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What to think about Sabrina Carpenter’s new album nominated at the Grammy Awards?
American singer Sabrina Carpenter has been nominated six times at the 2026 Grammy Awards for her album Man’s Best Friend, released last August 2025. It followed the hit single Manchild, and a cover art that sparked controversy. Is this new opus as good as the brillant Short n’ Sweet? Numéro takes stock.
By Violaine Schütz.
The album cover of Man’s Best Friend (2025) by singer Sabrina Carpenter.
While we are still listening latest record Short n’ Sweet, released in August 2024, on repeat, American singer Sabrina Carpenter has already dropped a new album. On August 29, 2025, she unveiled her seventh studio record, which that has just earned six nominations at the 2026 Grammy Awards. But does it live up to her previous release, which featured the hits Espresso and Please Please Please?
An album cover that stirs up controversy
Even before the release of Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina Carpenter, who won two Grammy Awards last February, already caused a stir with the very sexy cover art of her new album. It shows the singer on all fours, wearing an evening gown, while a man is pulling her hair.
For many people online, the image is degrading, portraying a woman as the submissive object of a man. As a matter of fact, the pose of the pop star resembles that of an animal, staged in what looks like a BDSM-inspired scene. The album title itself seems to suggest the singer is casting herself as someone devoted to men. For others, it is clearly a sharp satire of the music industry, which keeps artists on a tight leash and reinforces male dominance.
Yet, the Espresso singer is hardly the submissive type pandering to the male gaze. Although she often presents herself wearing lingerie and high heels for photoshoots or music videos, her lyrics are usually sharp, humorous, tongue-in-cheek, and full of irony.
The explicit and sarcastic lyrics in Man’s Best Friend
On the sarcastic Man’s Best Friend, the 26-year-old artist doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to men. She openly mocks her former flings, calling them all incompetent on Manchild. The track clearly aimed at girls who’ve had their share of disappointing boyfriends. On Never Getting Laid, she cheekily proclaims: “Wish you a lifetime full of happiness / And a forever of never getting laid.”
Many of the lyrics will make you blush, such as the single Tears, which uses a sexual metaphor involving bodily fluids, or House Tour, where the narrator invites us to explore a home that in fact appears to be her own body. Since Short n’ Sweet, the singer’s unapologetic approach to sexuality has become a source of empowerment for young women, who dress like her for her shows… Even if it ruffles some conservative feathers.
With this new record, Sabrina Carpenter once again delivers tracks perfectly crafted for a girls’ night out or being sung in unison by young women fed up with modern dating. We Almost Broke Up Last Night and Go Go Juice clearly are anthems for those used to complicated relationships. While Don’t Worry I’ll Make You Worry, a title that showcases her knack for killer punchlines, seems destined to become a meme or TikTok trend.
As it is often the case with Sabrina Carpenter, part of the fun lies in guessing who the songs are about. Much like her friend (and idol) Taylor Swift, the singer-songwriter draws on past relationships as lyrical fuel. “I’m just drinking to call someone / Ain’t nobody safe when I’m a little bit drunk / Could be John or Larry, gosh, who’s to say? / Or the one that rhymes with ‘villain’ if I’m feeling that way.” When she sings those lines in Go Go Juice, it’s hard not to think of Dylan O’Brien, Barry Keoghan, or Shawn Mendes – three of her exes whose names or surnames rhyme with “villain,” “Larry,” or “John.”
A country new album, following in Dolly Parton’s footsteps
In terms of sound, Sabrina Carpenter had revealed that she drew her inspiration from Stevie Nicks, the singer of Fleetwood Mac, Dolly Parton, and Donna Summer, for Man’s Best Friend. This new album partly follows in the footsteps of Short n’ Sweet with its radio-friendly appeal, but is less pop and direct. The tracks are steeped in country, disco, and R’n’B influences, reminiscent of both Dolly Parton and ABBA.
Sabrina Carpenter co-produced the album with Jack Antonoff – known for his work with Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey or Kendrick Lamar – and John Ryan, who already worked on Short n’ Sweet. She also co-wrote it with her longtime collaborator Amy Allen. But aside from Manchild, the album doesn’t deliver any instant hits or striking original hooks. Instead, it is filled with songs made to be listened to by the fire – yes, there’s even banjo – or while dancing tearfully in your bedroom. Either way with a few close friends or alone…
Some tracks do stand out, like House Tour, Tears, When Did You Get Hot, and Goodbye, and offer melodies that linger long after the music stops. With this cheeky, unfiltered record, Sabrina Carpenter cements her status as a pop star who matters, even if the impact isn’t quite as immediate as with her two previous opus, the irresistibly catchy Short n’ Sweet and the confessional Emails I Can’t Send.
Sabrina Carpenter’s ever-captivating aesthetic
One thing is for sure, the visual universe Sabrina Carpenter has crafted for this new album is as captivating as ever. With promotional visuals that oscillate between cute pictures of her dogs and herself in pastoral settings and sultry shots of herself in evening gowns surrounded by men in suits, she knows exactly how to spark curiosity. She also had the clever idea of inviting her fans, the “Carpenters,” to exclusive listening sessions and had them reveal the tracklist themselves.
The star made an even bigger splash with the first two videos from Man’s Best Friend: Manchild, a wild road trip featuring the singer and several of her crushes, and Tears, which draws inspiration from the cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show and features actor Colman Domingo in drag. Some scenes from these videos are already iconic, like the singer bathing with pigs as she sings “Hey Men”, or pole dancing in lingerie in the middle of a field. As is often the case in the Sabrina Carpenter Cinematic Universe, the men don’t make it out alive.
Even though she titled her album Man’s Best Friend, Sabrina Carpenter remains a woman’s best ally, and sometimes, a man’s worst nightmare, according to her sarcastic visuals. It is a formula that secures her a prime spot in today’s pop landscape, much like Madonna, the queen of scandal, before her.
Man’s Best Friend by Sabrina Carpenter, available now.
