nice guys and villainise them / Read their texts like they’re having sex right now / Scared I’ll find out that it’s true,” to “When I’m forty-five, someone calls me their wife / And he f–cks our lives in one selfish night / Don’t think I’ll find forgiveness as fast as mom did,” Emails I Can’t Send is an honest and pointed take on parental infidelity that marries raw edge with visceral anger.
(Main and featured images: Sabrina Carpenter/Instagram)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
– What song did Sabrina Carpenter write to Olivia Rodrigo?
Sabrina Carpenter allegedly wrote Skin and Because I Liked A Boy to address the controversy and beef between her and Olivia Rodrigo over Joshua Bassett, with whom they were both linked.
– What is Sabrina Carpenter famous for?
Sabrina Carpenter has made a name for herself in the industry with her most popular tracks, including Espresso, Feather, Nonsense, Emails I Can’t Send, and now Please Please Please. She also opened for the South American and Australasian legs of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour.
– How many songs has Sabrina Carpenter?
Sabrina Carpenter has released five studio albums, two EPs, 24 singles, 23 promotional singles, and 31 music videos for a total of 382 songs.
– Does Sabrina Carpenter still sing?
Yes, Sabrina Carpenter has just released Please Please Please, with a new EP Short n’ Sweet slated for release in August.
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Emmelyn curates and creates content in Kuala Lumpur, where she's spent the past decade building a portfolio comprising copy and video spanning both print and digital platforms. Endlessly fascinated with cookbooks, interior design, aesthetics, and video games, she is also an ardent foodie - a lemon tart, lychee martini, and coffee enthusiast. Her favourite animal is the common wombat. She's written one award winning cookbook.
